Council chiefs asked to
approved 4.95% tax rise
by David Skentelbery
A SPECIAL meeting of Warrington Borough Council?s executive board on Friday (February 17) will be asked to accept a 4.95 per cent increase in council tax ? which equates to a rise of ?45.81 a year for an average Band D house.
At the same time, the board will be asked to approved an average rent rise of ?2.50 a week for council house rents.
This equates to a five per cent increase and is in live with government guidelines.
The council tax increase does not include the charge levied by the Cheshire Police Authority, which has yet to be decided but which is expected to be reported to a meeting of the borough council on February 27 when the final, overall council tax will be announced.
Eighteen parish councils across Warrington will levy additional precepts ranging at Band D Level from ?9.15 at Woolston to ?83.36 at Birchwood.
Coun John Morris, the borough council?s executive member for Resources, said Warrington was moving forward and improving every year and the Audit Commission had acknowledged that the council was improving well, delivering value for money and in a stable financial position.
But he added: ?Despite providing good value for money we need to take some tough decisions to make sure that our spending is focused more directly on our priorities and that we can afford to continue delivering the services we provided.
?Being rated highly by the Audit Commission is not good enough.?
Coun Morris said over the next three years the council faced escalating costs to maintain current services due to increased demand, particularly around waste disposal and social care, and above inflation price rises in areas such as electricity and gas supply.
?We plan ?3.4 million of priority investment in services over the next three years to continue the progress we have made and deliver real benefits for the people of Warrington.?
The council was disappointed it would receive two per cent funding increase from the government next year and would received ?138 per head less compared with similar councils.
Savings of ?6.35 million would keep council tax rises as low as possible. But in recent years, increases had been low, resulting in Band D taxpayers paying ?100 less a year compared to similar councils and an increase was necessary to fund current costs and carry out priority investments.
The council had listened to feedback from the public and had changed some proposals, including scrapping a plan to charge residents for replacement wheelie bins.
A further update on budget consultation feedback will be given to the executive board on Friday.
Valentine’s Day
heartbreak for couples
by Gary Skentelbery
A LYMM couple have been left heartbroken after their tickets to a Winter Olympics event on Valentines Day went astray.
Ben Brown, 39, from Lymm, bought the tickets for his wife Sherrie, 30, and his brother Matthew and partner Michelle before Christmas.
Ben and Matthew are big ski fans and ordered tickets for the slalom event at a resort near Turin, Italy, today (Feb 14.)
“They were the ideal Valentines gift,” said Ben. “Somehow the ticket agency managed to send the tickets to Norway! I had been chasing the tickets for the last few weeks and had been assured they would turn up before we were due to travel.”
He ordered the tickets to coincide with a skiing holiday to Austria.
“We are still going on the holiday but have obviously been left heartbroken by missing out on the once in a lifetime opportunity of attending the Winter Olympics.
“We couldn’t even attend the opening ceremony unless we had tickets for the event,” added Ben.
He purchased the tickets from online agency Capital-tickets.com
“I thought they were cutting things fine to get us the tickets on time but they kept assuring me there was no problem. It then transpired they tickets had gone by courier to Norway and there was no way we could get them in time.”
A spokesman for Capital Tickets said the company had provided a full refund and even offered to courier duplicates to Turin for the day of the event – but Mr Brown had declined the offer, prefering to have a full refund.
“It is not uncommon for tickets to be delayed in the ticketing industry and that is why we make provision for duplicates to be couriered. Mr Brown could have still attended the event but he chose to have a refund.”
Pupils get a taste
of college days
by staff reporter
YEAR 10 pupils from St Gregory’s RC High School, Warrington, who have all been taking part in the “Think Smart” initiative in conjunction with Priestley College visited the Loushers Lane campus for a day of taster lessons. The group have been piloting the Virtual Learning Environment and also taking part in a 14 week course to stretch able students, covering aspects of study skills, critical thinking and career planning. During the morning the pupils were guided around the campus by former St Gregory?s pupils who have since gone onto study at Priestley and there was particular interest in the VLE which, for some years, has been offering students an on-line resource to complement their studies. It is also being adopted by St Gregory’s in the immediate future. Among the subjects tackled during taster lessons were Law, Science & Maths, Modern Languages and Psychology and Humanities. Meanwhile the group also looked at the system which is in place at Priestley to support those who wish to apply for degree courses at either Oxford or Cambridge. Senior Tutor Mel Jackson, who organised the day, said: “Having worked with these pupils for a period of time it was real a pleasure to welcome them into college. “All our staff and students found the St Gregory’s pupils a joy to work with and it was evident that they enjoyed themselves from the wide array of smiles that were on display.”
Motorway crash
leads to blaze
by staff reporter
THE M56 motorway was closed at Preston Brook, near Warrington, after two lorries collided and caught fire.
Fire crews fought for several hours to reach the scene and extinguish the blaze on the eastbound carriageway.
Both carriageways were closed for several hours and it was gone midnight before the motorway reopened fully.
Police said one of the lorries – laden with bricks – had stopped on the hardshoulder and was struck by a second lorry, carrying car parts.
Both lorries caught fire and debris littered the carriageway. One driver suffered minor injuries which did require hospital treatment.
MP backs national
knife amnesty
by staff reporter
WARRINGTON North MP Helen Jones has welcomed the announcement of a nationwide knives amnesty which will be held between May 24 and June 30 involving every police force in the country.
The amnesty is backed up by a tough police enforcement campaign to drive home the message that carrying knives is not acceptable.
The MP said: ?Tackling knife culture, especially among young people is crucial to the safety of our communities. This knife amnesty is about creating safer streets.
Previous amnesties like this have already taken deadly weapons off the streets and every weapon handed in will be a weapon that cannot be used in crime.
“Sometimes those who carry a knife or a dangerous weapon do so in the mistaken belief they are protecting themselves and have no intention of becoming a murderer. However, coupled with drink or drugs these weapons can all too often lead to bloodshed.
“I would therefore appeal to people who carry knives to do the right thing and to hand them over to the police.?
The amnesty will target those who carry knives and offensive weapons. A public campaign will urge people to hand in their knives during the five week period, when they will be immune from prosecution for possessing them.
Getting ready for spring
by John He
ndon
LIBERAL Democrats in Latchford, Warrington, are looking forward to spring by planting out some polyanthus. The plants have been put in the concrete tubs by the zebra crossing in the village centre. Local campaigner Eddie Sloane said: “Three tubs were installed last summer by the borough council to stop vehicles parking on the footpath. They have been filled with topsoil but nothing else. We have asked the council to do some planting but they say they have no money for this. ?Rather than get filled up with more weeds and litter, we thought it would be much better if they had some brightly coloured plants in them. This will be good for the community and will make the area more attractive. We hope that others will follow our lead and plant out some summer bedding plants later on.”
Biggest holiday discounter
has arrived in town
by Gary Skentelbery
JUST Go, the region’s biggest independent travel group has landed at 5 Buttermarket Street, Warrington and look forward to bringing the very best holiday offers to the people of Warrington.
Just Go are proud of their independence and the choice they can offer to customers.
Paul May, branch manager at the store said: “The multiple travel groups such as Thomson, Going Places and Thomas Cook are there primarily to sell their own holidays so the choice they provide to the customer can be limited. At Just Go we have a huge range of holidays to offer including all the major operators as well as many hundreds of independent tour operators so we can offer our customers a huge range of holidays at the very best price.”
Just Go are so confident of being able to offer the best price that they have introduced a unique price pledge: “Find a cheaper holiday at Thomas Cook, Thomson, Going Places or Co-op Travel and we will refund the difference plus 25 per cent. ” Now that really is a guarantee. In addition to package holidays, Just Go also provide a full travel service including low cost flights, accommodation only, commission free foreign currency, cruise, tailor made, longhaul, short breaks and Florida.
“In fact we have our very own Florida brochure, it’s got some great offers, so pick up a copy today. At Just Go we understand that the annual holiday is probably the biggest purchase of the year and it is important that your money is protected and safe, for your peace of mind we are fully abta bonded so your money is safe with us. February and March is when we traditionally book our summer holidays and we have some fantastic early booking offers including; free insurance, a free airport taxi, low deposit and guaranteed free child places. So get down to Just Go today. We really are the regions biggest holiday discounter.”
Traffic chiefs urge
road closure
by John Hendon
MEMBERS of Warrington Borough Council?s traffic committee are being urged to approve the closure of a country lane to stop fly-tipping and other anti-social behaviour in a local beauty spot.
But residents of Hall Lane, Burtonwood, are opposing the move on the grounds it will simply move the problem closure to their property.
Burtonwood Environmental Group, which says it has been trying to protect and enhance Gypsy Wood since 1994, is supporting the road closure without which, they say, fly-tipping will continue.
But Mr and Mrs Shaun McKillen, of Hall Lane Farm say the proposed closure point is close to their home and believe cars will park and manoeuvre there, restricting their access and preventing emergency vehicles from reaching them.
They also believed the closure would increase the risk of burglary.
Council officers say a similar closure in Joy Lane, Burtonwood, resulted in a decrease in fly-tipping. They suggest the closure be introduced and the situation monitored over a period of 12 months.
