Town will be world leader
in the appliance of science!
by Gary Skentelbery
A NEW world class facility which will put Warrington at the forefront of international efforts to build machines to discover the innermost mysteries of particle physics and recreate the earliest moments after the Big Bang will be opened today (Tuesday).
The Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus (DSIC) will be opened by Lord Sainsbury, Minister for Science and Innovation and will be at the forefront of allowing mankind to better understand how the Universe was formed and what it is made of.
The scientific facility will open alongside a new state of the art science and technology business park at Daresbury Laboratory which has been created thanks to ?50 million funding from the North West Development Agency.
Building on the success and worldwide reputation of Daresbury Laboratory, one of the UK?s major research facilities, the development of the site includes The Cockcroft Institute, a National Centre for Accelerator Science and Daresbury Innovation Centre, a state-of-the-art facility designed to attract science and technology based businesses to the region and 2.5ha of serviced land available for development.
The creation of the Cockcroft Institute, by the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC), is a major coup for England?s Northwest.
Meanwhile, Daresbury Innovation Centre will offer 24,000 sq ft of high quality office, workshop and laboratory space as well as a range of business support services. This superb facility provides a compelling location for small to medium sized enterprises with high growth potential and has already attracted 23 companies to the region, including IBM.
In addition to the high quality facilities at the Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus, approximately 2.5ha of serviced development land is currently available for development and occupiers or developers are now being asked to come forward with high quality proposals that will complement the existing world-class campus.
Lord Sainsbury, Minister for Science and Innovation, said: ?I am delighted to be opening one of the UK?s two strategic centres of science and innovation. This outstanding campus will help generate economic growth and jobs and support the Government?s drive to build and sustain world leading knowledge based companies.?
NWDA Chairman Bryan Gray said: ?The NWDA is delighted to support the development of world class science infrastructure, which will attract major research and commercial operations to the Northwest making a significant contribution to the regional economy and creating a number of highly skilled jobs in the process.?
Special theatre
deal for schools
by Mark Hemmings
WARRINGTON-based and award winning theatre company Centenary will stage Willy Russell’s classic play “Educating Rita” at The Brindley Theatre in Runcorn between September 20-24 nightly at 7.30pm.
To encourage and “educate” more school children and college students to experience live theatre, Centenary have announced that tickets for their Sunday evening performance will be available on a 2-for-1 deal.
The play, which was also an Oscar nominated film starring Julie Walters and Michael Caine is a touching and often hilarious play.
Frank is a tutor of English in his fifties. His disillusioned outlook on life drives him to seek refuge in the whisky bottles hidden on his bookshelves. Enter Rita.
She is a forthright, 26-year-old hairdresser who is hungry for education. Rita soon wins over the teacher with her native shrewdness, sparkling conversation and her refusal to accept secondhand academic opinions.
In the process, she gives Frank a new lease of life by making him believe in himself once again.
The special “school’s deal” means that tickets will be available to those in education on the final night of the week at half the normal price!
Tickets are available from the box office on 0151 907 8360.
Grant for fishing
beauty spot
by Lesley Wilkinson
A ?41,500 scheme of improvements at popular beauty spot Ackers Pit, Stockton Heath, near Warrington has been given the go-ahead.
Work is expected to include de-silting, landscaping, new paths and benches. The improvement plan was approved by Stockton Heath Parish Council and will be the subject of public consultation.
The parish council have been working for some time to improve the site and has attracted a series of grants including ?15,000 from the Environment Agency, ?25,000 from an environment improvement fund and assistance from Warrington Anglers Association who use the site.
Mr Frank Lythgoe, from Warrington Anglers, said: “Ackers Pitts is really silted up, there is not a lot of water left.”
He said that some years ago the anglers had to buy aeration equipment for the pond, which was on standby each year.
“If we get algae bloom there, it could destroy all the fish and wildlife,” he said.
Call to tackle
climate change
by Gary Skentelbery
BUSINESS leaders across Warrington Cheshire have been urged to take action in responding to the effects of climate change.
At an event organised by Cheshire and Warrington Economic Alliance (CWEA), representatives from local councils, key businesses and environmental organisations met with with public and private sector stakeholders to discuss the proposed Northwest Climate Change Action Plan and to look at what needs to be done to help reduce the effects of climate change.
The climate change action plan has been launched by the North West Regional Development Agency.
Martin Lee, Chief Executive of CWEA, said: ?We are delighted the NWDA has launched this Climate Change Action Plan. Quality of life is a deciding factor when businesses choose to operate in Cheshire and Warrington and it is critical that we are mindful of the environment in which we work and where we spend our leisure time.
CWEA will also support our businesses in taking advantage of the opportunities that are available in the renewables and environmental technologies sectors.?
Mark Atherton, NWDA Head of Sustainable Development and Climate Change, added: ?The move towards a low carbon economy, in preparation for the challenges of climate change, requires a commitment by everyone in the Northwest to address what is the single biggest issue facing our region. The NWDA has devised a Northwest Climate Change Action Plan consultation document, which will be launched in November, to stimulate discussion on this subject and is delighted by the response from key regional stakeholders in Cheshire and Warrington.?
Chris Mahon, Chair, Sustainable Cheshire Forum said “This was an important event for the region in highlighting the vital work that must be done, not just by the business community but by all of us, in combating climate change. Good leadership in this is crucial and great to see the CWEA and NWDA showing the way forward through an action focused plan. The Sustainable Cheshire Forum, through its 2007 themed year of Climate Change, will support the action plan and encourage its partners to play their part in its implementation.?
Soccer ace on the
ball at fun run
by Gary Skentelbery
FORMER Manchester United soccer legend Sammy McIlroy was on hand to launch a fun run at Lymm, Warrington.
The event was organised to raise funds for the Oughtrington Community Centre Development Fund, to help restore and improve the community facility.
Teenagers robbed
by gang in park
POLICE are hunting a gang of four teenagers who carried out an unprovoked attack and robbery on two 16-year-old boys in Alexandra Park, Stockton Heath, on Monday September 11.
The two boys were sat on swings when they were approached by the gang who were all wearing dark tracksuits and baseball caps.
After giving the boys verbal abuse one was punched in the face and then kicked wh
ile he was on the floor.
The gang demanded his mobile phone which he handed over fearing another assault.
Anyone who witnessed the attack is urged to call PC Moira Hay on 01244 613835. In another incdient a 23-year-old woman was punched in the face and robbed of her mobile phone while sitting in Bank Park, Warrington on Friday September 8 by a chubby man who was 5ft 5, with shaven hair and wearing a blue and white striped t-shirt.
Any one with information should call DC Hampson on 0845 4580000.
Musical Youth!
MUSICAL youngsters from Warrington are preparing to take centre stage as Chester Cathedral throws open its doors to over 1,600 primary school children for two free concerts organised by Music for Youth, the national charity that provides access to educational and performance opportunities for young musicians.
The Music for Youth & Halifax Primary Prom Concert on Tuesday October 11 offers children an opportunity to hear live music in beautiful and historic surroundings. Once inside the Cathedral, several musical surprises await the young audience: the performers are school pupils like themselves, from various schools, including Warrington and the audience will be encouraged to join in the music making ? clapping rhythms and singing ? by the presenter, Shirley Court.
Various performances include a choir of 60 children aged from 7-11 years old, Broomfields Junior Voices from Broomfields Junior School, Appleton, Warrington, sing Ascotte Gavotte from My Fair Lady and Can You Feel The Love Tonight from The Lion King. The group have been singing together for the past three years and have performed at the National Festival of Music for Youth and at the Llangollen International Eisteddfod.
Finally, Great Sankey High School Swing Band from Warrington brings the concerts to a fitting finale.
The whole musical experience is held together by Shirley Court, who introduces the groups and encourages the young audience to join in using their own instruments ? their voices, hands and feet. She is conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Junior Choir, Senior Girls? Chorus and works for Cheshire in primary music and as a vocal animateur.
