Croston Parish Council Newsletter

December 2013

Croston Parish Council would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and

a Happy New Year

Welcome to our new format newsletter. We hope you approve of the changes and would appreciate your comments. Please let us know what you think (contact details on back cover).

Town Bridge in Winter (photo courtesy of Cllr Kath Almond)

Chairman’s Message

Having been Chair of the Parish Council for a number of years now I am often asked what motivates me to carry on. The answer is simple - I am very proud of our village! I know it’s not perfect - too much speeding traffic, not enough parking etc. - but it’s a wonderful place to live. It feels safe and friendly and has a caring community.

As Chair it is my privilege to represent the village at various meetings and special events. Most recently I attend the Remembrance Day service where young members of our Scout Group placed hand-made poppies on a cross to represent each of the names on our War Memorial. A very poignant tribute!

As you will read elsewhere in this newsletter, in October I attended the North West in Bloom presentation ceremony with fellow councillor Kath Almond, where the village was awarded Silver Gilt for the 2nd year running. We were joined at the event by the Landlord and Landlady from The Black Horse on Westhead Road who were also awarded a well-deserved Silver Gilt for their wonderful floral displays at the pub.

The work of several local support groups continues:- The Friends of Croston Recreation Ground have several fundraising events on going as they strive to reach their goal of around £114,000 for phase 1 of the development and LYFAG continue to meet with LCC and the Environment Agency to look at options to manage the flood risk.

The Parish Council has recently given grants to the following:

Croston Village Festivities group - towards the cost of the land train

PCSO Maria Featherstone - towards the cost of a project to reduce speeding in the village

St Michael’s and All Angels PCC – to assist with a project on the Croft Field

Our thanks must go to all residents who volunteer their services to these groups who strive to improve our village life.

On behalf of the Parish Council I wish you all Merry Christmas and send best wishes for the New Year.

Anne Peet

Nicholsons Ligan House, 32 Town Road, Croston

Tel: 01772 601700

Friendly Local Solicitors Est. 1992

Specialised areas Wills and Probate

Lasting Power of Attorneys Matrimonial

We are proud to sponsor local ventures and charities

Home/Hospital/Nursing Home appointments and out of hours appointments can be arranged

Please telephone for a free initial appointment

Success

Councillors Kath Almond and Anne Peet attended the awards ceremony of this year’s North West in Bloom Competition, on 24 October 2013, at the Southport Theatre and Convention Centre to receive a Silver Gilt Award on behalf of the Village.

The previous day Kath and Councillor Eva Norris had attended the Royal Horticultural Society It’s Your Neighbourhood Awards Ceremony where Church Street, The Friends of Croston Station and D a l t o n F o l d r e c e i v e d Neighbourhood Awards.

We would like to thank all residents and local businesses who contributed towards the success by providing floral displays, hanging baskets etc and keeping the village tidy.

We are often up against villages with significantly higher budgets and we are extremely proud of the regular success in this competition, relying on volunteer/councillor assistance with watering, weeding and tidying etc. If you could help in the future please contact any of the Councillors or the Clerk (contact details on back cover) - we’d particularly like to hear from anyone who could assist with watering the tubs and boxes around the village.

Kath Almond and Anne Peet with the Silver Gilt Award

Kath Almond and Dave Sandwell with the Neighbourhood Award for Croston Station

Victory for Common Sense

Many residents (and the Parish Council) were delighted to hear the news that Wainhomes had agreed to the suggestion to use the de Trafford name for the road on the new housing development on the site of the old woodyard.

Earlier in proceedings the we were extremely disappointed to read in the local press the Executive Member at Chorley Council suggesting that the Parish Council had failed to respond to the consultation regarding the naming of the street. We would like to point out that, whilst this is not factually incorrect, it was entirely due to Chorley Council sending the consultation to an incorrect email address which had not been used by the Parish Council for a number o f years . Once the consultation was received, a response was submitted in less than 24 hours! The response offered the view that the name of de Trafford held considerably more significance within the village than St Aidan.

The development will remain as St Aidan’s Place for marketing reasons however, similar to the situation with Jubilee Way/Croston Bank, we are sure that, in the future, the area will be known by its street name.

We would like to thank Mr Steve Toghill of Wainhomes for introducing a much need degree of common sense into the proceedings.

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Croston Parish Council accepts no responsibility for items provided by third party contributors.

The Parish Council does not endorse or recommend any of the advertisers contained in this publication.

Rooms available to hire

Take a look at our

website to see what’s on!

Community Resource Centre, Church Street , Croston, PR26 9HA

01772 603600 E:crostonoldschool@tiscali.co.uk

www.croston-old-school.org

Croston

Old School

Bookings for weddings and other special occasions now

being taken for 2015

Fully Insured Dog

Walking and Horse Care Service

BHS NVQ Level 1 Horse Care

Dog boarding available Prices available on request

Service by appointment only References available request

Covering Croston and surrounding villages

Ellen Peet

Tel: 07704 884700

email: emp_burridge@hotmail.co.uk

CROSTON’S BARBER

TRADITIONAL & MODERN STYLES

at

HAIR21

Tel: Ian (01772)

601272

21 Town Road, Croston

Tuesday Thursday Friday Saturday

9.00am - 6.00pm 9.00am - 7.00pm 9.00am - 7.00pm 8.30am - 3.00pm

Defibrillator News

The time is almost here… We’ve completed the adoption of the BT Payphone Kiosk at the Town Road/Station Road junction and it will provide a permanent site for the community defibrillator.

The kiosk was chosen as the site as it is relatively central and will protect the defibrillator from the elements.

The Type K6 Kiosk was designed in 1935, by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of King George V. It was the first red telephone kiosk to be extensively used outside London, and many thousands were deployed in virtually every town and city, replacing most of the existing kiosks and establishing thousands of new sites.

All we’re waiting for now is for the defibrillator to be delivered and fitted and we’ll be up and running and (hopefully) ready to save lives.

Moonendale Ground maintenance

Moonendale is a family run Horticultural and Arboricultural business with over 20 years industry experience. With a fully qualified team, we offer a friendly and reliable service at a competitive rate, and for your peace of mind our staff are CRB checked.

Below are some of the services Moonendale have to offer ‐

Garden Services Garden Maintenance Hedge Cutting Shrub Pruning Drainage Solutions Hard and soft Landscaping‐Turfing, Shrub Bed design, Tree Planting, Decking, Fencing and Flagging

Arboricultural Services Tree Pruning Crown Raising Crown Reduction Crown Thinning Tree Felling Stump Grinding

For further information please ring Paul on ‐ Tel: 01772 469624 or Mobile: 07449017090

Flood Resilient Insulation

Chorley Council and Isothane are working together to bring Croston residents an opportunity to benefit from cavity wall insulation in homes where the cavity has been defined as ‘’hard to treat’’. Funding to enable Croston homes to receive free cavity wall insulation is currently available via the Energy Company Obligation (ECO), a financial obligation that the Government places on Energy companies. The Council and Isothane have focussed on Croston because the Technitherm® cavity wall insulation product which Isothane have developed is particularly effective in offering flood resilience. It is anticipated that the scheme will commence from January 2014 onwards, starting with residents being offered a free property survey. Representatives acting on behalf of Isothane who visit residents’ homes will carry ID and a letter of introduction from Chorley Council. Unlike previous energy schemes, the eligibility for this project extends to all owner occupiers and those renting from a private landlord. The key requirement is that the property has ‘’hard to treat’’ cavity walls. For a definition of ‘Hard to treat cavity walls’ please see www.isothane.com.injected_insulation/y_company_obligation_eco.htm If residents have any other queries please contact Martin Sample (Housing Team Leader, Private Sector) at Chorley Council on 01257 515151 or by email:- martin.sample@chorley.gov.uk

Residents step up fundraising plans

The Friends of Croston Recreation Ground (FoCRG), was set up in 2012 to plan, raise funds for and oversee a much-needed facelift to Croston Rec.

At present, the area is a dull, flat, waterlogged field, with rusty goal posts and a rather tatty, unwelcoming and outdated play area, only suitable for small children. The village is in real need of a better community space which can be enjoyed by all.

The proposed design incorporates two separate play areas with play equipment for younger and older (teenage) children; an open kick-about space; picnic area and benches and 10 ‘Growing Gardens’.

Sensitive landscaping, incorporating wildflower areas and tree planting, will greatly improve the Rec, making it an interesting and attractive place for recreation and relaxation for everyone.

Phase One of the development has been costed out at £114,000. The Parish Council has earmarked £12,000 and the FoCRG have in place a realistic fundraising strategy for a further £90,000. This leaves £12,000 to be raised from local fund raising, sponsorship and trust applications.

The village is now aiming to raise this £12,000 and has responded by staging a number of fundraising events including a pop up restaurant in a resident’s home!

In November, Eva Norris and her team ran a very successful jumble sale at the Community Centre raising a fantastic £200. The Recreation Ground was selected as this year's charity for the annual Croston Pub Quiz Pub Crawl. Sincere thanks to Stephen Parkinson and Steven Swift for organising this fab event; and of course to the partaking 2013 venues: The Black Horse, The Sports Club, The Crown, The Grapes, The Lord Nelson and The Wheatsheaf. Nicky and Terry Chaplin (Green Light Driving School) opened the doors of their home for guests to enjoy a four course meal with them with live music from Junction 31. Tickets sold out within hours of this event's launch and further dates are being considered.

If you have a great fund raising idea (large or small) or can help with fund raising in any way, please visit http://crostonrec.btck.co.uk/ email the FoCRG team on crostonrec@hotmail.com or phone 07501 474550.

Next Meeting – Monday 6th January 2014, 7.30pm in The Old School, Croston – all welcome

Lancashire Constabulary

In the run up to Christmas please make sure you do not leave presents on display in the car or in view from a window at home.

Don’t leave cars unattended on drives or roads whilst defrosting.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a safe and Happy Christmas and New Year.

PCSO 7932 Maria Fetherstone

Published by Alan Platt, 9 Ambleside Avenue, Euxton, Chorley. PR7 6NX

Printed by Minuteman Press, 2B Fox Industrial Estate, Holyoake Avenue, Blackpool FY1 3ND Tel: 01253 592244

V i l lages in P a r t n e r s h i p of f ices are relocating to 265 The Green Eccleston.

Croston St Michael Scouts…

Would like to wish everyone a very Happy Christmas. The Scout Band would like to give a big 'Thank You' from to everyone who donated on Coffee Day. £499-00 was raised for the Fireman's Benevolent Fund.

Businesses

Do you want to reach around 1200 households in Croston? Full colour ads cost £20 (1/4 page), £40 (half page), and £60 (full page). To advertise in this newsletter contact Alan Platt on 01257 234003 or email crostonpc@btinternet.com for further details.

Contact Details Councillors

Alan Platt (Clerk to the Council) can be contacted at:

9 Ambleside Avenue Euxton Chorley PR7 6NX

Tel: 01257 234003

e-mail: crostonpc@btinternet.com

website: www.crostonparishcouncil.org.uk

Council meetings are held on the second Wednesday of each month (except August), in The Old School, Church Street, Croston.

All residents are welcome to attend and a section of each meeting is set aside specifically for residents to air their views on local issues.

Tel

600012

601025

600368 976151 600572 005663 601355 603427 452160

Anne Peet (Chairman)

Stephen Parkinson (Vice-Chairman)

Kath Almond Mark Cowley 07545 Peter Fenemore Keith Iddon 07787 Eva Norris Bruno Paillusson Gill Stubbs 07905

Useful Telephone Numbers

Police (non-emergency) 101

Crimestoppers 0800 555111

Report problems regarding the Station and station car park area to British Transport Police on: 0800 405040

Chorley Borough Council 01257 515151

Report problems with roads and pavements, including street lighting, to Lancashire County Council on:

0845 0530011

National Grid (gas leaks) 0800 111999

United Utilities (Water) Leakline 0800 330033

Environment Agency Floodline 0845 988 1188

Noticeboards

Keep up to date with Parish Council activities and details of meetings etc. The notice boards are located on the Village Green, outside the Co-op, in front of the Police Station and by the Surgery on Brookfield.

Local non-for-profit organisations wishing to include A4 sized posters to publicise events etc should contact the Clerk.