Posts Tagged ‘Residents’ Associations;’
A busy week
On 18th January Adrian appealed to keep the Allandale out of Party Politics. The very next day Denis Knowles and his new Tory Party chums were peddling a leaflet making it a political football by declaring that the club had been 'axed' because of 'cutbacks'. That was totally untrue.
21st March 2010
This week has seen the distribution of our newsletter in which we dispel misrepresentations peddled by Denis Knowles and his assistant from Liscard. They seem so desperate to distract attention from Knowles’s declaration that Guinea Gap Baths and Seacombe Library should be closed ‘for the greater good’ as he declared, that their propaganda machine is working overtime to downplay the support being provided for the Allandale by the Council.
The Allandale is an independent charitable trust that is not owned or in any way controlled by the Council. Nevertheless Adrian initiated a support meeting for the Allandale on 18th January for the Council’s professional officers to assist the club in providing a business plan and to find ways to get short term funding. Business advisers from the Council and from Wirralbiz were there to support the youth club. A point Adrian made at that meeting is that the Allandale should not be made into a political football.
The Tories lost no time. The very next day, the 19th, Denis and his new Tory chums made it very much a political football by putting out a leaflet absurdly declaring that the club had been ‘axed’ because of ‘cutbacks’.
It was not true; the Allandale Youth Club has not been ‘axed’. But why let that get in the way of yet another ‘Tory tall story’?
The only body that could ’axe’ the Allandale is the community based trust that directs it! Far from being ‘axed’, as the Tories published, it has the continuing support Adrian initiated in conjunction with the Chair of its management committee. The Tories always knew that, but the facts didn’t stop them putting out their nasty little leaflet at the very time that the Council was supporting the Club’s management committee to help it to continue for another half century!
Next, they arranged their ridiculous Tory ambush in council - thinking they were terribly clever, but as usual they shot themselves in the foot. They proposed granting a £20,000 cash input to the youth club – as a part of a package ludicrously taking £122,000 from - OF ALL THINGS - Children’s Services!
How much more ridiculous could they be?
There were other Tory cuts glued to their proposal, as well:
- £500,000 from Social Services; (The old, the weak, the disabled, etc)
- £606,000 from Regeneration; and
- £226,000 from Technical Services (Roads, Leisure Centres, Parks, Gardens, CCTV, Open spaces etc.)
The Tories didn’t mention any of those devastating cuts proposals in their propaganda leaflet did they? Yet to support their proposed subsidy to the Allandale it would have been necessary to vote for all the cuts that were welded to it. They always knew no responsible Councillor could vote for the devastation of Council services they proposed, so to dangle that carrot was perhaps not the most responsible thing to do.
COULD YOU EVER TRUST THE TORY PARTY IN THE LIGHT OF SUCH VULGAR ANTICS?
Monday: Adrian spent much of the day on casework and leafleting. But we cannot live ’by politics alone’ – so he took Monday evening off to play for his local darts team!
Tuesday: Leafleting in the day, and in the evening Adrian attended the Council’s Children and Young People Overview Committee.
Wednesday: saw him taking part in the Merseyside Police Authority’s Inspection in the morning, followed by the Council’s Excellence Overview and Scrutiny Committee in the evening. In between those was the Seacombe Area Residents’ Association meeting. John was obliged to be at another Council event.
Vocalist Paul Drew, right, is seen at the Park View Social Club on Friday 19th March in between numbers. To support the Allandale Paul peformed free of charge and the Park View gave its function for the night. The Park View supports the New Brighton Lifeboat as well as many other good causes.
Adrian was mystified by Denis Knowles’s comments at this meeting. First he made a political speech about how, in future, the Council should work so much better than in the past - commenting on the Seacombe Community Centre.
But Adrian pointed out that in fact he, ‘New Tory ‘ Denis Knowles, was the Council’s official link councillor for the Centre for many years! Yet as far as anyone can tell he failed to turn up to support it for many years (if ever). The poor chap had no answer and was lost for words! Just sat on his hands.
However, we have said elsewhere that if we are wrong about that, and if Denis can produce an attendance record to show that those who reckon they never saw him are wrong, then we’ll print it for him here! But on the face of it is Knowles wise to criticise the Council over the Seacombe Community Centre?
Wasn’t it his baby? Wasn’t it under his ‘watchful care?’
Adrian held his surgery at the Community Centre for many years and can confirm that it would be difficult to find a Centre anywhere with more dedicated staff and volunteers. They are doing a very good job indeed. Cllr John Salter has now become the link councillor for the Centre. Adrian and John have called into its excellent luncheon club a number of times. It will have strong support from John.
Next, commenting on fund raising, Denis came out with the stunning quip ‘never mind the Lifeboats’. Eyebrows were raised and comments were made afterwards. We like to think that it was just a throw away comment that Denis might wish to ‘rephrase’.
Thursday: Back to the Police Authority in the morning for its ‘Value for Money Committee’. An hour or so out in the afternoon for a charity activity. And then, in the evening, Adrian and his wife Chris were at another charitable event!
Friday: was spent largely on casework and leafleting – with a fine evening of entertainment at the Park View Social Club, in support of the Allandale. The Club gave its premises free of charge and the excellent (Seacombe based) professional vocalist, Paul Drew, gave his time and services free of charge. Sadly, despite Wirralbiz supporting the Club by putting about 3,000 flyers throught letterboxes attendance was rather small.
Allandale staff and supporters show Paul some real appreciation at the end of his concert.
Seacombe Community Centre – Councillors’ roles
1st March 2010
During tonight’s Council meeting (watch for more news about it very soon) Adrian asked Cllr Denis Knowles to let us all know what his role had been in Seacombe Community Centre where he was the Council’s representative, on its management committee, for many years.
Cllr Knowles has been replaced by Cllr John Salter. As you saw from the previous posting john had lunch there a day or so ago with Cllr Adrian Jones (who for many years held his surgeries at the Centre). John will fully support the existing management committee in their preferences for the future, so will Adrian. But it will help us greatly if we can hear from Denis what he was doing all those years. We are sure he will have a good story to tell of regular attendance and first class support, it’s just that we haven’t heard it yet.
We’ll report further on this as soon as we hear from him.
25th February 2010
After spending some time with the ‘Wirral Live Hit Squad’ John and Adrian delivered some more Ward Newsletters (we had delivered MP Angela Eagle’s only a week before) and then called into the Community Centre. We were delighted to personally know almost everybody taking lunch. But this wasn’t just a social visit.
- Adrian and John take a break from leafleting and door knocking to enjoy an excellent lunch at the Seacombe Community Centre
Far from it! We were there for our own lunches – and jolly good value for money they are too.
Aimed primarily, but not exclusively, at the retired people of the locality, the Luncheon Club is a great service to the community. Wirral’s Social Services Department does a grand job by maintaining this extremely valuable service. Long may it continue.
The Community Centre is, however, eligible to be transferred to the community. A few weeks ago we attended a meeting with officers of the Council to begin to talk about it with the existing staff and volunteers. Our officers were delighted to discover that the existing team have kept the building in excellent order, doing almost all of the redecoration themselves and keeping it in tip top condition. The Team have also kept right on top of all necessary fire and safety and other regulations to the extent that the professional officers went away most favourably impressed.
There had been problems with one of the boilers – making it all but impossible for the children’s activities to continue. That was discussed at our meeting after which Adrian took it up with Council Officers. We can report that it has been fixed.
What relationship does the Council have with the Community Centre?
The Council has always sought to maintain a good relationship with the Centre, not least by nominating a Councillor to assist and support the volunteers’ management group as their direct link to the Town Hall.
For many years we understand that link was Cllr Denis Knowles. (Knowles is the defector who was elected with a large Labour majority - but when he fell out with Labour he crossed the floor of the Council Chamber and squeezed in among the Tories. That was at about 6.30pm on a day when, at lunch time, we understand he had signed Labour’s loyalty pledge.)
When we asked how well that link had worked, with Cllr Knowles as the Council’s nominee to the Community Centre, one of the Community Centre’s regular volunteers said:
‘Well he did call in just before Christmas, with the lady from Liscard.’ Nobody we spoke to could recall anything beyond that.
Cllr John Salter has replaced Denis Knowles. John promises to provide full support and Adrian, who held his surgeries at the Centre for many years, will also give full support at this critical time for he Centre’s future.
Comments Closed
Tate Triangle odour control.
Adrian & John have kept residents up to date with their pressure to secure smell-free air for residents living above Limekiln Lane. At its meeting yesterdayAdrian was able to 
update the Residents’ Association on a welcome new initiative from Tate & Lyle.
Following the meeting we had with managers of the Company, together with our Senior Enivronmental Health Officer, and the residents’ petition that we presented on your behalf, we are glad to report that progress is being made. There is a continuing dialogue between our Environmental Officers and the Company, and they asked for a sample of the “tall oil” on site.
An excellent outcome of that continuing contact is that Tate & Lyle have now put full filters on all tanks that do or may contain “Tall Oil”, which should at least prevent any odours from that product in future.
We have always recognised that there may be other sources of unpleasant smells but it is to Tate & Lyle’s credit that, to use their manager’s own words, they ‘held their hands up’ and admitted to a number of the most unpleasant incidents. These new filtering measures will, apart from containing the immediate risk of smells from Tate & Lyle, hopefully assist in isolating smells from other sources.
We’ll continue to take a close watch on air conditions in this locality and our MP Angela Eagle is being kept fully informed.
We want residents to let us know of any further unpleasant smells affecting the area in the weeks and months ahead.