Greater Manchester Police has launched a new cross-divisional task force to target burglars, robbers and car thieves that move between areas of Manchester and Stockport to commit crime. The Operation Mistral team consists of dedicated crime analysts, intelligence officers and senior investigation officers that deploy a range of specialist officers from the mounted, dog, tactical aid and roads policing units to support local policing teams in targeting prolific offenders.

The task force is based at Cheadle Heath police station and also includes a team of highly experienced crime investigators that is working with forensics experts and the Crown Prosecution Service to maximise opportunities to bring offenders to justice. Crime reduction officers are also working as part of the team to help communities safeguard themselves from thieves.

Further details of the initiative can be found on the Greater Manchester Police website by clicking here.

Kevin Melling, from Stockport Council, and Cllr Dave White have been visiting every Local Area Committee meeting to get feedback from councillors on how Stockport can improve its response to freezing weather conditions as we saw for nearly a month from around 18th December.

The Tories have been attacking the Council for not gritting more pavements.  Odd when you consider that Stockport did better than most and that you can’t just scatter grit on pavements like you can on roads.  It’s the action of cars grinding the grit into the ice on busy roads that actually does the job.

That doesn’t happen on pavements - you need to clear the snow and ice first and - as many of us found over the cold period - that can be a very slow and laborious process.

But I guess making that sort of attack is easier than understanding the issues and coming up with serious suggestions.

I had two comments:

1. If we can get more business owners to clear in front of their premises, the people clearing pavements could focus on those used by elderly people: paths from sheltered accommodation and old peoples’ homes, and to medical centres and doctors’surgeries for example.  We need to counter the misinformation being spread in the media about the risk of being sued.
2. Where residential roads have steep slopes (e.g. Kendal Drive, Eskdale, Rydal Close, Airedale Close), they should be given higher priority on the gritting list.

Overall, and having seen and heard from many other areas around the country, I believe Stockport did better than most at keeping the roads clear, resuming refuse and recycling services as quickly as possible and getting help to the most vulnerable.

Many Council staff went above and beyond the call of duty in working to keep everything moving.

But, of course, that doesn’t mean no improvements can be made and I was very pleased to see Cllr White and Kevin Melling taking the initiative to go out and ask for feedback.

On Wednesday morning I met with Mrs Yule, the Headteacher at Lady Barn House School on School’s Hill, Cheadle.  This followed concern from local residents about traffic and parking around the school at dropping off and picking up times.

Hopefully I’ll find the time to write more detail about what the school has been doing, but for now I’ll give the summary.

The school does make efforts to minimise the problems.  In the morning children are dropped off in the car par, in the afternoon picking up is obviously trickier as the kids can’t always be there at just the right time.

Exiting the school, there are “no right turn” signs, though some parents ignore them.

The school encourages parents to be responsible when parking and driving, and are very happy for the police to hand out tickets to those breaking the law.  They regularly send out letters to parents reminding them of the need to be responsible.

Of course, most people who live near a school recognise that traffic increases for short periods in the mornings and afternoons - it’s a problem every school in the country has.

And, as Inspector Gilbertson told us at the Area Committee meeting, when you have parents parking illegally and willingly accepting the fine, with no intention of changing their behaviour, there’s little police or the school can do.

But that doesn’t mean we can’t improve the situation in this case.  I was keen to look at ways the Council could help the school to stop traffic needing to come onto Schools Hill at all.

We’re going to explore whether there’s a safe and affordable way to have parents parking off Schools Hill (perhaps Cheadle Baths or the Sainsburys/John Lewis car park) and be bussed or walked to school from there.

For both the school and the Council there are issues and challenges to be overcome; but we’re talking about it, and that’s got to be a positive start.

For the first time, Manchester Harriers are holding parent’s cross-country races on Saturday 6th February, and there’ll be prizes!

Harriers run the Primary Schools Cross Country League at William Scholes Field, Gatley on Saturday mornings from 10am.

The remaining dates of the season are Saturday 6th February and Saturday 6th March.  The league has been in existence for over 30 years and there are about 300 runners at each race meeting.

There will be two parents’ races - one for ladies, one for men, running from 10.30am on Saturday 6th February.

There’s also a primary schools relay event after school on Thursday 25th March, starting at 4pm, with trophy presentations at 5pm.

Contact Ian Burnett for more information at i.b.burnett@googlemail.com or by calling 0161 485 2155.

Stockport has appointed Eamonn Boylan as the Council’s new Chief Executive, subject to confirmation. Mr Boylan’s appointment goes before a full meeting of Stockport Council on 4th February for ratification.

Mr Boylan is currently Deputy Chief Executive of national housing and regeneration body the Homes and Communities Agency where he is responsible for improvement programmes for land, private finance, growth and new initiatives

Stockport Council Leader, Councillor Dave Goddard, said: “We are delighted that Eamonn is to become our new Chief Executive. This is a real statement of intent from Stockport that we want to move from excellent to exceptional. Eamonn has a proven track record and we are absolutely certain he will drive us into the best possible position.

“We know that Stockport has a great workforce, we have good transport links and we have sites ripe for development. The climate is still challenging economically and we have total confidence that Eamonn is the right person to take us on the next stage of our journey.

“National inspectors have told us we run one of the best authorities in the country but there is no room for complacency. We need to provide value-for-money in all the 600 services we deliver. We want to build on our current success to improve life for everyone here in Stockport. Eamonn will play a crucial role in that constant improvement, regeneration and in providing value-for-money.

“He knows the region well and he’s played key roles already in attracting international investment and in working with other authorities to achieve great results.”

Mr Boylan, who lives in south Manchester, is expected to take up the post later this year when current Chief Executive John Schultz retires.

Previously Deputy Chief Executive of Manchester City Council (2002-2009), Director of Housing and Community Services at Manchester (1999-2002) and Director of Housing and Operational Services at Sheffield (1997-1999), he has played a key role in the development of the Housing Market Renewal Programme, the Northern Way Growth Strategy and, through his work with the Core Cities Group and the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities, in the emerging policy framework for city regions.

Said Mr Boylan: “I am delighted to be appointed Chief Executive. Stockport is renowned for being a well-run authority and I look forward to building on those strengths. There’s no doubt this will be a challenging time but I am determined we maximise the opportunities available for improvement, investment and regeneration.

“I look forward to working with colleagues not just within the Council but also in partner organisations across the borough and the region.”

The Deputy Leader of Stockport’s Conservative Group, Cllr Maureen Walsh, has this week resigned from the Conservative Group, leaving local Tories in disarray.  She now sits as an Independent on Stockport Council.

Having got to know Maureen over the last few months, I personally feel  angry at how she has been treated, and how local Tories have tried to cover their tracks and pretend there’s nothing wrong.

There are some councillors you respect, whichever side of the chamber they’re on, and Maureen is one of them.  She’s represented her ward of Bramhall North well and done a great deal of charity work through the Council, raising thousands of pounds for good causes.

I understand Maureen is going to put out her own leaflet to put the record straight, so incensed is she at how she’s been treated.

Here’s what we’ve said in our latest leaflet to North Bramhall and Hazel Grove:

Bramhall residents have been stunned by the news that popular local councillor Maureen Walsh has decided to quit the Conservatives.

Cllr Walsh, who has represented the Bramhall North area for 10 years, has decided to leave the party after a string of disagreements which have left local Conservatives deeply divided and in turmoil.

In a sign of desperation, the Tories have now selected a candidate for the local elections in May who doesn’t even live in Bramhall!

Cllr Walsh meanwhile is so upset, she is circulating her own message to local residents which directly contradicts the ’spin’ the Tories have tried to put on the chaos.

Rather than say more at this stage, I’d prefer to wait for Maureen’s own words

At yesterday’s Local Area Committee, I’d asked for the issue t Cheadle’s Christmas lights to be put on the agenda and Council officer Brian Nash waited very patiently for the item to come up - over three hours into the meeting!

I commented that I’d had lots of positive comments about the Christmas displays this year - the lights and trees.  Gatley looked great, and Cheadle did too - except for the five lights that were out.

Cllr Jones also mentioned problems with the small Christmas trees for shops, which didn’t really work (partly because Brian was in hospital for much of the period).

Although the street-lighting people didn’t get the five sets of lights working in Cheadle, they did (at a day’s notice) get the lights for the tree on Cheadle Green working when it was needed.

We’re all keen to improve the lights year-on year.  My view is that we need to avoid over-stretching - these things are tricky to organise and we  do better to put on a good display and do it well than to attempt to do more and more and have it go wrong when something unforeseen happens (an it always does, of course!)

Thanks to everyone who contacted me about the tyres dumped by the stream at the top of Gatley Hill.

I’m told they’ve now been removed (though I haven’t had a chance to get up and take a look myself - all my trtrips to Gatley Hill are after dark at this time of year).

If anyone has any information about who dumped the tyres there, I’d be very grateful - please get in touch,

Two or three people have told me that there’s more dog mess than usual in the small park at the ends of Sevenoaks, Leyland and Saville Roads in Gatley.

Most dog owners are responsible these days and clean up after their pets, so its disappointing when a minority don’t.  Since this area is commonly used as a play area for young children living nearby it’s of particular concern.

I’ve asked the Council to increse dog warden patrols in that area, and I urge all dog owners to be considerate and put dog mess in the bin at the side of the field.

I’ve heard this afternoon that the Informal Hearing into appeals will be held on Wednesday 10th March 2010 at the Town Hall, Edward Street, Stockport, SK1 3XE commencing at 10.00am.

A Planning Inspector appointed by the First Secretary of State will determine the appeal.

The two applications being appealed are:

(DC041677)
Partial demolition and reconstruction of former Tatton Cinema foyer, demolition and reconstruction of adjacent two storey retail units to provide 377m2 retail unit, erection of three storey 44 bedroom care home (Use Class C2) on site of former auditorium, alterations to highway, provision of access, car parking, servicing and landscaping.

(DC041678)
Conservation Area Consent for the Partial demolition and reconstruction of former Tatton Cinema foyer, demolition and reconstruction of adjacent two storey retail units to provide 377m2 retail unit, erection of three storey, forty four bedroom care home (Use Class C2) on site of former auditorium, alterations to highway, provision of access, car parking and servicing, provision of landscaping and development ancillary thereto.

In a speech to Demos, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor Vince Cable will today set out the key pillars of the Liberal Democrat economic manifesto.

Vince Cable will say:

We have an economy too dependent on consumer spending and borrowing rather than saving and investment. Too much financial engineering in banking rather than real engineering. Too London-centric. Too dependent on the City of London rather than the talents of the rest of Britain. Too preoccupied with the artificial, paper wealth of inflated property prices rather than productive work and invention. Too absorbed by growth for its own sake rather than protecting the environment and maintaining a sense of fairness and community. But we don’t have to despair. The challenges are enormous but if we are prepared to face up to them we can use the current crisis to refashion our economy so that it serves the country not the just the square mile. That means making the sort of radical changes that we propose: a credible plan for bringing the public finances back under control, sorting out and breaking up the banks, building a sustained recovery and creating a fairer tax system.

The Liberal Democrats are the only party of genuine economic reform.

Bringing the Public finances back under control

What is absolutely clear is that the incoming Chancellor must have a clear plan to eliminate the structural deficit. The government keeps changing its definition of what and how big the structural deficit is but the common sense point is that public spending was built up on impermanent sources of tax and now needs to be scaled back to levels that the UK taxpayer can pay for. The current government estimate of 5.5% of GDP is a guess; it could be worse. The government plan to reduce this deficit by half over four years may also prove to be too laid back for the markets. It is however a starting point. It is also a major challenge and tough by the standards of previous fiscal tightening.

In recent weeks, the markets have been jittery about the outcome of the General Election and the uncertain aspect of its outcome on Government spending.  They are right to worry: the consequences of failure to bring the deficit under control are serious.  This cannot be allowed to happen – what we need is a credible plan to deal with the deficit and to be delivered by whatever Government is formed after the British public have had their say.

Let me be clear that bringing stability back to the public finances is an unambiguous commitment. For the Liberal Democrats it is the first pillar of our economic policy.

What is needed is a calm and rational plan, a proactive rather than reactive approach, identifying the priority steps which need to be taken to cut government spending. The Liberal Democrats have for a start put on hold many of our previous spending commitments – to free personal care, to a generous citizens pension, to universal child care – which are undoubtedly popular ideas but are not, now, affordable.

We have so far identified an additional £10bn in net savings beyond what the government has put forward which is, altogether, about half of what would be needed to meet the government’s deficit reduction objective. I do not hide the fact that much more would need to be done.

Sorting out and breaking up the banks

There is a big, structural, issue which until recently was being studiously avoided by both the Government and the Tories. Since the banking crisis broke in November 2008, I have argued that this question cannot be ducked since the British global, banks which are too big to fail are too big to bail out and are a danger to the systemic stability of the economy. Now that President Obama has taken on the issue of breaking up the banks on his side of the Pond, it is time that we do the same in the UK.   A modern version of Glass Steagall is required separating retail and investment banking and there is need too for more meaningful competition in business and mortgage lending. Until the banks are broken up, and are able to compete and succeed or fail without UK government guarantees, they should pay an insurance premium – a supplementary tax on bank profits.

Beyond that, there is need for a much more varied ecology in the banking industry: local banks; more mutuals including credit unions; a banking arm for the Post Office network to reach the financially excluded; specialist banks to support with long term finance, new ventures and for infrastructure.  I see, at present, no evidence that the Government or the Conservatives have any vision of banking beyond the immediate crisis.

Building a sustained recovery

A sustained recovery will rely on the private sector, especially small and medium sized business, to generate jobs. For this to be possible, government will have to help create a business environment conducive to start ups and small business – centring on moderate taxes, getting rid of red tape, secure intellectual property rights and ensuring that there is a flow of credit on competitive terms. Beyond that most entrepreneurs want to be left alone. But there are several respects in which government has to give a lead to underpin stable, sustainable growth in future and this is the next pillar of our economic policy.

The first element is to provide, where possible, economic stability. Gordon Brown’s ‘abolition’ of ‘boom and bust’ has become his signature: and a joke. We must maintain the operational independence of the Bank of England. Its terms of reference must now include management of asset inflation, as in the case in Sweden. We also need greater independence in the monitoring and assessment of fiscal policy.

A second key role is education. A key priority for the Lib Dems is to reallocate some of the financial savings made to reinvest in early years education of the most deprived children so that there is a reduction in the apparently endless cycle of educational failure for those at the bottom. Another priority must be science and maths education at all levels leading also to engineering.

The third is the financing of capital investment in infrastructure, in the widest sense. Britain has, on most measures, poor infrastructure. There is a need for substantial investment in energy networks and storage, public transport systems and new renewable energy. We want to create an Infrastructure Bank, with some pump priming, public money (or assets) but essentially privately financed.

Creating a fairer tax system

It could be that there is a painful period ahead of slow growth or weak recovery with continuing high levels of unemployment and severe restraint or cuts on public spending. The public will accept such privations if they understand the necessity for these measures and if there is a sense of fairness in the sharing of burdens. That is why we suggest a revenue neutral package of tax changes centring on tax cuts for the low (and average) paid, by lifting the income tax threshold to £10,000.

The Liberal Democrats believe that it is simply not possible to address the problem of an unsustainable budget deficit without parallel action to rebalance the tax system and eliminate the unfairness at its core.

There are painful times ahead but we believe that the measures I have set out to support economic recovery will do much to reduce the pain. We understand the enormity of the challenge ahead and are ready for it.

I’ve reported the following paving in need of repair in Cheadle & Gatley village centres:

- At the corner of Church Road and Oakwood Avenue, by the Co-op, Gatley
- Outside the Sadagar Restaurant, 43-45 Church Road, Gatley
- Outside 57 Church Road, Gatley
- Damaged pavement around the edge of the BT cover in front of Warwick Mall, High Street, Cheadle.

Spot any more - let me know.

Stockport Council’s website – www.stockport.gov.uk – has had a re-vamp. The changes to the site have been made following valuable feedback from residents.

Changes have also been made following an independent assessment from The Shaw Trust - a national charity which supports disabled and disadvantaged people. These changes will ensure that the new website is as accessible to as many people as possible.

With over one million visitors a year and with online facilities for applying, reporting and paying for Council services, the Council’s website is becoming an increasingly important way for the authority to engage with local residents, businesses and visitors to the borough.

As part of the on-going evaluation, the Council would like to find out more about the users of the website and hear users’ views on how the Council can improve its online service. To comment on the Council’s website, please visit www.stockport.gov.uk/haveyoursay. Free internet access is available at all Stockport libraries. The closing date for people to give their views has been extended to 31st January 2010.

Let’s get active! That’s the message to all Stockport residents from some of the borough’s biggest sporting stars.

With 2010 here, local people are being encouraged to make a fresh start for the New Year by getting fitter, healthier and more active. To help everyone keep their New Year’s resolutions, the Council and Stockport Sports Trust have re-launched the Active Stockport campaign to help people fit more physical activity into their daily lives.

As part of the Stockport Boost programme, Active Stockport aims to help people of all ages improve their fitness levels and do the five, 30 minute sessions of physical activity per week that Government guidelines recommend. And to encourage all Stockport residents to fit more exercise into their daily routine, the borough’s sporting stars, including Stockport Metro swimmers Kerri-Anne Payne and Cassie Patten and Stockport County footballer Paul Gerrard, have given the Active Stockport campaign the big thumbs up.

To find out more about how the Active Stockport campaign can help you get fitter, healthier and more active, visit: www.stockport.gov.uk/active or call Stockport Sports Trust on 0161 433 4070.

Tickets are now on sale for the Annual Hatters’ Ball in aid of the Mayor of Stockport’s Charity Fund.

The Ball will be held on Friday, 29 January 2010 at 7.00 pm in the Ballroom at Stockport Town Hall.

Tickets cost £50 each and are available from the Town Hall Box Office by calling 474 3256.

The Safer Stockport Partnership is encouraging people who feel they have been the victim of a hate crime not to suffer in silence and report it.

Hate crimes are defined as incidents which may or may not constitute a criminal offence, which is perceived by the victim or any other person, as being motivated by prejudice or hate towards the victim because of their race, religion, sexual orientation, gender or the fact they have a disability.

There does not have to be evidence to suggest the motivation, the fact that the victim feels it is motivated in this way is sufficient for the police to deal with and record the incident as a hate crime. Hate incidents and crimes have a damaging effect on communities and need to be reported in order that the police and their partner agencies can protect other members of the community who may be targeted in this way.

To report a hate crime directly to Police, call 0161 872 5050. For more information please contact Dennis Bishop at Greater Manchester Police on 0161 856 9662 or 07901562722 or email dennis.bishop@gmp.police.uk.

Stockport Council will be marking the UK’s 10th annual Holocaust Memorial Day on Wednesday 27th January. Holocaust Memorial Day aims to educate people about the dangers of anti-Semitism, racism and all forms of discrimination.

It is commemorated internationally on 27th January, the date in 1945 when the allies liberated Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp. The theme for Holocaust Memorial Day 2010 is The Legacy of Hope.

The Council’s 14 libraries have organised special displays during the week to mark the event which was established to remember the victims of the Holocaust and Nazi persecution, and to reflect on more recent genocides. As well as displays, library staff will direct people to booklists, for adults and children, on the Holocaust Memorial Day website www.hmd.org.uk

Stockport libraries open on 27th January are Central Library, Bredbury, Brinnington, Edgeley, Great Moor, The Heatons and Reddish. Hazel Grove and Marple are open until 1pm on the day. For more information about your local library please telephone 0161 217 6009.

Cheadle’s Abney Hall has been a stately home, featured in an Agatha Christie novel, been a town hall, a language school and an office building.  Now its owners, Bruntwood, want it to become an Independent school, and they came along to Thursday’s Cheadle Village Partnership to tell us about it and get some feedback.

So what was the message from Bruntwood?

They were keen to stress that the development protects Abney Hall, that a lot of attention will be paid to avoiding traffic problems, and that users of the park will still be able to walk everywhere they can now.  Whether all of that’s achieved we’ll have to judge when the plans come out.

The plan is for an existing independent primary school with around 300 pupils to move into the Court building behind the main hall.  As those pupils left the primary school,a similar-sized senior school would grow up in the main hall.

There’s a long way to go (not that long, though - the aim is to open the primary school before the end of 2010).  In a straw poll at the Village Partnership meeting, most but not all were positive about the plans, from what we’d heard.

As always with anything that’s likely to come for planning permission, myself and Cllr Paul Porgess (the two councillors present) need to stay neutral and avoid expressing a view for or against.

The Heroes Welcome in Stockport campaign was launched on 11th November 2009 by the Mayor Colin MacAlister.  It aims to encourage local businesses and organisations including retailers to offer discounts to serving armed forces personnel on production of an identification card.

Sounds good to me.  If you’re a business sign up, decide what level of discount you’ll offer, get a sticker to display and (if you wish) go on the national Heroes Welcome in the UK database.

See the leaflet and application form below.

Application form:

Cheadle Area Committee is holding a special Public Forum: ‘Underage drinking, health and anti-social behaviour’ with representatives from Mosaic, the Police and the Community Safety Unit taking part and answering questions from the public at the next Cheadle Area Meeting on the 26th January.

Cllr June Somekh (leader of Cheadle Area Committee) has stated that:

“Underage drinking, health and anti-social behaviour is a very serious problem, and this area (Cheadle sk8) has a totally unacceptable number of teenage drinkers. It is particularly worrying that many, who are admitted to hospital, actually return there. I think we need to spread the message to as many people as possible”.

(Cut-and-pasted from AboutMyArea ).

For young people who want to get involved in organised activities there’s no shortage of things to do.  Sport, drama, art, music, Scouts, Guides, church clubs and more besides - all turning parents into the proverbial taxi service.

Some could do with more money but, more importantly is adult helpers.

Several of the activities my (junior school age) children do only exist because parents get involved and help.

Gatley Beavers and Cubs nearly closed down last year when the parent rota got too slim.  Fish Club at the United Reform Church on Elm Road, Gatley needs two or three parents to help out on a rota in addition to the regulars.

Basketball, which my son and his friends are enjoying, holds matches with paid referees and staff in Reddish on Saturdays.  They have highly competitive leagues, both girls and boys playing, and everyone has lots of fun - so much so that they’re expanding rapidly.

And yet, useless at basketball as most of the parents are, it couldn’t operate without mums and dads taking on some of the work: scoring, collecting the money and organising the players to be at the right place at the right time.

The two Cheadle teams (Cheadle Thunder and Cheadle Hurricanes) play in Division Two and Divison One respectively of the year 5 & 6 league.  They train at The Kingsway School  on Monday afternoons.

For basketball, training is being set up in High Schools across Stockport.  Players, boys and girls, can start from year 3 and aren’t expected to have any basketball skills at the beginning.  If you’re interested in finding out more, call 0161 480 2223 or email stockport@sportforallcentres.co.uk.

Before Christmas, the Police ran the first phase of Operation Beach, which successfully cut burglaries where it was run in parts of the west side of Gatley and Heald Green.

Now the next phase is starting.  The main objective is to get us, the householders, to be more careful about protecting our property and to keep an eye on what’s happening in our area.

For example

• in the snow, a group of lads spent hours driving around Cheadle Hulme and Bramhall in the morning, looking for anyone leaving their keys in their car while it was de-icing.
• is there a strange car sitting on your road for a week or two?  It might be legitimate, but it could be a stolen car so report it for checking.

Security tips include

• Always lock your doors and windows when you leave the house.
• Fit deadlocks to outside doors - burglars hate them because you need the key to open them from the inside as well.
• Don’t leave your car keys or house keys in sight, or in easy reach, of your windows and doors.
• Fit key-operated locks to your windows
• Install a visible burglar alarm and turn it on when you leave the house.
• Don’t hide your spare keys outside or in the garage or shed - burglars always look there.
• Leave the lights and radio on a timer when you go out for the evening, so it looks like you’re in.   You can get a timer from as little as £2 from a DIY shop.
• Don’t leave ladders or tools outside - someone could use them to get into the house.
• Don’t leave valuables like laptops where they can be seen from the window.

Burglary is rare in our area - taking sensible precautions will make it even rarer.

Icy weather has a nasty habit of creating new potholes in our roads, so Cllr Pam King and I have decided to try to visit every road in the ward and check for potholes, to catch them early.

Today I cycled around a sixth of Cheadle & Gatley ward (took a couple of hours, including a few stops to chat to people).  From that, I got this list of potholes below, some of which are new and some older:

Some potholes around Cheadle (plus the first, which is in Gatley)

Broken tarmac around grid, between 167 and 169 Gatley Road, Gatley.

Pothole, centre of Gatley Road, Cheadle 20m west of junction with Wilmslow Road (outside Tarantella restaurant).

Potholes outside numbers 8, 14 and 22 Hall Street, Cheadle

Pothole on Manchester Road, Cheadle where it passes over M60 (looks like it was marked up a while back but never repaired).

Potholes on Newboult Road, Cheadle at junction with Stockport Road, outside number 2 and a series of potholes outside numbers 20-26.

Potholes on New Hey Road, Cheadle outside number 62 (by kerb), 57 and numbers 63-67.

Pothole on Bulkeley Road, Cheadle by kerb outside number 55

Potholes outside numbers 14 and 21 Oakfield Avenue, Cheadle

Potholes on Oak Road, Cheadle outside numbers 5, 7, 15 and 19

Pothole at the junction of Whitegates Road and Ashfield Road, Cheadle (south east corner)

Pothole on Whitegates Road, Cheadle outside the garage of number 20.

Pothole outside 9 Alder Road, Cheadle.

Let us know if you spot any more potholes and dodgy pavements; we’ll be trying to get round the whole ward in the next week or two.

Dignity in Care programme

This year we’re celebrating 80 years of Scouting in Gatley - we’d love anyone who was in Gatley Cubs or Scouts in years gone by to get in touch.

To kick things off, I’ve received this wonderful photo of bob-a-job in 1949.

This was sent to me by Bill Mansell, then patrol leader of Peewit Patrol.

In the photo (as best as Bill’s memory serves) are:

Mr Mottram who owned the shoe shop outside which the photo was taken.

Colin Wyatt, doing the polishing and being closely watched by Peter Renshaw (without hat) and Derek Harris.

The group of three at the back are, from left to right, P.Barratt, D.Franks(?) and D.Chandley.

Colin, Peter and Bill were friends from childhood having been born and brought up in Windsor Avenue, Gatley.  Two others made up the Windsor  Avenue Gang, but the did not join Scouts.

If you know (or are!) any of the people in this photo, do let us know.

Stockport Council is urging low income families to see if they are eligible for a grant to buy a Home Access Computer.

The Government Home Access Grants will assist families to purchase a computer and internet package helping to support children’s learning at home. The grant covers the cost of a computer, one year’s internet access, service and support and safety features.

The grant is available to parents or guardians responsible for and living with a child who is in school Years 3 to 9, (age 7–14) and claiming Free School Meals or certain income related benefits.

The Home Access Grant does not need to be paid back and the computer remains with the family even when the child finishes school. At the end of the first 12 months families can decide if they want to keep the internet – families won’t be locked into anything that they don’t want or can’t afford.

To check if you are eligible for the grant contact the Government’s Home Access Grant Service on 0333 200 1004, Minicom 0121 748 1471 for an application pack or visit www.homeaccess.org.uk.

Yesterday was our monthly meeting with the police, the one where we go through individual issues - often in some detail.

Our area, Stockport West, is headed up from the police side by Inspector Stephen Gilbertson of Greater Manchester Police.   Representatives from Stockport Council’s Community Safety Unit, Services for Young People and Neighbourhood Renewal teams also come along.

Several councillors also make it each time  - though rarely any Conservatives for some reason: at yesterday’s meeting there were three Lib Dems, two Ratepayers Association (from Heald Green) and no Conservatives at all.  (There are no Labour councillors in the area covered by Stockport West).

Anyway, down to business.

In Cheadle & Gatley issues discussed included:

• a recent increase in anti-social behaviour and incidents around Oak Road and Ashfield Road in Cheadle.  This area will be getting a lot of focus in the coming months and hopefully we can keep the problems down.
• traffic and parking issues around Lady Barn House School on Schools Hill, Cheadle (even worse in the last few days as they’ve had to close their car park for safety reasons).
• special advice has been given to shops and other premises believed to be at higher risk of robbery, such as the Spar on Foxland Road, Gatley.
• Inspector Gilbertson is working for improved enforcement of the “Access Only” rule on the South Park Road Estate, so hopefully we’ll see tickets given out soon.  A recent survey by Stockport Council found that 80% of traffic entering the estate is doing so illegally.

Inspector Gilbertson reported that a pre-Christmas focus on reducing burglaries in Gatley and Heald Green had considerable success, with just six burglaries (compared to 19 in the same period last year).  Operation Beach involved leafleting and visiting houses to give advice and contacting schools and churches.  The aim is to run similar operations in other local areas.

The meeting also highlights the good work being done by different agencies coming together, using all the different methods available to cut crime.

If you’ve any issues you’d like me to raise at the next monthly meeting, just get in touch.

Since the snow started falling before Christmas I’ve been trying to keep people up to date with what’s happening in Stockport with gritting of roads and pavements, schools opening and refuse collections.  I’ve had lots of comments from a wide range of people - many concerned that the Council isn’t doing enough to grit the roads and pavements they use.

I’ve also been seeing what’s happening elsewhere - it’s clear that the same sorts of comments are being made about pretty much every council in the country.

I’m quite sure that improvements can be made.  In Stockport I think there are ways we can improve the service to people on hilly residential roads (like Kendal Drive, Airedale Close  and Eskdale in my ward).  I also think we need to look at doing more to clear pavements in key areas - not only by shops but also near doctors’ surgeries, for example.  Along with Cllr Pam King and other councillors, we’ll be looking to make sure the Council learns those lessons.

But some of the complaints made against Stockport, and many other councils, do seem unfair to me, and I’ll try to explain why.

Gritting policies

Every council has a similar approach to gritting.  They have a list of priority routes (main roads, trunk roads, bus routes) that probably make up between 30% and 45% of the total road network.  Those get gritted first.

If those are done, and if there’s time, councils will then work down the list to minor roads, residential streets and cycle lanes.

In most cases, councils don’t get down to the lowest priority residential streets.  The main roads have to be gritted regularly (often twice a night in the worst conditions),, and they have to be gritted at the right time too.  It’s no use gritting in rain - the salt just gets washed away - and gritting too early will see the salt blown off the road before any snow arrives.

True, councils could buy more gritters, more salt and draft in more people.  That’s fine as long as we’re willing to pay higher council tax to fund it all - everything has a cost.  We’d also need to accept that other services would suffer.  If more of the people who normally collect our refuse are clearing snow, we’re going to have even less refuse collection.

Gritting isn’t a perfect solution

Gritting isn’t a perfect solution that magically clears snow and ice - as we all know.  Gritting works best on busy roads - passing traffic grinds the salt into the snow and ice, making it much more effective.  On quiet roads and pavements, just scattering salt may not do much at all.  (You’ll notice that clearing pavements normally involves shovelling the snow and ice away and then gritting the bare pavement to stop it reforming).

Pavements

Councils have no legal duty to clear snow and ice from pavements.  That doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be done (and Stockport has done it a lot in the town and district centres, along with some local centres).  But it does mean that clearing pavements comes after clearing the priority routes - which the Council does have a legal obligation to do as best it can.

In some other countries, householders are legally obliged to clear the pavement in front of their house if they’re able to.  In this country, nonsense in the media about the risks of being sued has scared a lot of decent people from doing even that.  Perhaps as a country we need to be looking at how we, as residents, can do more.

Steep slopes and grit bins

Where residential streets are on steep slopes, Stockport provides grit bins and has tried to refill them as often as it can (although clearing those priority routes takes precedence).

The system isn’t perfect.  There are places that, I would say, need grit bins but haven’t got them.  In others, bins are empty as the grit disappears as soon as it’s put in.

At least one council has put the locations of its grit bins on the Internet so people can find their nearest.  I’ve also heard suggestions of locking grit bins and having local volunteers in charge of them, to stop all the grit being pinched for private use - not sure how that would work in practice though.

I don’t think there are any obvious solutions, but I’m sure we can do better.

Running out of salt

Even just gritting priority routes, the country is now, we’re told, running out of salt.  The Government has ordered everyone to use less.  Hopefully this is an exceptional year and it’ll be another three decades before the next freeze like it, but we can’t be sure.

Had all the councils across the country started off gritting lots of residential roads and pavements, would we have run out of salt by now?  I don’t know, but we should bear it in mind.

Conclusion

I feel Stockport Council’s done pretty well.  The priority routes have been kept clear throughout the cold period.  Additional gritting has been done where possible.  Pavements have been cleared in the town, district and some local centres. Though disrupted, we’ve had more refuse collections than many other local councils and pretty much all our schools are now open.

But there is (in my opinion) room for improvement, especially  in clearing steep residential roads and pavements - though some of that may be a community effort rather than something we just leave to the Council.

Stockport Council has around £38 million of investments and, on Tuesday, around a quarter of the councillors attended a training session from Stockport’s Treasury team - the people who manage all those investments.

Across the country,  all local authorities make investments of this type.  It isn’t money sitting around doing nothing.

Part of it is money the Council knows it’s going to have to spend, but it doesn’t need to do so yet.  For example, it knows its insurance premiums will be payable at the end of the year but, until they’re due, the money should be earning a return.

The other big chunk is for contingencies - unexpected costs like the bad weather we’re seeing now.  Just like the rest of us, it’s good sense for councils to have something put aside for a rainy (or snowy) day.

Stockport is, by general agreement, pretty good at this.  Top considerations for any investment is security of the loan and liquidity (our ability to get the money back when we need it).  After that is the rate of return on investments (which for Stockport is currently a healthy 3.15% overall - many councils are getting 0.25%or less).

All of Stockport’s investments are with top-rated institutions and the Council works with external advisors and other councils to keep a close eye on the markets.

So far, so good.

But a change in the Government regulations that came through  late last year means that, for the first time, councillors across the country need to be scrutinising their council’s investments far more closely.

Hence the training session - two hours after which my head was hurting quite a lot (clearly being an investment banker isn’t my natural profession).  From now on, Stockport’s catchily-named Corporate Resource Management & Governance Scrutiny Committee - of which I’m one of nine members representing all the political parties on the Council - will be receiving quarterly reports from the Treasury team and doing our best to check, challenge and adviseto keep the Council’s investment portfolio as healthy as possible.

The Met Office has issued the following warning for the Cheshire area for Wednesday 13th January:

“There is a moderate risk of a severe weather event affecting parts of Northern Ireland, southern and central England and North Wales.

A band of snow will move slowly northeastwards overnight and into Wednesday, gradually easing through the day. Accumulations of 1-3cm are likely in many places, perhaps with 5cm locally. The strong east to southeast wind is also likely to lead to drifting of snow.

Issued at: 1109 Tue 12 Jan”

Many bus services have been operating today, but main roads continue to be the best served routes because of the icy conditions. Metrolink has been running regular services across the network and rail operators have been operating as a full a service as possible.
However, demand on services is expected to be significantly higher from tomorrow as more people are expected to return to work and education. Some schools are also planning to reopen and parents and pupils are advised to consult with their school over the status of dedicated bus services.

Melanie Watson, GMPTE’s Interim Transport Services Manager, said: “We expect significantly more people to start using the buses, trains and trams again tomorrow and would advise people to allow extra time for their journey as a result. Efforts are being made to ensure Park and Ride facilities are accessible, although maintaining access to platforms and stations remains our priority.
“With regards to dedicated school bus services, parents and pupils are strongly advised to consult their school to check if a service is running, what route it is serving and the pick-up and drop-off points in light of the current road conditions.
“In all instances, we would ask passengers to consider the severe weather conditions before travelling, to expect some level of disruption to their normal service because of the icy conditions and to check operators’ websites for the latest service information.”
Bus passengers are advised to check www.arrivabus.co.uk, http://www.finglands.co.uk/, www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/northwest/manchester/service_disruptions/, www.rossendalebus.co.uk/serviceupdate/index.html, www.southlancs.com, www.stagecoachbus.com/serviceupdates.aspx, http://www.trentbarton.co.uk/news-and-media/travel-updates.aspx and www.warringtonboroughtransport.co.uk/indexnew.htm for service updates.
Metrolink passengers are advised to check www.metrolink.co.uk for the latest service information.
Rail passengers are advised to check www.nationalrail.co.uk for service updates before travelling.
For the latest advice from Greater Manchester Police, log on to www.gmp.police.uk.
Northern Rail advice for Monday 11 January 2010

Passengers travelling to airports for flights should check with their airline, as flights may also be affected.

Known changes to rail services today
TransPennine Express
Direct services between Newcastle and Manchester Airport will be suspended. Customers travelling between York and Newcastle should travel on East Coast or Cross Country services who will accept your ticket.
Customers travelling between York and the North West can use First TransPennine Express services.
Services between Middlesbrough and Manchester Airport will continue to operate.
Services between Glasgow Central and Manchester Airport will be suspended.
Customers travelling to and from Glasgow should change at Preston for connecting services. Your ticket will be valid on Virgin Train services.
All ticket restrictions on First TransPennine Express trains will be lifted. If you have a ticket that is valid for travel between (and including) Thursday 7th January and Sunday 10th January 2010 and you are unable to travel, your ticket will be valid for use within 48 hours of the date specified on your ticket.
Known disruptions to bus services today

This information copied from the Stockport Council website, accurate at 3.58pm on 10th January.

This is the message I’ve received from the Council:

“Our contractors, Solutions SK, are doing everything they can to collect the borough’s recycling & refuse in the adverse weather.

This advice is given at 17.21 on Friday 8th January 2010 and remains valid provided there is no further deterioration in weather conditions (more snow) over the weekend and before operations commence at 07.00 hours on Monday 11th September 2010.

We are again asking residents to place all their recycling and refuse out at the front edge of their property by no later than 7am on the day of their collection. Each road that is due for collection on Monday will be assessed and if at all possible a collection will be made as normal.

There will be some roads that we cannot safely collect from. Where we are not able to safely collect we are asking residents to take their recycling and refuse containers back in and put them out on the next scheduled collection.

When we are able to safely collect residents refuse and recycling, we will collect any excess recycling that is put out.

Any extra recycling should be placed in carrier bags (not bin bags) next to your wheelie bin or recycling box. Refuse, as normal, must be placed out for collection in securely tied sacks to prevent spillage.”

All the local councillors, plus our MP, were invited to a meeting today about the plans to improve the Kingsway/Gatley Road junction.  Myself, Cllr Pam King and Mark Hunter MP were able to make it, along with representatives of Stockport Council and Manchester Urban Traffic Control.

We had a full discussion about the junction itself, plus some related issues including traffic on the South Park Road estate.

What I’ll do here is to first detail the plans for the junction, then go into more detail.

Three steps to improve the junction

1. Reduce the traffic light cycle time

The current cycle is variable, up to a maximum of three minutes.  This allows the maximum amount of traffic to go straight ahead in each phase, but means that only 3-4 vehicles from Gatley and Cheadle can turn right onto Kingsway.

The cycle is to be reduced so the maximum length is two minutes, not three.  That might not sound like a lot, but it means 50% more cars can turn right from Cheadle & Gatley (3-4 from each side every two minutes instead of every three).  The modelling that’s been done suggests that will make a bigger difference that we might think.   The planners believe it will lead to overall much shorter queues to turn right.

It should also make it slightly quicker for pedestrians to the cross the road (since there’ll be less time to wait for the next gap in the traffic).

Another benefit is that this is zero-cost.  There’s no roadworks or anything like that, it’s just a change in the computer system.

A small downside is that it slightly reduces the number of vehicles that can go straight ahead (as each phase change takes time) but the planners think that should be minimal.

This change will be made in the next few weeks.

 2. Improving flow from M60 slip road onto Kingsway

Traffic leaving the M60 to join the A34 Southbound currently gets squeezed down to one lane.  Years ago it was two lanes, but it was taken down to one after a nasty fatal accident.

We’re all keen to get this safely back up to two lanes and improve the movement of traffic onto Kingsway.

This is being looked at by the Highways Agency, along with others, and there are still quite a few questions, not least whether funding is available.

The general idea is to have two lanes from the slip road meeting Kingsway, and to have traffic lights on both Kingsway and the slip road so each one goes in turn.

3. Re-ordering the lanes on Kingsway northbound

This is another one still at the planning stage, although the idea’s been around for a while.

If you think of driving north along the A34 from Cheadle Royal towards Manchester, you’ve got three lanes as you come up the Gatley Road junction.  The left hand lane is for Gatley, the South Park Road estate, M60 westbound and M60 eastbound.  The other two lanes are for Manchester.  That results in far more traffic in the inside lane.

What we’d like is a more balanced approach to use the three lanes as effectively as possible.  That might, for example, mean the inside lane being for Gatley, South Park Road Estate and M60 westbound, the middle lane for M60 eastbound and the outside lane for Manchester.

That should result in traffic using the three lanes more evenly, meaning more vehicles getting through the junction in each phase.

One issue is cyclists going into Manchester.  We don’t want to push cyclists into the outside lane, which is dangerous for everyone.  I think there are ways round that with sensible signing and alternative routes, but it needs more work.

Background and why no right filters?

This is possibly the busiest junction in Greater Manchester, certainly one of the top few.  Were it being designed now, it would be wider and have right-turn phases (filters).  Ideally, for the volume of traffic, there would be a flyover for north-south traffic.

None of those are realistic at the moment, as you can imagine.

The planners modelled  putting in a right filter from Cheadle, or from Gatley, or both at the same time (something which you might have noticed both the Lib Dems and our political opponents have been keen on).

The modelling suggests  none of those options are viable without major alterations to the junction (the sort that would involve knocking down lots of houses!).

If you put in a right filter just from one side or the other, the other side jams up.  Put in a right filter from Cheadle and the queue on the Gatley side gets much longer, and vice versa.

So why not have a right filter from both at the same time, which is what I’ve been calling for?

The argument is  that it’s simply not safe to implement that on a junction of this size.  It would, we’re told, be too confusing for motorists and so too dangerous.   It would also lead to longer queues on Kingsway, and backing up onto the M60.

This is based on experiences with other junctions. Whilst I’m keen to have a filter if we can, I have to accept the findings of the experts and I certainly don’t want the junction to become more dangerous.

Conclusion

I’d like to thank the Council Officers and the people from Manchester Urban Traffic Control and the Highways Agency who are clearly taking this issue seriously and working hard to improve what may be Greater Manchester’s busiest junction.

We’ve got a solution that, the modelling suggests, will significantly improve things for people coming from Cheadle and Gatley and turning right.  If we’re really lucky, it will also help those going left and ahead from Gatley by reducing the pinch point on Gatley Road near Torkington Road.

Longer term, and subject to funding, we hope that the plans to improve the flow of traffic along Kingsway in both directions work out too.

So although we seem as far as ever from getting a right filter, we are making progress  and we will be seeing real changes which, we all hope, will improve the junction further.

January 2010

Dear resident,

First of all, Happy New Year! I hope that you had a relaxing and joyful time over the festive period and were lucky enough to spend time with loved ones.

Sadly, as my mother passed away just before Christmas, it was not such a good time for me this year but as ever I did enjoy the chance to spend a little more time with family and friends. Thanks to all of you who have been in touch with messages of sympathy – they are much appreciated.

With a New Year comes new challenges and let me start out by saying that I am just as determined as ever to continue to deliver results for our community and overcome the many obstacles we face. Let me begin by bringing you up to date with some of the things I have been out and about doing recently:

• Just before Christmas I was delighted to welcome Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg to join me at Stepping Hill Hospital after inviting him to come and see for himself the new world-class neo-natal unit and childrens’ services. I am proud to be the MP for an area with such outstanding health services on offer: http://bit.ly/7O6fXa

• I am spearheading the national campaign, now backed by over 100 MPs, to stop bankers from abolishing cheques in Britain. The proposal will have serious repercussions on the country’s most vulnerable – particularly elderly, disabled and housebound people – not to mention many businesses. Consumer group Which? have backed my campaign along with the country’s leading Business organisation, the Federation of Small Businesses, and I have heard from people all over the country in full support. It is surely about time the bankers that taxpayers bailed out put the interests of customers before their own - learn more here: http://bit.ly/6Hxxxs

• I’ve been pressing Gordon Brown to keep his promise to abolish prescription charges for people with long-term health conditions. I have signed a special parliamentary motion putting pressure on the PM and am determined to see the Government deliver on this promise: http://bit.ly/5T4nsg

• Along with a cross-party delegation of MPs, I met with Defence Procurement Minister Quentin Davies to try to retain jobs at Woodford for as long as possible. Unbelievably, it looks as if the Government will give extra orders to the US instead of local workers: http://bit.ly/4TuuOT

• Stockport Council continues to be short-changed by central government and is now face a funding shortfall of £3.5 million from government over the next two years. In a special Commons debate I challenged the Local Government Secretary over the injustice taxpayers in Cheadle are facing: http://bit.ly/82CV1n

• Revealed: I uncovered the scandal behind the Government’s glib promises over Stockport Railway Station – Government headline grabbing has meant that we have all been misled over our local station: http://bit.ly/6C5wNR

• Gatley Youth Group were the latest of many groups that have made the trip to Westminster for a tour round the Houses of Parliament and the opportunity to put me on the spot in a Question and Answer session. It is always a pleasure to welcome local groups to parliamentary and I’d encouraged others who are interested in doing the same to contact me directly: http://bit.ly/4N0LAE

• My research into official figures showed that a quarter of drink drivers in Greater Manchester have previous convictions for drink driving – I am calling for stronger action to combat this problem and protect drivers and pedestrians alike: http://bit.ly/7fq8Mf

• I invited Transport Secretary of State Lord Adonis to come and see for himself the poor conditions at Cheadle Hulme Railway Station and how we need to see the station improvements, particularly to allow disabled access: http://bit.ly/8oCaZH

• Wolstenholmes law firm in Heald Green, established in 1818, has been closed down and five solictors have had their licenses suspended. Many local residents have money and/or documents held by the firm and are extremely distressed. My battle to deliver justice for those people: http://bit.ly/6j3ir7

As always I am eager to hear your views and if you have any new issues that you would like me to take up either locally or in Parliament please get in touch. You can contact me either by email; telephone on 0161 486 1359; or write to me at Hillson House, Gillbent Road, Cheadle Hulme, SK8 7LE. I also have twice-weekly advice surgeries on Mondays and Fridays, and can make home visits when requested. Please just call to make an appointment at your convenience.

Again, a Happy and successful 2010 to you and your family!

Best wishes,

Mark Hunter

Click here for Stockport schools open/closed  on Monday 11th January

Stockport school open/closed status for 7th and 8th January, copied from Stockport Council website. Updated 7.29pm

As well as the schools listed above all Continuing Education Adult Centres are closed for the remainder of the week. There are no rehearsals for Senior Wind Band or the Stockport Youth Orchestra on Friday night or Stockport Schools’ Brass Bands (Saturday morning) this week.

The Education Service for the Sensory Impaired is open on Thursday and Friday this week.

The status of Stockport Children’s Centres and Edgeley Play Centre on Friday 8th January are as follows;

• Abacus – Open
• Belmont / Lancs Hill – Closed
• Brinnington – Closed
• Bredbury Green and Goyt Valley – Closed
• Bredbury, Romiley & Woodley – Open 9am – 3pm
• Cheadle & Gatley – Open
• Edgeley & Cheadle Heath – Open
• Edgeley Play Centre – Open
• Heatons – Open
• Hazel Grove – Open
• Ladybridge Park – Open
• Marple – Open
• Offerton – Closed
• Reddish Vale – Closed
• Reddish North – Open
• Stockport Central – Closed

This web page will be updated as more information comes through regarding school closures.

Stockport Council have a new website up and running - simple, lightweight and giving you key information (currently which schools are closed tomorrow and what’s happening with refuse and recycling collections).

The website is www.stockportalert.org.uk

This is in addition to the standard Stockport Council website, which will also carry the information (but went down earlier this evening under the weight of traffic).

See also latest information for Stockport schools on Monday 11th January .

This information is copied from the Stockport Council website.

Update at 8.36am on 7th January 2010.

Parents are advised to check individual school websites on Thursday 7th January for those schools which are open.

Listed below is the latest status of schools and Children’s Centres in Stockport as at 8.36am on Thursday 7th January 2010;

• Abingdon Primary - Closed
• Adswood Primary - Closed
• Adswood Nursery School - Open
• Alexandra Park Primary - Closed
• All Saints CE Primary (Stockport) - Closed
• All Saints CE Primary (Marple) - Closed
• Arden Primary - Closed
• Banks Lane Infant - Open
• Banks Lane Junior - Open
• Belmont Nursery - Closed
• Bolshaw Primary - Closed
• Bradshaw Hall Primary - Open
• Bramhall High School - Open to Years 9, 10 & 11
• Bredbury Green Primary - Closed
• Bredbury Green Nursery Unit - Closed
• Bridge Hall Primary - Closed
• Broadstone Hall Primary - Open
• Brookside Primary - Open
• Cale Green Primary - Open
• Castle Hill School - Closed
• Cheadle Heath Primary - Open
• Cheadle Hulme High - Closed
• Cheadle Primary - Closed
• Cheadle RC Infant - Closed
• Cheadle RC Junior - Closed
• Dial Park Primary - Closed
• Didsbury Rd Primary - Closed
• Etchells Primary - Closed
• Fairway Primary - Closed
• Fir Tree Nursery - Open
• Fir Tree Primary - Open
• Freshfield Nursery - Closed
• Gatley Primary - Closed
• Great Moor Infant - Open
• Great Moor Junior -  Open
• Greave Primary - Open
• Harrytown Catholic High - Closed
• Hazel Grove High School - Closed
• Hazel Grove Primary - Please check the school’s website on Thursday morning for an update
• Heaton School - Closed
• High Lane Primary - Open
• Hollywood Park Combined Centre - Closed
• Hursthead Infant - Open
• Hursthead Junior - Open
• Ladybridge Primary - Open
• Ladybrook Primary - Closed
• Lane End Primary - Open
• Larkhill Nursery - Open
• Larkhill Primary - Closed
• Lisburne School - Closed
• Ludworth Primary - Open
• Lum Head Primary - Open
• Meadowbank Primary - Closed
• Marple Hall High - Closed
• Mellor Primary - no decision yet
• Mersey Vale Primary - Open
• Moat House - Closed
• Moorfield Primary - Open
• Moss Hey Primary - Open
• Neville Road Infant School - Open
• Neville Road Junior School - Open
• Norbury Hall Primary - Open
• Norris Bank Primary - Open
• North Cheshire Jewish Primary - Open
• North Reddish Infant - Closed
• North Reddish Junior - Closed
• Offerton Hall Nursery - Closed
• Offerton High - Closed
• Oakgrove School - Closed
• Orrishmere Primary - Open
• Our Ladies RC Primary - Closed
• Outwood Primary - Closed
• Pendlebury PRU - Open
• Pownall Green Primary - To be announced on School’s website tomorrow
• Priestnall School - Closed
• Prospect Vale Primary - Closed
• Queens Rd Primary - Open
• Queensgate Primary - Closed
• Reddish Vale Early Years Centre - Closed
• Reddish Vale Technology College - Closed
• Romiley Primary - Open
• Rose Hill Primary - Open
• SBSS - Highfields (PRU) - Closed
• St Ambrose Catholic Primary - Open
• St Anne’s RC Secondary School - Closed
• St Bernadette’s RC Primary - no decision yet
• St Christopher’s Cathlic Primary - Open
• St Elisabeth’s CE Primary - Open
• St George’s CE Primary - Open
• St James RC High School - Closed
• St Joseph’s Catholic Primary (Stockport) - Closed
• St Joseph’s Infant School (Reddish) - Closed
• St Joseph’s Junior School (Reddish) - Closed
• St Marks CE Primary - Closed
• St Mary’s CE Primary - Closed
• St Mary’s Catholic Primary (Marple) -  Closed
• St Mary’s Catholic Primary (Stockport) - Closed
• St Matthews CE Primary - Open
• St Paul’s CE Primary - Closed
• St Peter’s Catholic Primary - Closed
• St Philip’s Catholic Primary - Open
• St Simon’s Catholic Primary - Closed
• St Thomas’ CE Primary (Stockport - Marriott Street) - Closed
• St Thomas’ Primary (Heaton Chapel) - Open
• St Winifred’s - Open
• Stockport School - Open to Years 7 & 11 from 10am to 3pm
• The Kingsway - Open to Year 11 only
• The Stockport Academy - Closed
• Thorn Grove Primary - Open
• Tithe Barn - Open
• Torkington Primary -  Open
• Valley School - Closed
• Vernon Park - Closed
• Warren Wood - Open
• Werneth High - Probable Close
• Westmorland Primary - Closed
• Whitehill Primary - Open
• Windlehurst School - Closed to pupils, possibly open to staff
• Woodley Primary - Closed

As well as the schools listed above all Continuing Education Adult Centres are closed for the remainder of the week and the Music Centre is closed on Thursday 7th January 2010 for tuition and ensemble.

The Education Service for the Sensory Impaired is open on Thursday 7th January 2010.

The status of the borough’s Children’s Centres are as follows;

• Abacus – Open
• Belmont/Lancashire Hill – Closed
• Bredbury Green and Goyt Valley – Closed
• Bredbury, Romiley & Woodley – Open 10am – 3pm (ante natal clinic relocated to Woodley Health clinic for this week only)
• Brinnington – Closed
• Cheadle & Gatley – Closed
• Edgeley & Cheadle Heath – Open
• Hazel Grove – Open
• Heatons – Open
• Ladybridge Park – Open
• Marple – Open
• Offerton – Closed
• Reddish Vale – Closed
• Reddish North – Open
• Stockport Central – Closed

This web page will be updated as more information comes through regarding adult centre and school closures.

I’m back home after a couple of hours driving around Cheadle & Gatley to see how conditions are.  I made a point of visiting residential roads and spoke to quite a few people on the way.

Summary

• All the main roads are clear and, with light traffic, perfectly fine to drive down.  That includes Gatley Road, Altrincham Road, Park Road, Styal Road, Church Road, Kingsway, Cheadle High Street, Stockport Road, Manchester Road, Wilmslow Road, Delemere Road, Silverdale Road and Schools Hill.
• The bus services are running, with some delays.
• Metrolink in Manchester is running a slightly reduced service.
• At least some train services are running, but check before travelling.
• The pavements are mostly fine to walk on, with the snow still being powerdery (or cleared away in village centres).  Some, like Old Hall Road in Gatley, are getting a bit slippery so walk in the road.
• Nearly all the residential roads I visited (and it was quite a lot) are passable with care in a car.  The onlyserious  problems are on smaller residential roads with significant hills, such as Airedale Close in Cheadle.
• I’m really pleased to see that snow has been cleared from several of the hillier resedential roads including the hills on Kendal Drive, Rydal Close, Grasmere Road and Keswick Avenue.
• Refuse collections are going ahead on the larger roads, but not on smaller  residential roads.
• Recycling collections have been cancelled for today.

In a bit more detail

The roads I’ve driven or walked along today include in Cheadle:

Richmond Hill Road, Wensley Road, Marchbank Drive, Wensleydale Avenue, Airedale Close, Aysgarth Avenue, Oak Road, Oakfield Avenue, Brookfield Road, Broadway, Barcheston Road, Daylesford Road, Schools Hill, Grange Park Road, Brackenwood Drive, Mary Street, Lime Grove, Hall Street, Church Street,

In Gatley:

Firs Road, Linksway, Elm Road, Cedar Road, Burnside Road, Beech Avenue, Brookdale Road, Dingle Grove, Lorna Grove, Old Hall Road, Pendlebury Road, Frances Avenue, Springfield Road, Foxland Road, Delemere Road,Appleby Road, Gainford Avenue, Borrowdale Road, Ennerdale Drive, Kendal Drive, Eskdale, Langdale Close, Cartmel Close and St Anns Road North.

I’m happy the Council has cleared all the main roads and is doing a good job on the pavements in central areas.  I’m very pleased that many (though not all) of the steeper slopes on residential roads have been cleared.

All the grit bins I’ve checked have been empty, which is a concern I’ll be speaking to the Council about.  There are a few roads with significant slopes which could do with special attention too.

GMPTE Public Transport Information Alert

Please note this information was posted on GMPTE’s website at 0830.
6 January 2010

Severe weather update (0830)

GMPTE is advising passengers to expect further disruptions to bus and tram services today due to the ongoing severe weather conditions.

Passengers should allow extra time for journeys and use main roads to access bus services.
A list of current known service information is available below. Passengers are also advised to check www.stagecoachbus.com and www.firstgroup.com for service updates.

All Metrolink services are running to Piccadilly every 12 minutes. Passengers are advised to check www.metrolink.co.uk for the latest service information.

Rail passengers are advised to check www.nationalrail.co.uk for service updates before travelling.

For the latest advice from Greater Manchester Police, log on to www.gmp.police.uk.

I haven’t ventured out too far today - just walked into the village, so this isn’t a complete picture.

As far as I know:

• We’ve had around 10cm/4 inches of snow.
• The trains out from Manchester to Gatley aren’t currently running
• No planes are coming in or out of Manchester Airport at least until noon and the airport warns that some of the approach roads are difficult to pass.
• Lots of people walking into the village - all the snow makes the pavements less slippery, for now at least.
• The roads I’ve seen are passable with care in a car, though some people are having problems on the hills.
• Most of the local schools appear to be closed
• There’s no refuse or recycling collection today

See also my report on snow, travel and services for 6th Jan.

A message from the Council:

Due to the weather Refuse and Recycling Services have been suspended for Tuesday 5th January 2010.

Resident’s are being asked to take their refuse and recycling containers back in and present them on the next scheduled collection day.

Update for 6th Jan: No recycling collections on Weds 6th.  Refuse will be collected from properties on main roads where the trucks can safely get to, but not residential streets.

Here’s the latest from Stockport Council on gritting:

A Council spokesman, said: “During the recent cold weather the Council has worked around the clock to ensure that disruption is kept to a minimum.

A fleet of eight dedicated highway gritters supported by a fleet of smaller gritting vehicles, tippers and JCB’s are working relentlessly to address the worsening conditions.

Snow and ice gritting operations will continue to be undertaken on the Council’s priority and local feeder roads, which includes bus routes, this is in accordance with the Council’s winter maintenance policy which can be found at www.stockport.gov.uk/transportpolicy

The Council has approximately 300 tonnes of grit in stock which will last for up to eight days in freezing conditions. The Council is also keen to reassure residents that they are in constant contact with the suppliers to ensure that the grit levels will be maintained throughout the winter and further deliveries are expected.

The Council is also in regular contact with other Greater Manchester Authorities to discuss and monitor grit stocks. Road users are also advised to take extra care and refer to the Highways Agency for further advice on traffic disruption on motorways and trunk roads.”

Councillors have been told that gritting will continue on all the priority and local feeder routes but not on smaller residential roads. This is the agreed policy: in common with pretty much every local authority across the country, Stockport aims to keep the main roads and busier car parks and pavements clear.

I don’t know the reasoning behind that, but I would imagine it’s partly down to the amount of salt the Council has. At least one UK council is on the verge of running out of salt due to the severity of the conditions. Stockport has enough for another 8 days, we’re told, but the more roads gritted, the less long the grit will last for.

However, I’m still concerned about certain roads such as Eskdale, where the combination of ice, hills and a lack of grit bins are causing big problems for some residents. I’ve had some (limited) success in getting these gritted just before the New Year, but I don’t know whether we’ll be able to have them done again, or if that will even solve the problem, since grit is least effective when scattered on existing ice on low-traffic roads. We could really do with either more grit bins, or at least piles of grit left on the pavement in key locations.

See also my other posts on this issue, plus the comments made on each:

Report on snow, travel and services for 6th Jan

My experiences of snow and gritting in Stockport

Stockport’s been gritting over the weekend before Christmas

How’s Stockport done on gritting (26th Dec)

Ice in Stockport - now we need to tackle the cul-de-sacs

There’s a tradition amongst some bloggers of publishing statistics - how many people visited the blog over a month, quarter or year.

My blog is a local one - most of my posts are (I would expect) only of interest to residents in my Cheadle & Gatley ward or, at most, Stockport Borough.  Looking at the geographic spread of visitors, whilst the biggest proportion are local, there’s a surprising number from across the country and even abroad.  Many of those, I’m sure, have arrived in error, but perhaps a few found what they were looking for.

I’ve done a bit of research into how many hits blog of this sort get, and have concluded that I’m probably nudging the top quarter of councillor blogs in terms of hits.

Now it gets technical.  I use the Lib Dem MyCouncillor blogging service - free for all members of ALDC.  This has two built-in statistics which don’t seem to bear much relation to the more standard ones.  In addition, I now use StatCounter, which produces very similar numbers to Google Analytics, and should be the number used in the wider world when comparing different blogs.

The visitor numbers for December 2009 were about 5% up on November:

MyCouncillor Hits: 26596

MyCouncillor Hits Mk II: 5243

StatCounter unique  visitors: 1994*

StatCounter page loads:  3061

 * This is roughly the number of different people who visited the site.  In reality, it’s the number of different IP addresses, so ten people from the same office may appear as one IP address and one person could look like several if they access the blog from different computers.  It also doesn’t include anyone access the blog via feedreaders or similar.

I’ve been out and about this evening in Cheadle and Gatley and as a result have reported the following:

Broken streetlight opposite 59 Broadway, Cheadle (near entrance to Kingsway School)
Broken streetlight outside 57 Broadway, Cheadle
Broken streetlight labelled “1″ on Arlington Rd, nr. junction with Broadway
The light at the centre of Broadway by the junction with Wilmslow Road isn’t working.
On Shiers Drive, streetlights 2,6 and 7 are not working.
Streetlight “2″ on the alleyway from Halstead Grove to Styal Road in Gatley isn’t working.

The streetsight for Arlington Road, Cheadle is barely visible due to hedge growing around it.

A pothole (depression) in Styal Road, Gatley by the junction with Church Road, need to be repaired.

Three easy ways to recycle your Christmas tree:

1.  Leave it next to your green garden waste bin on your next collection day.  The tree will be composted and used as a soil improver on farms across the North West.
2. Take your tree to be shredded at Bruntwood Park, Cheadle any day up to 21st January (8.30am to 3.30pm).  This service is also available at Alexandra Park, Bramhall Park, Etherow Country Park and North Reddish Park.
3. Take your tree to one of the household waste recycle centres (local tips) and recycle it in the green waste section.