The Citizen 51 - Page 1
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It’s 10:10 For Tameside
See the Green Light and go on to help save your environment and money
The council has announced that it is committed to reducing its carbon footprint by 10 per cent in 2010 and staff have been challenged to kick start the process.
It has signed up to the national 10:10 campaign, which means that it’s not just supporting the initiative, it is making it happen. As a leader in the community Tameside Council is also encouraging residents, local businesses, schools and partner organisations to help in reducing the borough’s emissions by 10 per cent.
The Executive Council Leader, Cllr Roy Oldham, chose the initiative as his theme for this year’s State of the Area speech. He said: “10:10 presents an opportunity for everyone to be involved. The object is to reduce Tameside’s carbon footprint 10 per cent by 2010 using 10 action points. The council will set the pace and challenge Tameside’s residents and businesses to not only join in, but beat the council service units and departments to meet the 10:10 target.”
See Page 4 for the full State of the Area breakdown.
Patrollers' Notice Board
Welcome to the latest from the Crime & Disorder Reduction Partnership Notice Board. This is a whistle-stop tour of what your patrollers have been up to recently.
The Service is 10 Years Old
Tameside's patrollers are celebrating 10 successful years of service. They were formed on 13th November, 1999, and were originally known as town wardens.
They are part of the borough’s community safety unit and are a team of uniformed officers who work closely with the police and partners to tackle lower-level disorder such as youth nuisance and other types of anti-social behaviour.
The patrollers also work to improve the appearance of the borough. They issue fixed-penalty notices for dog fouling and litter, arrange the removal of abandoned vehicles and investigate reports of fly tipping and fly posting.
As part of the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership patrollers provide a visible presence on the streets and offer assistance, advice and support to residents and businesses.
Notices
Patrollers chased and detained a male on Keswick Avenue, Hyde, who was found to have a bag full of counterfeit DVDs.
The service also came to the rescue after watching a van hit a car and drive off without stopping. The patroller also noticed that the van’s driver was using a mobile phone at the same time. As well as giving details to the car’s owners they also passed on the van driver’s details to police.
Youths spotted climbing off a barge on the canal near Plantation Farm, Dukinfield were acting suspiciously so patrollers took their details. The barge owner later reporting a burglary to police so the patrollers were able to give the police their offenders’ names.
Patrollers covering the St Peter’s Ward, Ashton were thanked for providing reassurance to residents attending an exercise class at Oxford Park 
after they were being intimidated by a group of youths. The service was able to provide a visible and reassuring presence to the residents.
A patroller assisted with a school pupil, described as a vulnerable missing person who was due to be picked up from school, but couldn’t be found by his mum. Using the town centre link radios the youngster was soon found and returned to his mum.
Patrollers learnt that two dangerous bull terriers, which had attacked a man in Dukinfield, were seen heading towards a primary school in the area. Because the patrollers were concerned for the pupils safety the school was contacted and the head advised to keep all the pupils indoors. The police arrived later with the dog’s owner, who was able to bring them under control, and an armed response unit.
During October Ashton patrollers had a report of pupils truanting from school. Using CCTV they caught up with the school children and returned them to school.
A male was fined £150 and £115 costs at Tameside Magistrates Court for threatening a patroller after he had been stopped for damaging property.
In another incident patrollers noticed some children paying particular attention to a post box on Birch Lane, Dukinfield. When they took a closer look the patrollers noticed the post box was open with 21 letters on show. The letters were quickly collected and handed over to the Post Office.
While out on a joint patrol in Ashton Town Centre with a PCSO a patroller caught a shoplifter and returned her to the shop where police were called. Both the female culprit and the stolen property were taken back to the shop and the police called.
Working with the PCSOs in the Holly Trinity area of Ashton patrollers came across a group of youngsters who had trapped a fox in a sports cage and were trying to kill it. But after the patrol intervened the fox was released and the culprits dealt with appropriately.
Flower Power Winners For The Fifth Time
It's five in a row for Tameside after it was named the North West In Bloom Large City champion at October’s awards ceremony in Southport.
The accolade means that the borough has been nominated again to represent the region in the nationwide Britain in Bloom competition next year.
The judges toured the borough on 16th July and visited several notable locations including Park Bridge Heritage Centre, Dukinfield Central Estate and Armentieres Square in Stalybridge.
Environment
Cllr David Sweeton, Project Head for Sports and Leisure and Head of Tameside in Bloom, said: “In Bloom is about so much more than just flowers. You are assessed on all the efforts you make to improve your environment and how involved the local community are. One of the strengths of Tameside in Bloom is the contributions made by the borough’s residents and community groups. Without the driving force of the members of the public who take pride in their area, we could not have achieved the awards that we have received so far.”
Cllr Jim Fitzpatrick, Cabinet Deputy and Head of District Assemblies, said: “This is a testament to the dedication and hard work of staff across District Assemblies. In Bloom involves all the staff from gardeners to litter pickers. These accolades are proof of our talents and that we are the best in the North West.”
Tameside was also home to a number of entries submitted into the North West in Bloom Neighbourhood Awards; 11 were submitted this year, our highest number yet. All attended an awards ceremony on 22nd October and came away with various awards. It is hoped that this number will grow even further next year with Tameside making a significant contribution to the 300 plus entries made from across the North West.
Exciting
Work has already started in preparation for next year. Many exciting projects are planned across the borough which will improve Tameside for residents and visitors alike
The In Bloom team have also started producing an e-newsletter to keep all those interested up to speed with the latest In Bloom news. Under the watchful eye of In Bloom officers Jessica Brooks, the publication “aims to keep you up to date with the Tameside in Bloom initiative and what it can offer to schools in the borough, as well as providing information on external schemes and projects”. For more information ring Jessica on 303 8547 or Send a Message to the In Bloom team.
Park Facelift
Stamford Park is set for a major facelift thanks to a near £4M lottery grant and the ideas put forward during a public consultation.
The raft of exciting developments was put together following extensive consultation with the various groups and individuals who enjoy using the park’s facilities.
The go-ahead for Stamford Park to kick-start the scheme has come from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and the Big Lottery Fund’s £160M ‘Parks for People’ initiative.
Tameside Council will use the funding to further develop the scheme to transform and regenerate this much-loved park.
After asking the public what they would like to see as part of the original consultation, council park bosses then turned the wish list into a plan of action, which when complete will see the re-birth of one of the borough’s premier green open spaces.
Over 1,400 different suggestions and comments were made, which have been worked up into a list of proposals, some of which are highlighted below:
New central café/community facility, including community rooms, toilets and park manager’s office
- Improved animal area
- A new performance area
- Improvements to: children’s facilities, entrances, signs and boundaries, seating, the play area and paths
- Restoration of the dingle woodland area
The refurbishment of the promenade is one of the most exciting developments, which will see the tree-lined walkway returned to its former glory.
Project Head Cllr Sweeton said: “The first thing I wanted to say was a big thank you to all those who use the park and took part in our consultation, their input was invaluable. It’s obvious to me that a lot of our residents feel passionate, not only about the park’s past heritage but its future as well.”
Business Summit
The Executive Leader of Tameside Council, Cllr Roy Oldham, hosted the second Tameside Works First business summit which took place at Dukinfield Town Hall on 23rd October.
Representatives from key local businesses, Tameside College , New Charter Housing and Tameside Sports Trust met councillors and officers to discuss how the Tameside Works First programme could be developed to better support the borough’s economy during the recession.
As a result of the meeting, a new approach to encouraging apprenticeship through a pooling scheme is to be developed, and businesses will be encouraged to sign up to the 10:10 pledge to reduce their carbon footprint.
Since Tameside Works First was first announced by Cllr Oldham at the end of January, 200 companies have registered. There have been 830 projects and 100 firms have found work.
First Work
Darryl Smith thought his hopes of being a bricklayer had been demolished by the credit crunch. But thanks to Tameside Works First, he’s confident he’ll soon be back in his chosen trade.
The 21-year-old Ashton lad, who attended a course at Tameside College , found himself out of work shortly after serving his time. However, salvation came in the shape of a TWF contract secured by Dukinfield builder Vincent O’Brien.
Vinnie said: “I got Darryl in to help me install a ramp at a house in Redmire Mews, Dukinfield, under a disabled facilities grant . He’s a great lad with a lovely attitude and I’ll be happy to employ him whenever I get jobs through Tameside Works First.”
Darryl added: “The work dried up once I finished my apprenticeship. There was nothing there, but then Vinnie gave me a ring.
“I really want to be a bricklayer and the job Vinnie gave me was very important because I don’t want to forget what I’ve learned. I’m looking forward to doing more work for him.”
Tameside Works First, which was launched in January by Tameside Council, is a £14 million package aimed at lessening the impact of the global downturn on the borough’s small and medium-size businesses.
