Discover Tameside's Heritage

The appointment of Stalybridge and Hyde MP James Purnell to the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport was widely covered in the media. However, Tameside's members of Parliament have been taking senior government roles since 1859 when Ashton's Liberal MP, TM Gibson, was appointed president of the Board of Trade.

Sir Max Aitken, the founder of the Daily Express who became Conservative MP for Ashton in 1910, held various offices, including minister for information during the First World War. His successor, Sir AH Stanley - later Lord Ashfield - was another president of the Board of Trade.

Sir William Jowitt, who became Ashton's MP during the Second World War, was made lord chancellor in Attlee's 1945 administration; and Fred Blackburn, MP for Stalybridge and Hyde from 1951 to 70, was recognised as an authority on parliamentary procedure and was considered very unlucky not to be elected speaker of the Commons.

More recently, Mr Blackburn's successor, (Lord) Tom Pendry, was a Northern Ireland minister in the late 1970s and later a highly respected shadow minister for sport. Lord Sheldon, MP for Ashton from 1964 until 1997, held posts within the Treasury.

Hilary Benn, who was made Environment Secretary by Gordon Brown, is well known as the son of Tony Benn. But what is less well known is that the Benn family has very strong links with Tameside.

These go back to the early 19th century when Julius Benn arrived in Hyde looking for a job as a schoolmaster. Lonely in a strange town, he made his way into a service at Zion Chapel at the corner of Stockport Road and Peel Street, and fell in love with the woman who gave him his hymn book.

Julius soon married Ann Taylor, the daughter of a shuttlemaker, and they started a school at the chapel. In 1850 they had a son, John, after whose wife, Lily Pickstone, Lily Street, Gee Cross, was to get its name.

The Pickstones were connected to the Wedgwood family of pottery fame and several members of the Benn family, including Tony, were given Wedgwood as a middle name.
John Benn worked in publishing and this took him to London where he became one of the first members of the London County Council. He was chairman of the LCC in 1904-05 and served as a Liberal MP for Wapping and later Devonport. John was knighted in 1906 and created a baronet in 1914.

His middle son, William, also went into politics and became the youngest MP in the Commons when elected as Liberal member for North Aberdeen at the age of 28 in 1906. However, he joined the Labour Party in 1927 and retained his seat at a by-election.

After Ramsay Macdonald came to power in 1929, William was appointed secretary of state for India, but lost his constituency in 1931 and did not return to the commons until 1937 when he won a by-election in Gorton.

In 1940, William was created Lord Stansgate to boost Labour membership of the upper house, but said he only accepted the peerage because his eldest son, Michael, who was planning to become a Church of England clergyman, was happy to inherit it. However, Michael died in an air crash in 1944 and the title passed to Tony when Lord Stansgate died in 1960.

Tony, who was a Labour MP, refused to accept it because it meant he would have had to resign his seat, and after a lengthy campaign he achieved a change in the law and became the first man to relinquish a peerage.

In 1981, Tony went very close to becoming deputy leader of the Labour Party, losing narrowly to Dennis Healey. He also served in a number of key government posts, including postmaster general and minister for energy.

Margaret Beckett made history in 1992 when she became the first woman to be elected deputy leader of the Labour Party.

Yet, although she represents the Derby South constituency, as Margaret Jackson she lived on Waterloo Grove, Ashton, and attended St Mary's RC Primary School. However, while she was still young, the family moved to East Anglia because of the poor health of her father, Cyril.

Mrs Beckett first hit the headlines in October, 1974, when she took Lincoln from Dick Taverne, a man who had quit the Labour Party the previous year. He resigned the seat but won it at the ensuing by-election standing as an independent, and then held it in February, 1974. However, Mrs Beckett was to lose the constituency in 1979, when Labour prime minister Jim Callaghan lost power.

She returned to parliament in 1983 and went on to serve in various roles before being appointed to the front bench in 1989 as shadow chief secretary to the treasury.

Following the death of John Smith in 1994, Mrs Beckett led the party in the interim period before Tony Blair was elected. She then became one of his most loyal lieutenants and served in all his cabinets from 1997 to 2007.

She was environment secretary for several years before becoming the UK's first woman foreign secretary in 2006.

Barbara Castle, who was one of Labour's most famous female politicians in the 20th century, lived in Hyde for some years in the 1930s.

Her father, Frank Betts, was a tax inspector and in those days they were not allowed to live to long in any one area to prevent them from becoming enmeshed in the community. Consequently, the family moved several times, arriving in Hyde in 1931.

They lived in a large detached house at the corner of Mottram Road and Grange Road North, roughly opposite the Bankfield pub where they were known to take a drink.

In her autobiography, Barbara Castle does not paint a flattering picture of Hyde. Her main memories are of of litter blowing about in the streets and a powerful wine-based drink called Red Biddy. She also speaks of looking out from her bedroom at a curious monument on a hill - probably the war memorial on Werneth Low.

It is generally accepted that the two years Barbara Castle spent in Hyde, following her graduation from Oxford in 1932, were the most miserable of her life. At a time of sky-high unemployment she did manage to secure a job with the North Cheshire Herald for a weekly wage of ten shillings (50p), but before she could start work the Herald was taken over by the Ashton Reporter Group and the offer was withdrawn.

However, she was always politically active and spoke at many open-air Labour meetings. And she always remembered one occasion, in Ashton, when she was introduced by a male chairman with the words: "Ladies and gentlemen, we now have a unique phenomenon, a lady wot speaks."

Barbara Castle entered Parlaiment in 1945 as MP for Blackburn and held the seat for 34 years before becoming Euro-MP for the Tameside area in 1979. During Harold Wilson's tenure as prime minister she held several Cabinet posts, most notably as secretary of state for transport in the 1960s when she was responsible for introducing the breathalyser.

She died in 2002 having been created a life peer.

Some of the areas surrounding Tameside have also elected people who have gone on to served in the Cabinet, most notably Oldham which elected Winston Churchill as a Conservative MP in 1900.

Colne Valley, which included Saddleworth, was represented by Labour chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Snowden from 1922 to 1931, and Labour home secretary John Clynes was MP for Clayton.

Arthur Balfour, a Conservative prime minister at the start of the 20th century was MP for Manchester East, now a fiercely Labour area.

Green Flag Award for Denton Cemetery

A Tameside cemetery is one of only four cemeteries in the country to be awarded the prestigious Green Flag Award this year.

Denton is the only cemetery in Greater Manchester to have achieved this status. The national award for parks and open spaces is given to organisations who demonstrate exceptional management and maintenance of green spaces.

Head of environmental operations Robin Monk said: ‘‘We were pleased to get involved and be part of the bigger team in Tameside that achieved eight Green Flags this year. The award for Denton Cemetery is a credit to Mike Gurney, senior registrar and his team of staff and gardeners who have created a place of remembrance worthy of this award".

And the good work doesn't end there - the Bereavement Services team are already working on the next cemetery which will apply for Green Flag status. Executive member for environmental services, Cllr Cath Piddington said: "We want to build on this success and try for a second cemetery in 2008. We are investing in our cemeteries by improving footpaths and other facilities and this award is recognition of that work".

Consummer police - at your service!

A new ITV series kept staff from the council's from environmental services in the public eye over the summer.

At the beginning of the year, independent production company Title Role came to Tameside to discuss whether or not the council would be interested in taking part in a documentary series highlighting the work the council does.

Several meetings later, the council agreed to take part, as did Lancashire County Council. Filming took place around the borough over several months, with a crew following members of staff as they went about their duties.

Title Role producer Helen Tonge said: "We were keen to see the diverse roles the officers undertake and were pleased that this was reflected in the films.  Everybody welcomed the crew and got behind the filming 100 per cent.  The success of the series was down to the officers we worked with and the hard work that they do."

Recycling officer Kyle Barnes who took part in "The Consumer Police" said: "I enjoyed the experience of being in front of the camera. Some people say I'm a natural but I'm still waiting for the offer from Hollywood. On a serious note, I hope people got an insight into all the hard work that went into getting our 100-year-old refuse wagon back on the streets of Tameside."

The series was shown during primetime on ITV and Granada bosses were delighted with the viewing figures. The next question on everyone lips though, is there going to be a second series?

Green credentials get a boost

Council bosses' green credentials have just received a massive boost, thanks to the national organisation the Carbon Trust.

For the green campaigners have written to the council applauding them on their key support for the Local Carbon Management Programme.

Pioneering

The programme has brought together a range of pioneering councils from across the United Kingdom, which through a diverse portfolio of energy efficiency and onside renewable projects, has to date identified massive carbon and financial savings.

The letter, from spokesman Richard Rugg said: "I am delighted to say that Tameside Council has been an excellent example of this success. On the foundation of your Strategy and Implementation Plan, you have put in place a framework within which to further develop your carbon saving activity over the next 5-10 years.

Excellent

"The work of your carbon management team has set an excellent example both to the rest of the sector and across your local business and domestic community. We would like to congratulate you on this success."

Council Executive Leader Cllr Roy Oldham said: "It is always much appreciated when we receive recognition for all the environmental work this council does.

But we will never rest on our laurels and we will continue to look at new and innovative ways to improve our green credentials even further."

Recycling on the increase

Tameside residents are continuing to do their bit to cut down on carbon emissions.

A recent report to the council's Energy Panel showed how simple recycling can cut down on carbon emissions.

Head of environmental operations Robin Monk said: "Every household can reduce carbon emissions by just over a tonne every year if they recycle about 60 per cent of their waste. Currently we are achieving around 29 per cent recycling, which is about 50,000 tonnes already. Recycling is easy and makes a significant difference".

Executive member for environmental services Cllr Catherine Piddington said: "Our recycling levels have increased over the last few years and that is a credit to everyone who is getting involved. Throwing rubbish into a black bin and expecting it to be landfilled is no longer an option. It's becoming very expensive and is not environmentally friendly".

The council is continuing to trial managed collections where recyclates are collected one week and normal waste the other. Trials in Stalybridge and Audenshaw have shown that recycling levels of over 50% can be achieved. Three further trial areas are planned for September and October.