A number of people have asked me about this so I post here the help I am aware of on this.

Phone lines are open Monday to Friday, 8.40am – 5pm:

T: 0161 7707777

E: carers.services@oldham.gov.uk

You can find links to all services etc on the Council’s website https://www.oldham.gov.uk/info/200244/caring_for_someone

To the people of the city and county palatine of Lancaster

Greetings!

Know ye that this day, November 27th in the year of our Lord Two Thousand and twenty, the 69th year of the reign of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Duke of Lancaster, is

Lancashire Day

Know ye also, and rejoice, that by virtue of Her Majesty’s County Palatine of Lancaster, the citizens of the Hundreds of Lonsdale, North and South of the Sands, Amounderness, Leyland, Blackburn, Salford and West Derby are forever entitled to style themselves Lancastrians.

Throughout the County Palatine, from the Furness Fells to the River Mersey, from the Irish Sea to the Pennines, this day shall ever mark the people’s pleasure in that excellent distinction – true Lancastrians, proud of the Red Rose and loyal to our Sovereign Duke.

GOD BLESS LANCASHIRE
AND GOD SAVE THE QUEEN,
DUKE OF LANCASTER.

COMMUNICATION I HAVE JUST RECEIVED FROM THE COUNCIL Good afternoon,   I’m emailing to let you know that the Shaw Market traders permitted to trade under lockdown regulations have decided not to trade tomorrow.

During the 2nd Lockdown, three traders have been in regular attendance – however they have informed the market team that the community are not attending to support them and therefore they’ve not traded well.  They have therefore provided us with notice today that they will not be in attendance tomorrow for the last Market of this lockdown period.  They have all confirmed that they are happy to return next Thursday when hopefully more members of the community will attend to support their trade.

The Oldham Council Liberal Democrat Group has welcomed tonight’s (25/11/20) decision at a full meeting of Oldham Council to postpone the decision on whether to approve the controversial plan to build housing on the Green Belt. 

The plan, backed by the Labour Mayor of Greater Manchester and Labour Leaders of the Greater Manchester local authorities, would if adopted in Oldham mean 11,817 new homes built in the borough by 2037.  Many hundreds of homes would be built on greenfield sites in Shaw and Crompton represented by Liberal Democrat Councillors.

Last week, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group, wrote to the Leader of the Council asking for an adjournment after councillors in Salford and Stockport failed to reach their own decisions on the plan. 

Commenting, Councillor Sykes said:  “The Greater Manchester Spatial Framework will deliver tens of thousands of new homes across the whole of the city region.  Each one of the ten authorities in Greater Manchester is expected to share the burden.  We need to know what will change in Salford and Stockport before we arrive at our decision as it could have an impact on the residents of this Borough.  More houses may come our way as a result as housing numbers may be displaced.”

Councillor Sykes welcomed the cross-party decision tonight adding:  “After the many delays, amounting to years, that have already occurred in making the final decision on the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework, an extra delay at this point of a few weeks to provide time for the situation in Salford and Stockport to become clearer represents common-sense.”

In advance of the UN Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (25 November), the Oldham Liberal Democrats have written to government ministers asking for the Rail to Refuge scheme, which supplies free train tickets to enable women to flee domestic violence, to be made permanent.

The letter sent by the Leader of the Opposition, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, on behalf of his colleagues to the Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapps MP, and the Home Office Minister responsible for safeguarding women and children, Victoria Atkins MP, suggests that retaining the scheme is both a ‘necessary and logical thing’ to do.

Councillor Sykes has also twice written to the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, seeking his support.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, domestic violence has hugely increased.  Tragically, two women are killed every week in the UK by abusive partners and ex-partners.  Often the only way they can escape a violent partner is to move to a place of safety across the country, but such women frequently do not have access to the money needed to pay for train tickets.  At present, the scheme is time-limited and is currently due to end in March 2021.

Councillor Howard Sykes said:  “Rail to Refuge is both brilliant and simple because it enables women to access free train tickets to allow them and their children to find a place of safety swiftly. The public money invested in this scheme will spare countless women and children from abuse or death, and it will enable them to transform their lives in a place of safety, so making this scheme permanent would be the only decent and humane choice to make.” 

For real time information: https://oldham.roadworks.org/

About Carers Rights Day

Whether you are a new carer or have been caring for someone for a while, we believe that it’s important that you understand your rights and are able to access the support that is available to you as soon as you need it. Each year, Carers Rights Day helps us:

• ensure carers are aware of their rights
• let carers know where to get help and support
• raise awareness of the needs of carers.

The theme for Carers Rights Day 2020 is ‘Know Your Rights’

In a recent survey of nearly 6,000 carers, we found:

• Four in five unpaid carers are providing more care for relatives
• 78% reported that the needs of the person they care for have increased during the pandemic
• Two thirds (67%) worried about how they will cope through further lockdowns or local restrictions.

Carers need to know their rights wherever they are in their caring journey: whether they are in the workplace, in a healthcare setting, when interacting with professionals or at home. This Carers Rights Day, we want to empower carers with information and support, so they can feel confident asking for what they need. We also want carers to know how to challenge things when their rights are not being met.

If you are caring for someone and want to know more about your rights, click here to read our Looking after someone guide.

The Oldham Council Liberal Democrat Group wants to see front line health and care workers and the relatives of care home residents given top priority when mass COVID-19 testing is rolled out across Oldham.   

The Government has announced that Oldham will be one of 67 new areas to be targeted for mass testing because of the high number of new cases detected each week in the Borough.

Testing the front line health and care workers in our National Health Service and care homes who are leading the fight to save the lives and alleviate the suffering of others from this terrible disease must, for the Liberal Democrats, be an absolute priority, but Group Leader, Councillor Howard Sykes MBE, makes a plea for a third category of our residents not be overlooked. 

According to a recent survey carried out by Age UK, seven out of ten people with a close relative in a care home have not seen them since the start of the pandemic in March.

Commenting Councillor Sykes said:  “In this pandemic, one of the greatest tragedies has been seeing the forced separation of the residents of our care homes from their loved ones.  For the residents of the care homes in our Borough who have waited many months to finally meet up with family this cannot come soon enough, and that is why we believe that the relatives of the residents of care homes should be prioritised and offered access to tests so they can arrange to visit.  Let’s hope this can happen in time for Christmas.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has this week announced an extra £16.5 billion for Britain’s armed forces over four years, saying he was determined to “end the retreat” in military spending, but Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader Councillor Howard Sykes MBE is disappointed that he has made no similar commitment on long-term funding for other public services.

Commenting, Councillor Sykes said:  “Whilst this is undoubtedly welcome news for our armed forces, public services such as local Councils, Police, Fire and Health struggle along with year-by-year announcements on funding by central government.  We need a similar four-year plan.  It would enable us to plan services more effectively and to make better use of the money that is allocated to us.”

“No one doubts the courage of our armed forces which has been tested in the field on numerous occasions and has never been found to be lacking, but in recent months, the fight has been largely at home and against COVID-19 and in this battle it is our public sector staff like health colleagues, emergency services and councils who are committed to the fight in the frontlines against this terrible disease and it would be good if the government could give them some financial certainty too.”

Chancellor Rishi Sunak MP is expected to announce his autumn Spending Review next week, and Councillor Sykes believes this would present an opportunity to make such a commitment.

Councillor Sykes added:  “After years of enforced austerity, as with our armed forces, it is now time for this Government to announce an end to the retreat in funding for the public sector and give them all some stability.”