Gunman grabs cash in
raid on post office
by David Skentelbery
A MAN brandishing a handgun made off with a large quantity of cash after threatening a security guard in a post office at Birchwood, Warrington.
No shots were fire and no-one was hurt in the raid on the Spar Shop in Gorse Covert Road, Birchwood at around 5pm last night (Friday). But staff were left badly shaken.
The offender made good his escape in a white vehicle – possibly a Nissan or a Fiat – with a registration number said to be similar to L 531 NFB which was parked on the car park of the nearby Poacher public house.
Police say the offender walked into the Spar Shop wearing a high visibility yellow jacket and black hat.
He threatened the security guard who was collecting cash from the post office counter within the shop, brandishing a black handgun. He forced the man to hand over the cash.
The offender is described as aged about 50, of slim build with a round face with pock marks and dark eyes.
Anyone who witnessed the raid, or saw anything suspicious near the shop between 4.50pm and 5.10pm is asked to call police on 0845 458 0000.
Mental patients may
“wander the streets”
by staff reporter
MENTAL patients at Warrington could be left wandering the streets with nowhere to go to seek help, according to a local campaigner.
The problem arises from the change of use of the former Gatehouse Centre, in the grounds of Warrington Hospital, which no longer offers a seven-day-a-week ?walk-in? service, according to John Mulhall.
Mr Mulhall, a former trade union officer and independent candidate in local council elections, says the changes, brought about as part of the 5 Boroughs Partnership NHS Trust ?change for the better? initiative last year, have seriously disadvantaged some people with mental illnesses.
Trust chiefs, however, say services have been running smoothly since the changes were made and that the changes were only introduced after they had received overwhelming support.
The Gatehouse Assessment Centre was opened in 1995 to provide quick, easy access for assessment and treatment of acute mental illness seven days a week, 365 days a year from 9am to 9pm. It was staffed by a multi-disciplinary team offering a wide range of treatments Under the ?Change for the Better? initiative the facility was re-launched as Wakefield House.
A spokeswoman for the Trust said specialist mental health services previously provided by the Gatehouse had been incorporated within a new community resource and recovery centre in the same building.
This provided a single point of entry to all specialist mental health services, including those provided by the former Gatehouse service. All referrals, including self referrals, could be made via a single phone call to 01925 666647. Self referrals could be completed over the phone and professional referrals through a completed referral form.
Following assessment, individuals were referred to the most appropriate team to meet their needs ? all based in Wakefield House.
There was also direct access to consultant psychiatrists, crisis resolution/home treatment and community mental health teams.
Mr Mulhall alleged the changes had received support because the Trust had consulted only with organisations which were funded by the Trust.
He added: ?People used to be able to walk in and get immediate treatment. Now they find the doors locked. If they get a referral from a doctor it could take days, during which they are not getting treatment.
?They can end up walking the streets and even coming to the attention of the police, who also don?t know where to refer them. These changes are all about saving money ? they are not changes for the better.?
Friendly parking
tickets banned
by Gary Skentelbery
COUNCILLORS at Lymm who were planning to slap tickets on illegally parked cars to do the drivers a favour, have been told to stop – by town hall legal experts.
The “parking tickets” produced by Lymm parish council were to warn motorists that they were parked illegally and that if they are caught by a parking warden they would get a fixed penalty fine of up to ?60.
Lymm Parish Council decided to print their own unofficial parking tickets following the activities of Warrington Borough Council’s new team of parking wardens.
The wardens have already been active in the village and a number of erring motorists have been “booked.”
Members of the parish council were carrying a supply of the tickets around with them and putting them on cars they saw illegally parked.
But now they have been warned to stop.
Local Councillor Ian Marks,(pictured) who is also leader of the borough council, said: “We have been told by the legal experts at the town hall that we should stop placing tickets on cars as we could be accused of infringing on people’s private property or vandalising cars if we lift up windscreen wipers.
“We had been hoping to do people a favour with the warnings but now we have been advised to stop.”
People who park improperly on the village’s car parks are being targeted by the wardens. Cars may only park in the marked spaces and anyone who parks elsewhere is likely to get a fixed penalty ticket.
Budding authors go
down memory lane
by John Hendon
BUDDING authors at Warrington took a trip down memory lane to find inspiration at a creative writing workshop.
New and existing learners were able to share their personal stories and at the Learning and Enterprise Centre (LEC) at the Warrington campus of Chester University.
Entitled Writing Lives, the workshop included a whole host of activities based around story telling and writing.
Senior lecturer and centre manager Connie Hancock presented the tutor-led workshop.
She said: “It offered a light-hearted way to encourage people to write, from a letter to a short story or memoir.
“The participants were asked to bring along a photograph they were able to associate with or had some sort of relationship with. As part of the workshop, learners were asked to share their individual stories regarding their pictures before voting for their favourites.”
The LEC has been recognised for its strong commitment to writing skills after winning the Star of the Month award from BBC RaW (Reading and Writing), last December.
Connie added: “The Writing Lives workshops are aimed at members of the local community, and an extension of our work in this field. We have also held writing strategies classes which proved very popular and were extremely productive.”
Anyone who would like further information about future Writing Lives workshops can contact learning assistant Amy Abbott on 01925 534309 or email [email protected]
Learners at the Learning and Enterprise Centre share their stories with senior lecturer Connie Hancock.
Police winning the
battle against crime
by staff reporter
CRIME in Warrington ? and the rest of Cheshire ? fell dramatically in the run-up to Christmas, compared with the same period in the previous year.
New Home Office figures show that between October and December, the number of victims of crime in the county reduced by more than 1,400 when compared with 2005.
Overall the number of violent crimes fell during the three months with the number of people encountering violence as a result of crime falling. This reduction resulted in 250 fewer victims of violent crime.
Police say Cheshire?s approach to tackling violent behaviour, in particular the violence associated with alcohol, is paying dividends.
Officers are using intelligence to identify areas where violent behaviour occurs and are targeting those areas with highly visible and intrusive patrols. An indication of the effectiveness of this approach is highlighted by the reduction of serious life threatening woundings reported. During October to December woundings endang
ering life fell by more than 26 per cent compared to the same period the previous year.
In Cheshire household burglary levels continue to fall with the number of residents falling victim to burglars reducing by 240. Vehicle crime too shows an improving picture with less crime being reported than a year ago.
Assistant Chief Constable David Baines said: ?The figures released by the Home Office relate to the period prior to Christmas and it is excellent news that fewer people came face to face with criminals during that time. Less crime means fewer victims and that is what policing is all about – making people safe and feeling safer.
?In addition to the reduction in violent crime, it is pleasing to see the concerns highlighted by local communities through our neighbourhood policing teams being addressed by local problem solving. When communities and the police work together they can achieve the results we are seeing today with instances of criminal damage being reported reducing by over 500 during this period.
?We would not be in this enviable position without the hard work and commitment of our staff who are dedicated to reducing crime and disorder in Cheshire and to their skills and expertise in bringing offenders to justice. The figures for the number of offenders brought to justice for the year ending January is evidence of the hard work of our staff with more than 2,400 more offenders being brought to justice last year compared to the previous year ?
WI women show the
flag for St George
by staff reporter
APPLETON?s Park Women?s Institute showed the flag ? with a coffee morning to celebrate St George?s Day at Appleton Parish Hall.
More than 90 people attended the event ? and bargains and goodies were quickly snapped up from a variety of themed red and white stalls where WI members were selling jewellery, plants, gifts and lucky dips.
Savouries and hot cross buns were served with coffee and members mixed happily with visitors.
Next meeting of the WI will be on May 14 and members are hoping that many of the visitors will return ? as members.
The institute meets regularly on the second Monday of each month.
Visitors from other local WIs gave good support at the St George?s Day event.
Park WI president Beryl Chadwick said: ?I am very grateful to the members from our neighbouring WIs for coming. I would also like to thank all the Park members for their help, enthusiasm and hard work.?
Park WI are hoping to contribute in some way to a local community project in the near future and the proceeds from this event will go towards achieving that ambition.
Planners to think twice
over sheltered flats
by David Skentelbery
PLANNING chiefs at Warrington are to think twice before ruling on a controversial application to demolish a petrol station and shop to make way for a block of flats for the elderly.
The scheme involves the long-established Rushgreen Service Station, in Rushgreen Road, Lymm.
It has split the local community, with nearby residents divided on whether to oppose or support the plan for 53 flats.
But Lymm Parish Council and local councillors Ian Marks and Sheila Woodyatt have all lodged objections.
Members of Warrington?s development control committee decided they would have to visit the site before they could reach a decision.
The scheme, which envisages ?sheltered? flats with communal facilities and an on-site manager, would required demolition of all the existing buildings on the site, which include the filling station, vehicle repair workshop, car wash, shop and residential accommodation.
Developers have offered a ?200,000 contribution towards the provision of affordable housing.
The proposed building would be partly three-storey and would have a 26-space car park.
Planning officers say existing council policy is to restrict new housing, because of the current oversupply of housing land in the borough. But they say an exception could be made because of the contribution to affordable housing.
The parish council says the scheme would be an over-development of the site, and detrimental to the street scene. A three-storey building would be out of character with the area and overbearing in the situation. They point out there is already sheltered accommodation for the elderly in Lymm.
Ten residents have objected to the scheme and point out the filling station offers the only retail facility on the eastern side of Lymm. But nine others argue that the development will look more attractive than the existing filling station. They say a new Co-op store to be built as part of the nearby Heatley Mere development will serve local needs.
Knifeman grabs
cigarettes
by David Skentelbery
A THUG armed with a kitchen knife got away with a large quantity of cigarettes from a Warrington convenience store after threatening staff.
The robbery was at the One Stop Shop in Park Road.
Police are searching for a man aged 16-18, slim and with a local accent who carried out the raid. They say he was about 5ft 6 inches tall.
The man entered the shop, wedged the door open with some shopping baskets and then threatened staff with the knife.
He forced them to fill a sack with packets of cigarettes and then made off.
Anyone who can help police is asked to call DC Darren Riley on 01244 615859.
Pedal cyclist ran
into parked vehicle
by staff reporter
POLICE are seeking witnesses after a road collision involving a pedal cyclist and a parked car at Burtonwood, near Warrington.
The cyclist was riding along Lumber Lane in the direction of Newton-le-Willows when a vehicle attempted to overtake him near the junction with Green Lane.
He lost control of his cycle and collided with a parked vehicle, being thrown through the windscreen. But fortunately he was not seriously injured.
The car which was overtaking him continued without stopping.
Police said it was a small, dark coloured hatchback with a blue neon light under its rear bumper bar. It also had a loud sound system.
Anyone who witnessed the incident, or who recognises the car from the description, is asked to call police on 0548 458 0000.
