Sports Minister kick starts
Town’s Football League goal
by John Hendon
SPORTS Minister Gerry Sutcliffe was on the ball when he visited Warrington Town FC to help kick start the non-league club’s vision to achieve football league status over the next five years.
The government minister entered into the spirit of the occasion as he donned one of Town’s new jerseys as he managed to save a penalty struck by one of the club’s under 18 players – who wishes to remain anonymous!
Mr Sutcliffe was invited to visit the club by Warrington South MP Helen Southworth, who also donned a shirt as she agreed to become an honorary patron of the club.
Warrington-Worldwide editor Gary Skentelbery, one of the club’s new executive board members who sought support from the town’s MP, welcomed Mr Sutcliffe and other key quests including North West Development Agency chief executive Steven Broomhead, Warrington Borough Council chief executive Diana Terris and Peter Kay, national funding and partnership manager, Football Association. After hearing about the club’s ambitious plans to take Town into the football league Mr Sutcliffe viewed a presentation on the Orford Park Project, involving proposals for a ?30 million centre of sporting excellence being created on the park which backs onto Warrington Collegiate. Warrington Town have been invited to become a partner in the project which is already being backed by the town’s Super League club Warrington Wolves. If the project gets the green light it would provide state of the art training facilities which would be available to the Wolves and Warrington Town as well as the wider community. Mr Sutcliffe said: “I have been impressed by the vision for Warrington Town and Orford Park and wish both every success in the future.” He was particularly impressed to see the level of enthusiasm at a grass roots level as youngsters from Warrington Town’s Under 18’s and Warrington Town Ladies displayed their skills. “It may seem ambitious to get Warrington Town into the football league but this club is a sleeping giant nestling between two footballing cities, in Liverpool and Manchester. All we have to do is look down the road to Wigan to see what can be achieved.” said Gary. “It was always said football would never succeed in Wigan because it is a Rugby League Town – but now Wigan Athletic are in the Premiership. We have a successful Rugby League Club and it is an integral part of our plans to work closely with the Wolves to everyone’s mutual benefit. Working in partnership with local businesses and the community is a key part of our strategy,” he added.
Flats plan thrown out –
despite ?30,000 offer
by David Skentelbery
PLANNING bosses have thrown out proposals for 52 sheltered flats for the elderly at Lymm ? despite a warning that it could result in the loss of a ?30,000 donation to a local community association.
Warrington?s development control committee turned down plans submitted by retirement homes specialists McCarthy and Stone for the site of Rushgreen Service Station in Rushgreen Road.
It was the second time the committee had rejected the proposals and the company has already lodged an appeal against the first application, which is due to be held in November.
The scheme was opposed by Lymm Parish Council and by local councillor Sheila Woodyatt.
She said: ?Neither I nor the parish council object to the principle of development on this site and we would not wish to see it derelict.
?But we are disappointed the amended plan does not address our previous concerns. There has been no attempt to reduce the scale and massing on this very prominent site which needs development in keeping with the adjacent area.
?We have a surfeit of apartments in Lymm, including retirement apartments, and the real need is for affordable housing for young families.?
Coun Woodyatt said it appeared the applicant, having made an offer of ?30,000 for the very deserving Oughtrington Community Association, was threatening to withdraw it if the scheme was turned down by the council but granted on appeal. If this was the case, it was very disappointing from a company with a reputation for integrity.
The committee was told the company was also offering ?200,000 for the provision of affordable housing ? but it would not be in Lymm.
Currently the site is occupied by the filling station, workshops, a shop and a house.
Planning officers had recommended the scheme be approved. They argued that the size of the proposed development was not sufficient grounds to refuse planning development and that the offer of a total of ?230,000 by the applicant represented a significant planning gain.
Petitioners protest
over police cuts
by staff reporter
LIBERAL Democrat campaigners spent a day in Warrington town centre collecting signatures from local shoppers to protest against cuts to the Cheshire police force.
They claim the Government has under-funded Cheshire police, resulting in a cut of 47 police officers across the county.
Warrington South Prospective Parliamentary candidate Jo Crotty was joined by Paul Rowen, Liberal Democrat MP for Rochdale and local councillors.
They asked the public to support a campaign for more police officers for Warrington ? particularly as Warrington Borough Council has made tackling crime a top priority, employing 22 more Police Community Service Officers.
Mr Rowen said: “I was more than happy to come out with Jo Crotty and Warrington Liberal Democrats to get public backing for our campaign. This is not the time to be cutting police numbers. We need to re-examine the way we police in this country, we should not be blindly slashing police numbers.?
Jo Crotty said: “The support we got was just fantastic. We collected well over 500 signatures for our petition in the first couple of hours. People here in Warrington know how important it is to keep our police officers. They do a very good job, and it is not the time to cut their numbers.”
Local Liberal Democrats also have been pushing the government to crack down on shops that sell alcohol to children. Over a 10 year period only 67 shops were prosecuted nationally.
Jo Crotty added: “The Government must begin to enforce the laws that are on the books. It is the fastest way to start tackling this anti-social drinking culture.?
Soap stars v bus drivers
in charity soccer game
by staff reporter
CORONATION Street and Hollyoaks stars will tackle bus drivers in a charity football match to raise money for children with life-threatening illnesses.
The match will be at the Crosfields Recreation Ground, Warrington on Sunday, September 16 and has been organised by the Shannon Bradshaw Trust, the charity set up in memory of the seven-year-old Warrington girl who died in 2002 despite a desperate search for someone with matching bone marrow.
Warrington Borough Transport bus drivers will take on the celebrity team, but there will also be an under 14s match as a curtain raiser, bouncy castle, rides, games and hot and cold food and drinks. Kick-off will be 11.30am.
On Saturday, September 15, the Trust is joining forces with the Rotary Club of Sandbach Crosses to hold a charity fishing match at Fields Farm Fisheries, Sandbach.
Shannon Bradshaw died five years ago of the rare bone condition Aplastic Anaemia, after more than 6,000 people across the North West attended special donor sessions to try and find someone with matching bone marrow. Sadly, by the time a perfect match was found, Shannon was too ill to undergo the procedure.
How council spends
its “green” money
by staff reporter
BOROUGH Council leader Ian Marks has spelled out how the authority is spending the extra money that went into this year?s budget for green initiatives.
The council allocated an extra ?200,000 for environmental improvement and has already announced a blitz on graffiti costing ?50,000.
Another ?50,000 is to be spent on extensions to the green bin recycling scheme.
But ?100,000 will be spent on a new team to deal with overgrown wooded areas and planting.
Coun Marks said: ?There are a massive number of requests outstanding which the existing team cannot progress.?
The council is also to invest on additional mechanised street cleaning machines.
In addition there will be ?136,000 of capital costs associated with these initiatives.
Councillor wins pledge
on street lighting
by John Hendon
MORE than 200 residents of the Fairfield and Howley area of Warrington signed a petition calling for improved street lighting – and now a local councillor has won a pledge that the issue will be examined.
Coun Paul Kenny asked for details of plans for street lighting improvements in the area during the current financial year.
Coun Brian Axcell, executive member for environment services said he would ask officers for an urgent report on streets that do not meet current standards for lighting.
Coun Kenny said local people were fed up with poor quality lighting, some of which were installed more than 30 years ago.
He said: “While I am pleased that a number of areas in Fairfield and Howley now have modern street lighting there are still a number of streets in and around the Orford Lane area that are sub-standard and, frankly, passed their sell by date.
“Modern street lamps do provide much better illumination and studies show do have an impact on reducing crime in our local communities. That’s why I will be pushing for this area to be included in the next phase of improvements.”
[ 08.09.2007, 07:53: Message edited by: DS ]
