In Shaw Memorial Gardens on Thursday evening the community of Shaw and Crompton came together to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and the lighting of the beacon.

Councillor Diane Williamson, Liberal Democrat for Crompton said, “I was absolutely thrilled at the amount of people that came along to the event, to watch the performances from Crompton House School choir and band as well as the phenomenal Elizabeth Phillips  – they were fantastic.”

The event would not have happened without New Image, who provided lighting and music, Shaw & Crompton Town Crier, First Response, Liberty, Crompton House School, Elizabeth Phillips, the six Shaw and Crompton Liberal Democrat Borough Councillors and the District Co-ordinator.

‘The weather held off so we could light the beacon at 9:45pm; the community was in fine voice and we celebrated our Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.  I know there are a lot of street parties happening over the weekend and I want to wish everybody an enjoyable time on this momentous occasion” added Councillor Diane Williamson, Deputy District Lead, Team North (Royton, Shaw and Crompton).

Oldham’s patients will be left unrepresented and uncared for if Oldham Council persists with no scrutiny of the new Northern Care Alliance, says Crompton Liberal Democrat Councillor Louie Hamblett, with the Council having not replaced the board which previously oversaw the activities of the now dissolved Pennine Acute.

With current IT failures causing huge problems across the whole of the group of hospitals.

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Health said: “No-one will be speaking up for patients in the new system, and there is already confusion over services being provided in different hospitals.

“Currently there are patients who are getting services in hospitals which are not covered by the Northern Care Alliance – they are contracting in services in North Manchester hospitals. If something goes wrong, who do you complain to? Is it the hospital where it happened, or the hospital which contracted in the services? One thing is for certain, if it is possible for complaints to fall through the cracks, it seems all too likely that they will.”

Councillor Hamblett called for a new committee to provide overview and scrutiny for the Northern Care Alliance and all the places where it is commissioning services from.

He continued: “There is a clear need for effective scrutiny. This got lost while everyone prioritised – necessarily – the Covid pandemic. We are in a different place now, and the Council must ensure that the people of Oldham are represented.

“We have Covid recovery strategies, but we are not effectively working with NHS providers, and we are not challenging them to ensure they are doing the best for the people of Oldham. The Labour administration should not have let this slip.

“I care that residents get looked after properly. I want to know that I have done my level best to get their views heard. Without oversight, they are being denied a voice. That cannot be allowed to continue.”

Council plans to increase electric vehicle usage across Oldham Borough have been labelled as “ineffective and empty words” by Oldham’s Liberal Democrats after it emerged that Oldham has just 36 charging points and has missed key opportunities to expand its supply. 

Oldham Liberal Democrat councillors have previously raised concerns about the Labour controlled Council’s strategy for electric vehicles, pointing out existing plans would not be good enough if Oldham is to reach the key target of 3,000 charging points by 2025.

Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE said, “Labour have dragged their heels on this for too long now.  We have Mayor Burnham rolling ahead with Clean Air Zone plans that will make electric vehicles ever more important, but lack of action from our Labour controlled council has led to Oldham falling far behind other Manchester boroughs.  If this crucial infrastructure is not put in place quickly, Oldham will be left behind on yet another issue.”

In March, Oldham Council was criticised for failing to incorporate electric charging points into the new Saddleworth School raising further questions about council leadership priorities.

Councillor Sykes said, “Failure to make use of opportunities to expand our capacity like we saw with Saddleworth School, Uppermill Leisure Centre and the Saddleworth Museum just demonstrate the council simply don’t understand the urgent need to get the basics right.  All we have had is ineffective, empty words and no meaningful action.” 

Further information on electric charging points by local authority

https://maps.dft.gov.uk/ev-charging-map/index.html

The pharmacy opening times for the upcoming bank holidays have been released. They are as follows:

Boots the Chemist     
1 Town Square Shopping Centre, Oldham, OL1 1XD
0161 633 6136         
Thursday 2nd June 10am – 4pm
Friday 3rd June 10am – 4pm
 
Boots the Chemist
Elk Mill Centre Retail Park, Broadway, Oldham, OL2 5HX
0161 652 1620
Thursday 2nd June 10am – 4pm
Friday 3rd June 10am – 4pm
 
Asda Pharmacy
1 Milne Street, Chadderton, Oldham, OL9 0JE
0161 484 1060
Thursday 2nd June 10am – 4pm
Friday 3rd June 10am – 4pm
 
Asda Pharmacy
Greenfield Lane, Shaw, Oldham, OL2 8QP
01706 883 500
Thursday 2nd June 10am – 4pm
Friday 3rd June 10am – 4pm
 
Oldham Late Night Pharmacy
87-89 Lees Road, Oldham, OL4 1JW
0161 652 2221
Thursday 2nd June 2pm – 7pm
Friday 3rd June 2pm – 7pm
 
Tesco Pharmacy
Huddersfield Road, Oldham, OL1 3LG
0161 602 8961
Thursday 2nd June 9am – 1pm
Friday 3rd June 9am – 1pm
 
Tesco Pharmacy
Featherstall Road North, Oldham, OL9 6BW
0345 677 9522
Thursday 2nd June 9am – 1pm
Friday 3rd June 9am – 1pm

More information can be found on their website at:
https://greater-manchester.communitypharmacy.org.uk/our-news/easter-pharmacy-opening-hours/

A survey into council staff satisfaction has exposed a culture of slipping standards at Oldham Civic Centre, with 50% of council workers saying they would not recommend Oldham Council as a place to work.

Liberal Democrat Group Leader and Leader of the Opposition, councillor Howard Sykes MBE said, “These results show that a long-term culture of falling standards is developing under Labour’s leadership of Oldham Borough Council.  The Labour administration has failed to get the basics right under successive council leaders and we now have a mountain to climb to get our staff back on board.”

Sykes’s comments come after 2021 staff survey data revealed that the council’s performance as an employer had dropped sharply across the board when compared with the last staff survey which was completed in 2016.

“I have been asking for the results of the survey for months and it has just not been supplied.  I now know why.  I then find it has been quietly published on the council intranet,” stated councillor Sykes.

The results show that only 50% of Oldham’s council workers would recommend the council as “a great place to work” – down from 63% in 2016. 

Only 54% said they were proud to tell others that they work for Oldham Council – down from 73%.

Less than a third of staff felt that they had received worthwhile training and development, with only 31% indicating that the training they had received over the last year had helped their career – down from 57% in 2016.

“These figures are damming and some of the worst I have ever seen, but they will not be a surprize to those who work for the council, stated councillor Sykes.  “These results lift the lid on Labour’s Civic Centre culture of complacency and the administration now has mountain to climb to reverse them.”

“The Labour leadership has been dragging its feet in publishing these results and now we know why.  We have just had our second change of Labour leadership in as many years.  Without a motivated and trained workforce there is no chance of improving customer services and some of the basic services the council taxpayer expects and deserves,” he added.

As the gavel was struck on Tuesday 24th May at the Shaw and Crompton Annual Parish Council meeting, Councillor Louie Hamblett was unanimously appointed as Chair of Shaw and Crompton Parish Council 2022-23.

Cllr Hamblett thanked council for their support and his predecessor Councillor Berry for his support also.

He also added that voluntary service is an integral part of our communities and he will be working to support some hard-working charities this year.

His chosen charities are Pennine Mencap (Autistic and SEND Support), Royal British Legion (Shaw and Crompton Branch) and Dr Kershaw’s Hospice.

His partner Stephen will be his consort for his civic year and they will become the first openly LGBT+ couple to hold the post, along with Cllr Hamblett being the first autistic Chair for the council.

His colleague Councillor Joe Beeston has also been appointed as Vice Chair for the ensuing year.

Height restriction barriers, which were previously set at two metres, have been removed from Arkwright Street household waste recycling centre (HWRC) for a trial period, until the end of September.

This follows years of campaigning by Liberal Democrats so those with high vehicles are not penalised for wanting to dispose of their domestic waste responsibly.

The process for hire vans remains the same – residents must apply for a permit before they hire the van. Once approved, they must show their QR code permit and hire documents to the SUEZ operative on site.

Shaw and Crompton Liberal Democrat Councillors are delighted to announce that they will be hosting an event in the Memorial Gardens, on Thursday 2 June for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee (see below).

Cllr Diane Williamson said, “There have been a number of complications, but we can finally announce what will be happened on the start of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebrations.”

2pm in the Memorial Gardens – the Town Crier will read the proclamation.

Evening Running order:

8:30pm – Performances Choir / Band / Soprano

9:00pm – Performances Choir / Band / Soprano

9:35pm – Flute player – Dui Regnard (Flute player from Crompton House School)

9:40pm – Cornet Players – ‘Majesty’

9:45pm – Lighting of the beacon in conjunction with the Choir and Soprano singing ‘A Life Lived With Grace’

9:50pm – Event ends

“We are excited to announce that soprano Elizabeth Phillips, who is a former Crompton House School pupil, will be performing with her former school’s choir and band.   As Elizabeth is signing “A Life lived with Grace” the beacon will be lit.”

This year Her Majesty the Queen became the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years of service to the people of the United Kingdom, the Realms, and the Commonwealth.  The four-day UK bank holiday weekend marks the culmination of many events.

“A huge thank you must go to the people of Shaw and Crompton who have come together and embraced the idea of celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.  There are so many events happening in the community from individual street parties, to local pubs holding events, shop windows being dressed and a fantastic display of union flag plus so much more” said Cllr Williamson.

Please come and join us and have a fantastic weekend.