Please be aware Oldham Council have removed the recycling site due to bins being constantly contaminated and fly tipping.
The nearest alternative site is at ASDA Shaw (Located off Greenfield Lane)
If you require any recycling containers for your personal use please contact Oldham Council on 0161-770-6644 or email waste@oldham.gov.uk
Your local Liberal Democrat Borough and Parish Councillors have finally after months of requests had First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO) place temporary wooden doors on the bin sheds.
This has resulted in a drop in Anti-Social Behaviour in Shaw Town centre and less fly tipping in the area. The Oldham Council collection team are now removing less waste from the sheds.
The next step is to quickly work with FCHO to install permanent secure metal doors that will continue the positive effects of having new doors to which local residents have been extremely pleased with.
Reservoir rangers talk about the dangers they see daily
Now we’re into the Summer holidays, United Utilities is reminding the public that reservoirs are deep, freezing and deadly, and people should not onsider swimming in them.
This year some of its reservoir rangers – the people on the front line as the first point of contact for the many visitors to reservoirs – have been recalling incidents they have witnessed where people, often unknowingly, have put themselves or others in real danger of serious injury or death.
For example a father teaching his young son how to ‘tombstone’ (jumping or diving from a height into water) into icy water; teenagers taking to the water while under the influence of alcohol and a family who have quickly found themselves out of their depth on a cheap and flimsy inflatable boat.
These are just some of the incidents encountered by United Utilities’ rangers as they patrol the region’s reservoirs over the summer months.
There were a total of 381 drownings and water-related deaths across the UK in 2013, with over half in inland waters, such as reservoirs, lakes and rivers. Reservoirs in particular, with their sudden drops, hidden machinery, unpredictable currents and freezing water can be fatal for those who ignore the warning signs.
There are more than 180 reservoirs in the North West, which frequently attract risk-taking swimmers when the weather heats up.
Tia Dawson is a ranger in Greater Manchester and she can recall many stories about people taking risks around reservoirs.
“I’ve seen people taking terrible risks tombstoning from cliffs and high places into reservoirs, it seems to be the latest craze. It’s incredibly dangerous – they have no idea what’s under the water, or what temperature it could be.
“One of the most extreme things I’ve seen was two teenage lads who stripped off and were about to jump off one of our valve towers, there are pipes under the surface which draw water at high pressure, it was awful to see. I had to get the police involved who stopped them going in the water. It’s just as well, I remember thinking at the time: “that’s it, if they go in there, they’re never coming out.
“Another one that had to be seen to be believed was a Dad was teaching his son, who about 8 how to tombstone into the water off a nearby cliff. When I approached him, he said he’d been doing it all his life. I talked to him about the dangers and I really hope he listened.
“People also suffer terrible injuries from falling onto hidden objects, there was an incident I remember where a lad jumped off some steps, aiming for the water, and ended up landing on hidden steps below, breaking several limbs in the process.
“People just don’t seem to understand the dangers”.
Steve Hardcastle from United Utilities’ Health and Safety team said: “These are not isolated incidents and whilst we are looking forward to welcoming thousands of visitors to our reservoir sites this summer, we only have one condition – please stay out of the water. The last thing we want is for a fun day out to turn into a tragedy.
“While teenagers are statistically the most likely to put themselves in harm’s way, we have seen adults and even parents with young children taking the plunge, not realising just how much danger they are in. The risks of reservoir swimming are very real and we want to people to stay safe.”
Greater Manchester is pleased to support United Utilities, emergency services, schools and other organisations to raise awareness of the dangers of swimming in reservoirs.
The hard hitting facts are:
Figures recently released by the Department for Health shows the Conservative Government is planning a massive £1M+ (£1,059,000) cut to the public health budget in Oldham Borough. The budget pays to help improve people’s health so there is less pressure on the NHS.
Work undertaken by public health cash includes encouraging people to exercise more, give up smoking, drink less, come off drugs and drink, avoid sexually transmitted diseases and have a more healthy diet.
“This cut will mean that local residents are less likely to make good decisions on their health, and when they do need help it is far less likely to be there for them,” says Lib Dem Councillor Howard Sykes MBE.
“Cutting the budget in the middle of the financial year means it will be really difficult to make these cuts. Liberal Democrats say these are the wrong cuts, made in the wrong way and they will end up costing the Government and the NHS more than is saved.”
The Government proposals can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/449058/Cons_local_authorities_public_health_grant.pdf
30 July 2015
TO: Councillor Barbara Brownridge, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods and Co-operatives, and Councillor Susan Dearden Chair of the Health & Well-being Board
Dear Barbara and Sue,
A Food Commission for Oldham
The Oldham Liberal Democrats are gravely concerned about the rising instances of food poverty within the borough. We are sure that you too share these concerns.
A recent Cabinet report; ‘Welfare Reform: Food Poverty and Food Banks’ presented to last Council highlighted that Oldham has an estimated 24,700 people in food poverty (or 10.7% of the population) and estimated that 4,600 accessed the borough’s food bank network.
With a new Tory Government no longer checked by the Liberal Democrats in coalition, we face the frightening prospect that poorer households across the borough will face great hardship over the next five years as welfare reform bites.
We fear this will have a big impact on peoples’ nutrition. As you will be aware, an inadequate diet impacts both on the individual’s immediate and long-term health, but also upon their ability to effectively participate in education, employment or civic society. These risks are exacerbated where that individual is a child, an older person or already has a disability or a long-term health condition.
We have written to the Prime Minister outlining a national plan to address food poverty, but we are also convinced that the local situation calls for a unified response from Oldham’s politicians and agencies to ensure that none of our residents goes hungry.
We note that:
The Cabinet report presented to Council identified an action to host a ‘Fair Access to Food’ workshop in the summer. We welcome this but we feel that the local authority, as one of the leading stakeholders in promoting public health, needs to be something more dynamic.
The report describes the commendable work already being carried out by many agencies in the borough as ‘extremely disparate’. This is our view also.
It is therefore our recommendation that the Council look to establish a Food Poverty Commission to bring together the agencies already working on this agenda, and those that need to be engaged in doing so, to establish a strategy and a local action plan that is effectively managed to alleviate food poverty.
We have done this with housing and with education, so why not now with food poverty?
The Commission should first and foremost identify those practical measures that can be taken now in our borough, with a particular focus on:
We would welcome the chance to work with you, and with other citizens and agencies concerned with food poverty, to ensure that no Oldhamer goes hungry.
We very much look forward to receiving your response.
Yours sincerely
Howard Sykes
Dear Sir,
Letter to the Editor – Lib Dem Support for Lifesaver Campaign
As local elected leaders, we have shown our support for the St. John’s Ambulance Nation of Lifesavers campaign.
First aid is an invaluable skill for every child to learn. It gives young people the confidence to do the right thing when it really matters. And with it, they can represent the difference between life and death.
In countries, such as Norway and the United States of America, where first aid is a compulsory part of the national curriculum the medical intervention by young people at home and in the community has saved many lives.
That is why in February we brought a motion to full Council calling on the UK Government to make first aid a part of the national curriculum and for defibrillators to be installed in all Oldham schools.
And that is why we are supporting the St John campaign to create millions more first aiders – a new generation to save lives.
You can show your support too by signing the petition at the https://thepromise.sja.org.uk/
Yours sincerely
Councillor Howard Sykes
Councillor Rod Blyth
Councillor Chris Gloster
Councillor Garth Harknes
Councillor Derek Heffernan
Councillor John McCann
Councillor Dave Murphy
Councillor Val Sedgwick
Councillor Julia Turner
Councillor Diane Williamson
The Leader of the Opposition and of the Liberal Democrat Group on Oldham Council, and Shaw Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, has attacked proposals to scrap the European Union Birds and Habitat Directives.
These Nature Directives provide legal protection for the many unique creatures that inhabit Europe and the many places of great beauty in which they live. The European Commission is currently running a public consultation to see if there is support to abolish them as part of a drive to “reduce environmental regulation”.
Cllr Sykes said: “These laws protect unique creatures such as the brown bear of the Caucasus, the flamingo and imperial eagle of the Donana Wetlands of Spain, and the very rare Large Mason Bee, which inhabits the sea cliffs of North Wales. This matters because these animals form part of the all-important ecosystem that we have a duty to maintain for current and future generations as stewards of this planet.”
Cllr Sykes added: “But our objections are not just about saving animals and habitats in far off places. The abolition of the Nature Directives will mean places closer to home are under threat. Places such as the South Pennine Moors, which, as part of the Peak District National Park, also borders our Borough, and the Manchester Mosses.”
“The Oldham Liberal Democrats want to see Nature Laws strengthened in the UK and in Europe – not see them eroded. That is why we have registered our objections to this proposal in the strongest possible terms”.
Would you like to get more involved in your local area?
Would you like to volunteer at events or activities within the Shaw & Crompton area like the Christmas Lights Switch On ?
Are you interested in setting up new groups or supporting existing local community groups and organisations such as Friends of Dunwood Park
For more details please contact Anne Fleming on 0161 770 8172 / anne.fleming@oldham.gov.uk
Support and training will be offered.
On Tuesday, 21 July Shaw and Crompton held its first Community Market Place.
The Community Market Place is a different sort of meeting for the public. It is an informal setting where various organisations set up a ‘stall’ which allows members of the public to browse and stop and chat with them as they wish. It was held in the main hall of the Lifelong Learning Centre, High Street, Shaw and over 50 people and about 15 organisations attended.
Local Lib Dem Crompton Councillor Diane Williamson and Chair of the District Executive said: “Tuesday’s meeting was different from what we have done before. Local Shaw and Crompton Councillors decided to try this new approach as a way of allowing residents to talk with other organisations they frequently use as well as direct them to organisations that they may need to use in the future.”
Attending the event were the Shaw and Crompton Councillors, as well as Metrolink, First Bus, Housing 21, FCHO, Guinness, Oldham Community Leisure, Mahdlo, Macmillan, Community Safety and the Police, Environmental Services, plus Shaw & Crompton Parish Councillors
“We are looking at holding a similar event in about six months’ time, where we are hoping more organisations and residents attend,” said Shaw Lib Dem Councillor Howard Sykes MBE.
Once the Market Place event was over local Councillors then held the more formal and traditional District Executive.
At that meeting Councillor Diane Williamson and Councillor Howard Sykes proposed and seconded a resolution asking Oldham Council to bring forward proposals about improving highway and pedestrian safety at the junction of Fraser Street, Chamber Road and Rochdale Road.
“Both Shaw and Crompton Councillors are contacted regularly about this junction and we are doing what residents are asking us; which is to see what can be done to make that bit of Rochdale Road safer,” said Councillor Diane Williamson.
