Mother obtained
?17,950 by fraud
by court reporter
A MOTHER-of-four who claimed ?17,950 in benefits as a lone parent when she was living with her partner has been sentenced to 140-hours Community Service.
Kathleen White, 26, of Reaper Close, Great Sankey, pleaded guilty to five counts of benefit fraud when she appeared before Warrington Crown Court.
She was ordered to pay back the overpayment to Warrington Borough Council and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
The court was told that between December 2001 and April 2003, White defrauded the council of Housing and Council Tax Benefits and the DWP of Income Support.
Judge David Hale sentenced her and ordered her to pay back the overpayment and ?250 costs.
Adrian Webster, the council’s benefits manager, said: “Benefit cheats must realise that they cannot abuse the benefit system and steal from the rest of society. They are not just defrauding the government or the local authority, but their own tax paying neighbours and communities.
“Fraud is theft and this case is a clear demonstration of our determination to tackle benefit fraud. Improved data matching techniques mean we are catching more benefit cheats than ever and reducing the amount of money lost through fraud and abuse.”
Fraud operations manager Roy Paul said: “This is an excellent example of government departments working together to combat benefit fraud. Our recent research shows that the public is fed up with cheats who steal money from the taxpayer that should go to those in genuine need of help.
“Tough action against benefit crooks is paying off, but we can’t do it alone. People around Warrington can play their part by telling us about alleged fraudsters free and in confidence, on our National Benefit Fraud Hotline 0800 854 440.”
Housing company scoops
top national award
by John Hendon
GOLDEN Gates Housing – the arms length management company which runs housing for Warrington Borough Council – has scooped top prize at the 2004 Learning Northwest Success Awards.
Fran Hulbeth from the North West Development Agency presented the award to GGH at a special ceremony held at Knowsley Hall on Merseyside.
A panel of expert judges considered GGH’s “multi-skilling” initiative the best entry in the “Skills for Business” category of the awards.
Assistant director Phil Pemberton said: “This is a notable achievement for Golden Gates Housing. The award is recognition of the training carried out by our workforce and their willingness to accept change.
“The initiative has benefited all our customers and GGH. Through its multi-skilled workforce, we are now one of the best performing repairs providers in the country.”
Golden Gates Housing, formed 12 months ago, manages 9,500 homes on behalf of the borough council.
It is planning to access around ?30 million worth of Government funding over the next two years which will be used to bring properties up to the Government’s Decent Homes Standard.
High school praised for
expertise and behaviour
by Lesley Wilkinson
TEACHERS at a Warrington high school have been praised for “good expertise” and the ability to “manage behaviour well” following an Ofsted inspection.
Penketh High School is good and improving, according to the inspectors.
An Ofsted team visited in October to assess the school, pupils and the sixth form. They described teaching and learning throughout the school as good, particularly in Years 10 to 13, where eight out of every 10 lessons were good or better.
The school curriculum was found to be good, but inspectors called for more development in the areas of citizenship and personal, health, and social education.
The care, welfare, health and safety and the school’s provision of advice, support and guidance were also praised. Staff were said to involve students and pupils well in its work and development.
Inspectors praised the school for working well in partnership with parents, the wider community, other schools and colleges. And it was found to have improved since the last inspection in 1999.
Leadership, management and governance of the school were found to be good and the head teacher was seen as a strong leader, well supported by his team.
The school was recognised for its innovative practices, which it disseminates to other schools.
The sixth form, which is currently subject to a three-year development plan, was found to offer high standard teaching and learning, with outstanding provision for visual art.
Support for students was found to be good. However sixth form attendance was low and unmonitored and was found to have affected standards. It was recommended that work be done on promoting independent learning skills at sixth form level.
Ofsted recommended improvements such as raising GCSE and GNVQ levels, improving the sixth form and development of literacy and ICT through all stages. Improvements were also recommended on the distribution of finances.
Headteacher Barry Fishwick said: “We were delighted by the outcome of the inspection. The team were very thorough and there is no doubt that they got to know us very well.
“I am especially pleased about the high quality teaching seen by the inspectors. We have some fantastic teachers and pupils here and they really deserve the plaudits from the inspection team,” he added.
Chairman of governors John Holmes said: “The governors and staff at the school have worked hard to improve in all areas. It is good to see that this is recognised by Ofsted. We know we have more to do but we had no surprises and were already moving forward in key areas.”
Kitchen fire
in empty flat
by David Skentelbery
FIRE crews were called to a flat in Grasmere Avenue, Orford, Warrington when fire broke out in the kitchen.
They found the property empty, but flames leaping from a pan which had been left on the cooker.
There was a small amount of fire damage in the kitchen, but the whole flat suffered smoke damage.
Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus use a hosereel jet to tackle the blaze.
A spokesman said it appeared the occupiers had gone out leaving a pan on the cooker.
A chance to hear
youth orchestra
by staff reporter
WARRINGTON Youth Orchestra holds its annual coffee morning this Saturday (February 5) at Bridgewater High School, when supporters can here the young musicians of the Third Orchestra in concert while the enjoy refreshment.
The orchestra has a full programme of concerts and events at the Parr Hall, Warrington and Bridgewater High School throughout the rest of the year – including a joint concert with the Wirral Youth Orchestra and a visit to the Glan-Ilyn Centre in Bala, for an intensive music course and outdoor activities.
Unfortunately, the Hilden Musikschule, which was due to visit Warrington in October r, has had to postpone this until 2006 due to commitments with a Japanese orchestra . However this will give WYO more time to develop their repertoire.
. WYO welcomes new players on any Saturday morning during term time at Bridgewater High School, Broomfields Road, Stockton Heath when rehearsals take place.
The orchestra has a number of instruments available for rental at a nominal charge (bassoons, oboes, cellos and horns) for youngsters who wish to try them out.
We also arrange lessons for beginners in woodwind, brass and strings.
More information about the orchestra is available from Roy Green (01925 490527) or Kath Whyte (0161 941 2350).
MP wants retailers to
cut store card interest
by staff reporter
WARRINGTON North MP Helen Jones is calling for big retailers to reduce interest rates on their store cards.
She has highlighted a study published by the Office of Fair Trading which found that features of the store card market “prevent, restrict or distort competition.”
The MP said:
“The interest on store cards can be excessive, in some cases a massive 30 per cent higher than credit cards. This does not reflect the current low interest rates that exist and certainly does not put the consumer first.
“The Competition Commission have already outlined potential concerns regarding interest rates on store cards and I welcome the investigation they have set up into this matter. I hope that it will lead to action being taken to reduce interest rates.”
[ 04.02.2005, 09:23: Message edited by: DS ]
