“This is my personal guarantee that I will use all the support you give me on Thursday to deliver fairness in Britain.

“We need a fairer tax system. I will use your votes to cut taxes for those at the bottom and in the middle and close the loopholes for those at the top.

“We need to support our children. I will use your votes to ensure extra funding for schools, to cut class sizes and give all children a fair chance.

“We need to clean up politics. I will use your votes to reform Parliament, to deliver a fairer voting system, protect your freedoms and give you the right to sack corrupt MPs.

“We need a new economy. I will use your vote to split up the banks, get them lending again, invest in green infrastructure and so create jobs.

“This election campaign has shown us that millions of people want us to do something different this time.

“Politicians should work together to solve the nation’s biggest problems.

“That is why, whatever the outcome on Thursday, I believe we should be prepared to work together to fix the terrible state of our public finances and ensure economic stability.

“These are the key steps to a new, fairer Britain. Give me the power of your vote and we can make it happen.

“Together, we can make the difference.”

View Nick Clegg’s guarantee here.

POLLING STATIONS
Polling stations are open on Thursday 6th May between 7.00am and 10.00pm. Your polling station is shown on your polling card. Don’t worry if you have lost your polling card as you don’t need this to vote.

BALLOT PAPERS
Everyone has two votes this year. On a YELLOW ballot paper we can vote in the local elections to choose a Councillor for this area. On a WHITE ballot paper we can vote in the General Election to chose an MP for Bury South constituency.

POSTAL VOTES
Don’t worry if you have not yet returned your postal vote. Fill it in as normal, and take the sealed envelope to your local polling station or the Town Hall before 10pm on Thursday.

LIFTS / QUESTIONS
We will be very happy to provide a lift for people who need a help getting to polling stations. If you need a lift or have any questions call the Lib Dems on 773 9905.

CAN YOU HELP!
Can you help the Liberal Democrats on polling day? The more volunteers the more chance of winning! Call us on 773 9905 or email
Find out more:
www.burylibdems.net

The latest broadcast from the Liberal Democrats

In the local elections in Holyrood Ward its a straight fight between the local Liberal Democrats and the Bury Conservative Party candidate.

The facts speak for themselves. In the last local elections in Holyrood Ward the Liberal Democrats were first, in front of the Conservatives in second place. Labour cannot win in the local elections and many Labour voters are choosing to vote Lib Dem in the local elections to stop the Conservatives winning.

Tim Pickstone said: “Its a straight choice between your team of Lib Dem Councillors who have a proven track record of standing up for this area, and Bury’s Conservative Party.”

Since the Conservatives took control of Bury Council we’ve seen above-inflation rises in Council Tax and cuts in road repair budgets that have left our streets crumbling. “Bury town centre has new shops, offices and a brand new health centre - the Conservatives don’t seem to care about Prestwich”.

“Bury Council could do better.” That’s the verdict from local people fed up with rising Council Tax bills and failing services under the Conservatives. Liberal Democrats have investigated the Council’s record since the Conservatives took control of the Town Hall in 2007, and have found big cuts in services at the same time as big increases in bills. Take a look at Bury under the Conservatives. If this is what they’re doing in Bury, imagine what they’d do to the country if they were in charge!

Nick Clegg’s opening statement for the BBC’s third election debate:

Labour have failed our area. Here are just some of the promises with local people they’ve broken.

Your team of Liberal Democrats have been busy all year round in Holyrood Ward. Here’s just a summary of some of the achievements in the local area in the last year or so.

Help us get the Liberal Democrat message across in Bury this year. If you’re interested in helping during the election campaign, or can display a window poster get in touch.

richard@burylibdems.net
Call Mary on 0161 773 9905

The Liberal Democrats in Bury have launched their plans for a Liberal Democrat run Bury Council:

A Liberal Democrat Bury will:

1 - Get the Basics Right
We’ll concentrate on making sure that the basic services that everyone needs work well. This will include spending more money on street repairs and getting bin collections working and better gritting.

2 - Better Place to Live
We’ll make sure everything we do helps make our towns and communities better places to live. Our first priorities will be improving our environment and making people feel safe from crime. This will include providing extra community policing in each town of Bury.

3 - Power to the People
We’ll cut back Town Hall bureaucracy and give power back to local towns and citizens. Everything we do will be open and fair and involve local people. We will immediately give back the right of people to ask questions at every meeting of the Council.

4 - More Money in Your Pocket
We will keep Council Tax as low as we can, and make what Bury Council does great value for money for local people.

THE LIBERAL DEMOCRAT MANIFESTO

This is a manifesto you can trust. We have stripped our priorities back to the essential, fundamental changes that Britain needs to make it fair:

• Fair taxes that put money back in your pocket
• A fair chance for every child
• A fair future, creating jobs by making Britain greener
• And a fair deal by cleaning up politics

These are deliverable, practical plans to make your life better, and they are right there on the front cover of our manifesto. Instead of rhetoric and razzmatazz, we are saying what we will do and how we will pay for it.

Elections should be a competition of ideas, not marketing budgets. They may have the bigger budgets but we have the bigger ideas.And you can trust us to deliver because unlike the other parties, we have spelt out, line by line in the manifesto how every single policy is paid for, and how we will reduce the deficit.

We have set out £15bn of details spending cuts and just £5bn a year of new spending, meaning £10bn for the deficit every year. We are the first party to put detailed spending plans into a manifesto.

Four key pledges

1. Fair taxes: We will ensure no-one pays income tax on the first £10,000 they earn. Most taxpayers will get a tax cut of £700 a year. We’ll pay for it by closing loopholes that unfairly benefit the rich, a new tax on mansions worth over £2m, a crack down on tax avoidance and higher aviation duty.
2. A fair start for all our children: We will get every child the individual attention they need by cutting class sizes. We will spend an extra £2.5bn on schools, targeted at children who need the most help. The average primary school could cut class sizes to 20. An average secondary school could see classes of just 16.
3. A fair future: a rebalanced, green economy: We will break up the banks and rebalance the economy away from unsustainable financial speculation. We will be honest about where savings must be made in government spending to balance the books and protect our children’s future. And we will create new jobs with a £3.1bn green stimulus and job creation plan in our first year in office, fully funded by cut backs elsewhere.
4. A fair deal from politicians: We will introduce a fair voting system. We will ensure corrupt MPs can be sacked by their constituents and stop non-doms from donating to parties or sitting in Parliament. We will take power from Westminster and give it to communities, with local power over police and the NHS, and introduce a freedom bill to protect and restore civil liberties.

We also have the following commitments:

• Protect front line NHS services. We will help the NHS work better with the money it has and protect front line services by re-investing the savings we find back into healthcare
• Recruit 3,000 more police officers to keep our streets safe and scrapping ID cards
• Scrap student tuition fees to reduce the burden of student debt immediately and eliminate fee debt altogether over 6 years
• A pay rise for our brave service men and women together with cut backs of bureaucrats and top brass officers in the Ministry of Defence
• Uprate the basic state pension in line with earnings immediately so that pensioners do not fall further behind when the economy starts to grow again

YOU CAN READ NICK CLEGGS MANIFESTO LAUNCH SPEECH HERE

YOU CAN READ OR DOWNLOAD A COPY OF OUR MANIFESTO HERE: libdem_manifesto_2010.pdf

ALTERNATIVELY YOU CAN VIEW OUR MANIFESTO IN FULL OR SECTIONS ON OUR WEBSITE HERE

Liberal Democrats: Say goodbye to broken promises: The Liberal Democrats Party Election Broadcast on the eve of their 2010 Election Manifesto launch. Nick Clegg talks of the broken promises put forward by the Labour party and Conservatives, and that a vote for the Lib Dems means a vote for hope and an end to broken promises. Read the manifesto here: http://j.mp/LDManifesto

Prestwich Festival will take place for the first time in 2009. It is intended to be an annual four week calendar of events running from 17 May to 21 June. The festival will provide the opportunity to showcase as many events as possible during a four week period and will build on its success year on year, similar to existing events like Prestwich Clough and Prestwich Carnvial.

Click here for an first look at the packed events listing.

The Christmas Tress lights in Prestwich Village Centre will be turned on 1 December just before 6pm by Paralympic Gold Medal Winner Zoe Robinson and the Mayor of Bury, Councillor Peter Ashworth.

The event will take place at the Longfield Centre between 4pm and 6pm. The event will be hosted by DJ Dave K and there will be music from Besses of the Barn Brass Band, Kylie tribute act Natalie McGrath and Middleton Pop star Academy of Performing Arts. There will also be hot food and refreshments on sale and a Children’s Fairground.

Father Christmas will also make a very special appearance and children will be able to receive a Christmas gift from him. For further information about the event please contact 07875 596713.

Late last year Bury Council commissioned the consultants URBED and AGDR to draw up a vision, and strategy for the centre of Prestwich. This was after many years of campaigning by your local Prestwich Liberal Democrat Focus Team to get Bury to take our town centre seriously.

Local people are now being asked to have our say on the proposals in the consultation period which is 13 October - 24 November 2008. Every household in Prestwich is being sent a consultation newsletter which includes a survey to send in your views. The newsletter is here, the full report is here.

The vision for Prestwich is that it becomes a sustainable “urban village” inlcuding:
- a community hub
- a lively high street
- a gateway to parkland
- a place to live
- a place to work

You can visit the special consultation website at www.bury.gov.uk/prestwich regeneration or email your views to prestwichregeneration@bury.gov.uk.

Please let us, your local Councillors what you think so we can best represent your views.

A special meeting of the Prestwich Local Area Partnership will take place on 16 October where the new plans for the regeneration of Prestwich town centre we be formally launched.

The council has teamed up with urban designers, URBED, and regeneration specialists, AGD, to prepare the ‘Love Prestwich Village: Town Centre Development Strategy’.

The strategy describes how Prestwich can be transformed into a thriving ‘village in the city’. It considers how a new primary care centre, a new library and a refurbished Longfield Suite could combine to create a community hub at the heart of the village.

As well as the Big Talk at the Local Area Partnership meeting these plans will be subject to a six week consultation, which begins on 29 September.

The meeting will take place at the Longfield Civic Suite, starting at 7pm. The exhibition outlining the proposals for the regeneration of Prestwich will be on view from 6pm. For further information about the Prestwich Local Area Partnership meeting please contact Carran O’Grady on 0161 253 7245.

Councillor Vic D’ Albert, Chair of Prestwich Local Area Partnership, said, “The plans provide a vision for the regeneration of Prestwich over the next ten to fifteen years. I hope as many people as possible will come along to the Big Talk event to let us know what they think, view the plans and learn more about the consultation process”.

Local residents have been angered by the recent rise in graffiti that has affected parts of our local area. Many areas are affected, but particularly the Heaton Park and village centre areas.

Local Councillor Tim Pickstone has asked the Council to review its policy on cleaning up graffiti. “The amount of graffiti that we’re experiencing around here is terrible and spoiling what should be an attractive area . Clearly the current council policy isn’t working - something has to be done.” A two page list of graffiti sites has been submitted.

Your local Councillors have been working with schools, the Police and to identify who is responsible for the graffit and to clean it up. Prestwich Local Area Partnerhsip has also invested in some “Graffiiti Cleaning Kits” which are available to local people.

Some local people have been angered by letters sent out by the Council “demanding” that they clean up graffiti on their own properties. Cllr Vic D’Albert has asked the Council to change this policy, as it is causing upset for residents who are not responsible for the problem.
To report graffiti in your area:

Bury Council: 0161 253 5353

If graffiti is on a phone box or switching box
BT 0800 661 610

If graffiti is on a post box
Royal Mail 08457 740 740

Let your councillors know if you don’t get a satisfactory response!

Prestwich Local Area Partnership, which brings together your local Liberal Democrat Councillors together with local partners and community reps, have agreed a number of grants for local projects and groups:

Agreed so far are:
£2,000 - Anti-Graffiti Kits to tackle the current spate of graffiti.
£2,143 - A Clean up and hanging basket project for the “Bent Hill” estate area
£2,000 - to fund the Prestwich Anti-Litter Campaign for one year
£3, 642 - to fund the “Health Kick” programme of health awareness programme for men in the Rainsough Area
£2,400 - to fund the summer scheme of activities for Young People in the Carr Clough area

We’ve also provisionally agreed to fund:
£1,000 towards the family health, skateboard and BMX summer festival in St Mary’s Park organised by Prestwich and Whitefield Methodists

Young people are being encouraged to sign up to a two week action packed calendar of sports, dance, arts, street wise or wild card events as part of the Bury and Rochdale Active Generation Scheme (BRAG).

The program, which is now in it’s eighth year, is aimed at young people aged between 11 and 15 years old, takes place between 28 July and 8 August at several venues across Bury. The two week programme costs just £9 and five sign up sessions are taking place across the borough to encourage young people to take part. Participants will receive a BRAG pass, details of the activities taking place and a free bus pass. Youngsters will receive a sticker after completing each different activity and this will allow them to compete for a Golden Ticket for the bonus week events taking place between 11 and 15 August.

The program is designed to encourage young people to be organised and plan their own schedule to ensure they get to the different activities on time. For further information about BRAG you can contact Adam Greenhalgh on 0161 253 6660 or information is available on the Bury Council Website.

The sign up session for our local area will take place at the following times and venues:
22 July, 4pm - 6pm; Shuttle Centre, Albert Road, Whitefield, M45 6NH
23 July, 12pm - 2pm; Pheonix Centre, St Mary’s Park, St Mary’s Road, Prestwich, M25 1GG

Today polling stations are open in the referendum to decide whether Bury should have an elected Mayor.
People should vote at their normal polling stations (that we used for the elections in May). The polling stations are open from 7.00am - 10.00pm. You do not need your polling card to vote.
If you have a postal vote which hasn’t yet been returned, you can fill this in in the normal way and take it round to your local polling station.

The local Liberal Democrats are urging everyone to vote NO in the election because we believe this to be an undemocratic waste of public money. Lots of people have questions about this important issue, the local Lib Dems have produced this factsheet
to answer some of your questions.

There is a special offer at our local Parenthorn Sports Centre (at Parenthorn School).

All throughout July and August you can book an Astro-Turf Football Pitch for just £15 per hour. (The usual price is £25) Monday - Thursday 6-10 and Friday 6-9pm.
FOR MORE INFOMATION PLEASE RING 0161 253 5434 (AFTER 5:30PM)
EMAIL: parrenthorn.sports@bury.gov.uk

On July 3rd, the people of Bury will be asked to vote in a referendum. You should have already received your polling cards and people who have a postal vote should have received their ballot papers in the last few days. Everyone will have their chance to say whether or not you want the way the Council is run to change, so that it is led by an elected Mayor.

Lots of people have questions about this important issue, the local Lib Dems have produced this factsheet
to answer some of your questions.

PLEASE SUPPORT YOUR POST OFFICES - SAY NO TO CLOSURE

Under proposals submitted by The Post Office and supported by the Labour Government, a further 5 Post Offices are being proposed for closure in the Bury area.

They are at Limefield on Walmersley Road, Ainsworth Road, Radcliffe, Elton, Greenmount and Rochdale Road.

We believe these are much valued community facilities that are depended upon by many in our communities, especially the elderly.The Post Office is now consulting on their proposals. Please sign and encourage friends to sign. The more support we can get the more likely we can make The Post Office listen to local people.

Sign the petition here

In the wake of the announcement that dozens of post offices in and around Greater Manchester, 11 across the Stockport Borough, are scheduled for closure, Liberal Democrats from across the area have launched a petition to ‘Save our Post Offices’.

Cheadle Constituency Mark Hunter MP, Hazel Grove Constituency MP Andrew Stunell, Manchester Withington MP John Leech and Rochdale MP Paul Rowen, along with Lib Dem Councillors and activists launched the petition today in central Manchester by holding a demonstration to oppose the plans and asking local residents to sign up in support of the protest.

Speaking after the launch Mr Hunter said: “It’s not too late for action on this issue. I hope local people will speak out and sign our petition to save their local post office. Many are under threat now and many more will surely follow if the Government gets is way.

“Post Offices are a vital part of the community; they often help to keep local other shops afloat and are relied on by a very wide variety of people particularly the elderly and young mums. It seems to me that Labour is fast becoming a Government that knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. The Liberal Democrats are committed to the future of the Post Office and we will keep up our campaign to show the Government that local people want to keep their Post Offices open.”

Mr Stunell added: “We lost a lot of Post Offices in this area when the Conservatives were last in Government, and now we are faced with a Labour Government that does not understand how strongly people feel about their local Post Office.

In fact the situation could soon get even worse - the Post Office Card Account that many pensioners rely on for drawing their pensions and benefits is being reviewed and if that work is lost by Royal Mail than even more Post Offices will surely be closed in the future.

The Liberal Democrats have a viable plan to prevent further closures and help to sustain the network; a plan that wouldn’t cost the earth that would invest in our local Post Office network not chop it up. Post Offices should be local and should be supporting our communities and we will continue to fight with our local community to save them.”

Liberal Democrats have continued to move forward on Bury Council making another gain from Labour and holding off a challenges from the Conservatives. This is the fifth election in a row in Bury where we have made gains.

Full results to follow, but in our key wards in Prestwich the results were as follows:

Holyrood
Vic D’Albert (Lib Dem) 1632
Labour 669
Conservative 852

St Mary’s
Mary D’Albert (Lib Dem) 1308
Labour 1013
Conservatives 692

Sedgley
Ann Garner (Lib Dem) 1488
Labour 906
Conservatives 1238

Across Prestwich the share of the vote was:
Liberal Democrats - 45%
Labour 26%
Conservatives 28%

The Liberal Democrats now have ALL NINE councillors in Prestwich. We’ll be doing our best all year round to stand up for the local community.

Across the motorway Lib Dem candidate Julie Baum put in a stunning performance to move into second place with a 50% increase in the Lib Dem vote.
Besses
Julie Baum (Lib Dem) 614
Labour 1084
Conservatives 584
Others 354

Well done to all our candidates, but particularly to re-elected Councillors Vic D’Albert and Ann Garner, and to new Councillor Mary D’Albert.
A huge thank you to the whole Lib Dem campaign team for a stunning result. Full results to follow.

Please don’t forget to vote in the important local elections on Thursday 1 May 2008. These elections will decide who will represent you at the Council for the next four years.

Vic D’Albert, our hard working local councillor for the last 17 years is the Liberal Democrat Focus Team candidate on Thursday.

Important Information
- Polling Stations are open from 7.00am - 10.00pm
- You don’t need your polling card to vote
- If you have a postal ballot, but have not yet sent it in, you can complete it as normal and take the completed envelope to your local polling station on the day.

Polling Stations in Holyrood
Baguley Crescent and Bow Lea - Mobile Van at Baguley Crescent
Simister - Lady Wilton Hall
Polefield, Parenthorn and St Margarets areas - St Margarets CE Centre on St Margarets Road
Heaton Park Area - Heaton Park Social Club, Bury Old Road
Northern area - Nursery Road, Glebelands Road, Langley etc - Prestwich Arts College, Heys Road
“Kirkhams” area (M45 postcodes) - Heaton Park School on Cuckoo Lane

If you need any more information, or need a lift to the polling station call our helpline on 0161 798 0117

Thank you!

Election statement to readers of the Bury Times:

Liberal Democrats across Bury have had a brilliant response from local residents. People are telling us that they are fed up of Labour closing post offices, taxing poorer people and watching the economy slide. People are uncertain what the Conservatives stand for, and haven’t noticed any improvement since they took over last year.

Liberal Democrats in Bury have three clear priorities:

We want safe, thriving communities across Bury. People must feel safe in their own streets and communities. This isn’t just about tackling crime, it’s about stronger, united communities. That’s why we’re opposing Post Office closures and why we secured massively increased funding for children in the Council budget. It’s also why we have always opposed the unfair and divisive congestion charge.

We want Bury to be the greenest Metropolitan Borough in Britain. Last year Lib Dems secured blue recycling bins for every house, and this year more money for parks and cleaning. We cherish Bury’s beautiful environment. We will work hard to protect it.

We believe in giving power to local people, not keeping it at the Town Hall. This means that decisions should be made locally in the six towns that make up Bury. It means local people making decisions at the most local level about the services that effect communities.

On May 1st we have a choice - A return to the 21 years of neglect under Labour’s rule in Bury, uncertainty under the Tories, or a clear vision for a better Bury from your local Liberal Democrats.

Vic D’Albert - Liberal Democrat Focus Team
A record of ACTION
Vic stands up for our local area all year round at the Town Hall. Vic and the team succesfully campaigned to save our local High School, and are now campainging to save our post offices.

Putting our area FIRST

Local Lib Dems are working hard to turn back years of Labour neglect of Prestwich - new play facilities, new children’s centres, traffic calming measures and more.
Vic and local Lib Dems have secured money for a top-level review of Prestwich “Village Centre” giving local people the chance to have our say on its future.

Safe and GREEN 
Lib Dems secured Blue Bins for every household and have now secured more money for parks and clearing litter. We’ve succesfully stopped cuts in youth service provision.

Gordon Brown’s Labour Candidate
Going Going GONE

Labour tried to close our local School Prestwich Arts College. Labour are now pushing ahead with plans to close 2,500 post offices - that’s NINE in Bury - but they won’t tell us which ones till after the election!

Crunch and SQUEEZE
Labour have abolished the 10p income tax rate and from this month poorer local people will be WORSE off than before. Homeowners and families are worried about how Gordon Brown is running the economy and the ‘credit crunch’.

£5 a DAY 
Labour councillors across Greater Manchester seem intent to press ahead with the Congestion Charge scheme which will mean we have to pay to drive over the Motorway, It’s the only place outside London where Labour want to charge!

Your Vote Counts

 • Polling stations are open 7.00am to 10.00pm

• You don’t need your polling card to vote

• If you have a POSTAL VOTE, but haven’t sent it in yet, you can still take your envelope down to your local polling station on the day.

• If you need a lift to the polling station, if you want to help Vic win, or need any other information - call Vic on 0161 773 9905 - email vic@burylibdems.net

Two Horse Race!

Remember the Conservatives came a poor third in Holyrood ward last time. The Conservatives have NO COUNCILLORS anywhere in Prestwich. A vote for the Conservatives only risks letting Labour back in by the back door.

It’s been a busy year for your three Lib Dem FOCUS Team Councillors:

Save our Post Offices
The Labour Government is proposing to close 2,500 post offices - that means NINE in Bury alone. Disgracefully, they’ve put off telling us which ones will close until after the local elections!. Your local councillors are campaigning to save our much needed local post offices like the post office at St Margarets.

Play Facilities
After years of campaigning, new children’s play facilities have been installed at Bailey Street after a design competition in a local school. Funding has been secured and plans are now in their final stages to improve security at Heaton Park school, and build a new Under 5’s play area.  Funding is also secured for “ball zone” for older children near Parrenthorn school.

Budget Success
In the recent Council Budget discussions the Lib Dem team of Councillors from Prestwich successfully secured a boost areas like Prestwich with more money for parks, more money for street cleaning and litter enforcement and stopped “cuts” to youth services  and services for vulnerable children. We refused to support a disgraceful Labour proposal that would have meant cutting £1 million off  much needed help for vulnerable adults with disabilities and children in need.

Bury in the Balance
After the elections last year - no one Party has  “control” of Bury Council. Your local Lib Dem Councillors refused to enter into a coalition with either of the other parties - we vote on  a case by case basis in the best interests of the people we represent.  Proud of Prestwich
After 21 years of neglect while the Labour Party ran Bury,  your local Lib Dems have secured investment to plan for the future of our Prestwich “Village Centre”. We want to see a village that we can all be proud of and are asking local people to “have their say”.

Keeping in Touch
We’ve kept in touch with local people ALL YEAR ROUND with our popular “FOCUS” newsletters - delivered free of charge to every house in Holyrood. You can new keep up with our work “online” as each of your local councillors has a regularly updated councillor’s website.

No Charge
Your local Councillors have consistently opposed the proposal to introduce a “Congestion Charge” proposed by the Labour led Greater Manchester authorities. We support the need to tackle climate change - but to charge local people for driving between Whitefield and Prestwich is the wrong answer.  People are rightly concerned what this would do to our area.

Local Champions
Your local Lib Dem Councillors have stood up for our local area all year round:
• supported local people opposing planning applications on Sandgate Road and the Polefield Shops
• Worked with the Police to tackle youth nuisance and crime
• Worked with local community groups such as the Simister Village Community Association and Polefiel’s TRA.

 Liberal Democrats have selected popular local Councillor Vic D’Albert to fight Holyrood Ward in the local elections on 1 May 2008. 

Well known local man Vic D’Albert has represented the Holyrood Ward on Bury Council for the last 17 years.  During that time Vic has worked tirelessly for our local area, campaigning for safer streets, better services and a greener community.

Commenting on his selection, Vic said: “It’s always been an honour to represent this area. Together with my wife Mary, I’ve lived in Prestwich now for 25 years and I know how important this area is.”

“Over the years I’ve had the opportunity to work with many local residents, and to help many people with local issues and concerns.”

“Thank you for all your continuing support.”

 Local Election FACT FILE

• “Holyrood Ward” is one of three election wards in the Prestwich area. It includes the northern parts of Prestwich, together with the “Kirkhams” area of Whitefield south of the Motorway, together with the distinct communities of Simister, and Rhodes and Bowlee on the Rochdale border.

• You have three Liberal Democrat councillors - Vic D’Albert, Wilf Davison and Tim Pickstone.

• Local Elections take place across Bury on Thursday 1 May 2008. If you have a postal vote, this will be sent to you about 10 days before.

• Vic D’Albert has been a hardworking local councillor for this area for the last 17 years.

• Vic is the local candidate - he has lived in the area with his family for 25 years.

• Vic is the successful Chair of the Prestwich Local Area Partnership, leading improvements in the local area such as the Village Centre and new play areas.

• Elections in Prestwich are always a close run contest between the local Lib Dems and the Bury Labour Party. The Conservatives have no Councillors in Prestwich and cannot win here.

Published by Andrew Garner in Promotion of Vic D’Albert - both at 82 Glebelands Road M25

Liberal Democrats have announced a full team of candidates to contest the elections for Bury Council on Thursday 1 May 2008. One third of the seats on the Council are up for election, with one councillor to be elected in each of the 17 wards.

Two Councillors are seeking re-election - Vic D’Albert in Holyrood and Ann Garner in Sedgley.

Liberal Democrat candidates are:
Ramsbottom, Tottington and North Manor
Ramsbottom - Janet Turner
Tottington - David Foss
North Manor - Ewan Arthur
Bury West
Elton - Robert Sloss
Church - Tamsin Thomson
Bury East
Moorside - Nissa Finney
East - Emma Davison
Redvales - Paul Jenkins
Radcliffe
Radcliffe North - Lynne Molloy
Radcliffe West - Joanne O’Hanlon
Radcliffe East - Mike Halsall
Whitefield and Unsworth
Unsworth - Theo Tzymcyca
Besses - Julie Baum
Pilkington Park - Wayne Burrows
Prestwich
Holyrood - Vic D’Albert
St Mary’s - Mary D’Albert
Sedgley - Ann Garner

The Lib Dems have claimed to be the “practical” party of local government at the launch of their campaign for council elections in England and Wales. Leader Nick Clegg said the party’s record was a “success story - quality services, and value for money”.

Speaking at the campaign launch in Sheffield, he accused Labour of failing on crime and the Tories of having “no stomach” for addressing green issues.

The party currently controls 29 local authorities across Britain, and is defending 700 Council seats on May 1st. We also hope to make other gains in Bury, including of course in St Mary’s.

Today, Nick Clegg said the party had come up with local solutions to problems including housing, crime and the environment.

“The Liberal Democrat record in local government is a success story - quality services, and value for money. And we are ready to apply the lessons that we have learned to councils throughout this country. “ He said: “We don’t promise to fix or solve every problem, but we do promise to give people a say, to give them the opportunity to fix things for themselves.”

Liberal  Democrats in Bury have accused Ivan Lewis MP and David Chaytor MP of failing to support local services after they voted to support the Government’s massive post office closure programme.

The Government has ordered that one in five branches be closed. Opposition MPs tried to stop the closure programme on 19th March when a motion was proposed in the House of Commons demanding the Government halt their plans to make 2500 branches shut up shop.

But enough Labour MPs rallied around the Government’s closure plans to reject the motion and ensure the closure programme can continue unhindered. Two of those voting to close post offices were Bury’s MP.

Disappointed local Liberal Democrat campaigners are calling on Ivan Lewis and David Chaytor to explain why s/he voted to close post offices.
“Our MPs have let down people in Bury by voting to allow the closures to continue,” said Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson Vic D’Albert. “In May the announcement will be made as to which branches here will be put forward for closure. This was an opportunity for Ivan Lewis and David Chayor to make a stand on behalf of residents. I am disappointed they have backed the Government rather than local people.

“The loss of post offices will hit communities hard in Bury. They are vital assets for many local people and closing them will cause many difficulties for older people and others with mobility problems, in particular.
“Despite the decision of our MPs to help the Government press ahead with closure, Liberal Democrats are continuing to fight the demolition of the post office network.”

Many residents will be aware about the discussions that have been taking place around the development of play facilities in the area of the Holyrood Ward to the East of Bury Old Road (Polefield, Parenthorn, Cuckoo Lane areas etc). At present there are no play facilities at all anywhere between the younger children play area on Bailey Street (near Heaton Park Metrolink) and Simister.

Many residents have raised this as a concern with their local councillors and we have been campaigning for the money to change this. This money has now been made available.

Original Plan

The origional plan (which is now not proposed) was to construct three play areas on the grounds of Heaton Park County Primary School on Cuckoo Lane (one for Under 5s, one for slightly older children, and a “ball zone” for teenagers).

We have held extensive consultations with residents who live nearby to the school, and also with parents and children at the school. It very quickly became clear that there were major security problems around the back of the school playing fields which is causing nuisance to local residents. Understandably, local people were concerned that the plans would make the issue worse, not better!

We have listened to these concerns and the plans have now been changed:

Current Proposals

The current proposal is in three parts:

Firstly, we propose to invest money (both money from the Local Area Partnership and the School will invest some money) to make the fencing around the school and the school playing fields more secure to reduce trespassing and nuisance to local residents. In addition a CCTV camera will be installed to monitor the area.

Seondly, we propose to build only one play area on the School site - this will be a play area for small children (under 5’s) and will only be locked after around 6.30pm by the School Caretaker. This will also be monitored by the CCTV scheme to make sure that the area isn’t abused.

 Play area plan - click to see larger image

Thirdly, we propose to build a “ball zone” for older children on the grounds of Parenthorn High School further up Heywood Road. Plans for this are at an early stage.

The Local Area Partnership has agreed all the necessary funding for these three schemes, but at the request of your local Councillors this funding has been agreed subject to further consultation with local residents and the two schools concerned. We want to make sure that the schemes are exactly right for the area and will only proceed when local people, including local children and young people are happy with the proposals.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you need to know more.

Tim, Vic and Wilf

Prestwich Local Area Partnership has announced a package of grants to support a number of local initiatives. The grants were agreecd at the Area Partnership meeting on 4 March 2008.

The Area Partnership can allocate them to local groups throughout the year. Already this year for instance, we have allocated £10,000 to the Rainsough community centre, with more to follow for Children’s Centre outreach both there and in Carr Clough.

Last night the following awards were made:

- Prestwich Carnival were awarded £2,125, which will ensure the continuation of this excellent community-wide event for the next two years. This money was awarded from the Kickstart Community Initiative fund, which is to benefit the entire community.

- The Prestwich Clough Centenary group also received £2,125 so that the Clough Day which has taken place for the last two years can continue for the next two as well. This too is a wonderful Prestwich event, and we are proud to provide the money to keep it going. This money also came from the Kickstart Community Initiative fund.

- £1,500 was given for the provision of a sensory garden for disabled children at Butterstile. This money came from the Kickstart fund, which is for small projects.

- Heaton Park School applied for money for fencing around the school, which will be an asset to the local community and which we were happy to provide £5,000 towards. This grant was made from the Cleaner, Greener, Safer capital fund, which is for capital schemes benefitting the local environment.

- The Cleaner, Greener, Safer capital fund was also the source of money for the Downham Tenants and Residents Association, for whom the LAP has given £500 towards the cost of creating a “wildlife corner” for communal use on land that is currently an eyesore.

- And the Cleaner, Greener, Safer capital fund has been made available for refurbishment of the Parksway ginnel in Sedgley ward, where £1,000 will be used for essential security work.

- A ball zone will be created at Parrenthorn school, with £5,000 coming from the Community Development fund for projects in the community.

- In addition, a further £5,000 has been made available from this fund for a new under 5’s play area in Polefield.

Altogether last night there was over £22,000 of money invested by the LAP into much needed community projects. This is a massive investment, and we have secured major projects like the carnival and much-needed play facilities, as well as smaller things like the Downham wildlife corner.

Holyrood Ward in particular will benefit from the major investment in play facilities which is very welcome. All in all a very good night for Prestwich.

Lib Dem’s Secure More Money for Children and Young People, and more money for Parks and Cleaner Streets 

Liberal Democrat Councillors saved services for young people and vulnerable children and secured extra expenditure on much needed environmental services such as parks, cleaner streets and environmental enforcement in Bury Council’s budget for next year.

The Lib Dem proposals, which were agreed and have become part of the budget:

- saved advice services for children and money for youth services across Bury

- saved services for disabled children, the “young carers” service and provision for children who are at risk

- secured new money for our parks and environmental services

- secured new money for a cleaner environment such as street cleaning and enforcement such as dog fouling and fly-tipping

 Cllr Tim Pickstone, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group said:

 “This is a difficult budget again for Bury. We all need to be clear on why these difficult savings once again have to be made. The blame is quite clearly with the Labour Government who, despite many years of pressure, continue to effectively give Bury a “poor deal”.

“Services to young people are already stretched  -  A vibrant youth support service is essential to ensure educational staying on rates and engagement in training or employment, with the subsequent positive impact on reducing anti-social behaviour”

“We are not prepared to put up with an unsafe reduction in support for vulnerable children, and to not see advances in supporting the environment in this borough.”

Cllr Richard Baum, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson on Resources said

“The people of this Borough want cleaner streets, green space and safe places for their families. And the Liberal Democrat group will ensure that as much as possible is done to give them what they want. Our proposals tonight are to invest in parks in this Borough to ensure that every community has a well-managed place of peace and greenery to enjoy.

Attacking the Labour Party Proposal to cut vital services for a zero Council Tax rise Cllr Pickstone said:

“This proposal is madness. We would all like to have a zero council tax rise, but the Labour Party are proposing to scrap £700,000 on much needed services for disabled people, are proposing to scrap services for young people and vulnerable children, and proposing to run Bury Council into the ground by running reserves down to a dangerous level. This is a disgrace - I am shocked that that Labour Party will stoop so low in a pathetic attempt to gain votes.

“There are two opposition parties in Bury. One, the Lib Dems, have achieved over £1/3 million of expenditure on young people, children and the environment, while Labour have achieved nothing but a cheap gimmick at the expense of vulnerable people.” 

Liberal Democrats have revealed shocking plans from the Labour Government to close local post offices.

The Government has announced that another 2,500 post offices are to close in a devastating blow that will mean that another six post offices are set to be closed in Bury alone. This is in adidtion to the 19 post offices that have already closed in Bury since 1999 under the Labour Government.

What’s more - the Lib Dems have revealed that the Government and Post Office are deliberately putting back the closures until after the council elections in May 2008! (see letter from the Post Office below).

Local Lib Dem Councillor Vic D’Albert and his Lib Dem colleagues led the defence of our local post offices when they got Bury Council to agree a policy in favour of saving our post offices late last year.
Vic D’Albert said: “Post Offices are at the heart of our local community and provide many vital services. In recent years we’ve already lost two post offices in Prestwich (on Whittaker Lane and down near Danesway in Sedgley) - surely they can’t expect us to close more!”

Local Lib Dems demand:
• Halt the Post Office branch closure programme;
• Stop removing Government business from Post Offices;
• Find additional Government functions could be carried out through Post Offices;

Take Action today!
We need to take action to ensure we don’t lose our vital local post offices in Prestwich.

Join Vic and the local Lib Dems in saving our local post offcices by returning our “Save Our Post Offices” petition currently being distributed throughout Holyrood Ward.

Local Liberal Democrats have chosen Cllr Vic D’Albert to stand in the elections in Holyrood Ward next May (2008). Cllr Tim Pickstone, who leads the Lib Dems in Bury said: “By next year Vic will have been our local councillor for an incredible 17 years. There are not many people who have not been helped in some way by his hard work. He’s a true local champion for this area.” If you would like to help ensure Vic gets re-elected as our hard working local councillor - perhaps by delivering a few Focus leaflets on your street - contact us using the details on the back.

Bury Council has included the A6044 Hilton Lane in its planned annual programme of Local Safety Scheme works designed specifically to reduce the number of road accident casualties and improve road safety.

Bury Council’s proposals see the introduction of a number of road safety features including the provision of six pedestrian refuges within the existing hatching on Hilton Lane to provide amenity for pedestrians and to deter dangerous overtaking movements on the road. Also proposed are additional lining, surfacing and signing measures.

Residents/occupiers of local frontage properties will each be receiving a consultation package including full details of the proposals and a response form which can be returned using a Freepost envelope provided. The questionnaire asks residents if they agree that action is necessary to address the traffic conditions on Hilton Lane and whether they support the measures being proposed.

Full details and locations of the proposed measures are shown on plans which can be obtained from:

Mr K Asquith (Tel. 0161 253 5809)

Alternatively, residents may complete a response form on-line by visiting www.bury.gov.uk and by following the links for TransportAndStreets/MotorVehiclesRoadsandParking/TrafficCalming/OnlineConsultations.

All response forms should be returned before Friday 16th November 2007.

It is proposed that a report on the outcome of this consultation exercise will be presented to the Prestwich Local Area Partnership at their meeting on Tuesday 15th January 2008.

All issues raised by the responses to this consultation will be considered in the report and recommendations to the Area Partnership will reflect on the issues raised. Amendments to the proposals may well be forthcoming as a result if it is considered appropriate.

The Trading Standards Office are making people aware of the following scam:
A card is posted through your door from a company called PDS (Parcel Delivery Service) suggesting that they were unable to deliver a parcel and
that you need to contact them on 0906 6611911 (a premium rate number).

DO NOT call this number, as this is a mail scam originating from Belize.
If you call the number and you start to hear a recorded message you will already have been billed £15 for the phone call.
If you do receive a card with these details, then please contact Royal Mail Fraud on 02072396655 or ICSTIS (the
premium rate service regulator) at www.icstis.org.uk http://www.icstis.org.uk/

A new planning application has been received which is within Holyrood Ward (Prestwich) as detailed below:-
Application number: 48646         Type of application: Full         Date Registered: 05/10/2007
Applicant: M D Homes
Location: PARRENTHORN FARM, CORDAY LANE, SIMISTER, PRESTWICH, M25 2RP
Proposal: CONVERSION OF BARN INTO ONE DWELLING (REVISION OF EXISTING SCHEME)Should you require further details please contact the case officer: Tom Beirne on: 0161 253 5361 or reply by email. For advice on commenting on Planning Applications please don’t hesitate to contact me or my fellow ward councillors or visit the Council’s E-planning pages on the Council website www.bury.gov.uk .

Bonfire night will soon be here, and the “BurySafe” Partnership would like your help in tackling illegal aspects of firework sales and in promoting a safe bonfire night for all.

Fireworks should not go on general sale until 15th October unless the shop has a special “sales” licence. If you see shops selling to the general public before 15th October, please could you notify the Fire Service (Fire Safety Officer Howells 0161 909 0310) and let them know the name and address of the shop concerned. They can then check whether or not the shop is properly licenced.

There should be no illegal fly posting of adverts for firework shops, including shops which open on a short lease. If you see any fireworks fly posters on highways, highway structures, road signs, or street furniture, then please could you inform Bury MBC Environmental Services (Lorraine Chamberlin 253 5519) and they will endeavour to have them removed and/or take other action.

If you are buying fireworks please go to a reputable licenced retailer. Buying bargain fireworks elsewhere could spoil your enjoyment (poor quality effects) and could increase risks of an accident.

If you attend a bonfire and/or buy fireworks please take all necessary precautions and follow instructions.

If you are a parent or someone responsible for young people it would be helpful if you could reinforce general Bonfire Night and firework safety messages. Aspects of anti-social behaviour and youth nuisance can be the cause of distress to residents and injuries.

Please feel free to contact your councillors if you need any further information.  

Local residents are being warned to take care about car key safety after an increase in cars stolen in the area by car keys taken from your house. Please be careful where you keep your car keys - don’t leave them one the side near the door, and don’t leave them around when you’re out of the house.
 
Our local Holyrood Police team are:
PC Carrie Robertson 856 4538
PCSO Juliet Cromey 856 4536
PCSO Phil Chadwick 856 4536

Local residents are being asked to have their say on improved play facilities for children and young people in the area.

Two schemes to improve play facilities are being discussed with local residents over the coming months. If the plans meet with approval work is to start within the next few months.

The play area on Recreation Street/Heaton Street off Bury Old Road is to be upgraded with improved fencing and a complete set of new play equipment for younger children. Children at St Hilda’s CoE Primary School on Whittaker Lane took part in a competition to design the area, and the scheme is based on the winning design from one of the pupils. Many local residents have raised concerns about ball games in the play area - which is closely surrounded by housing. The scheme will feature a greater spread of play equipment which should discourage bigger ball games in the area.

Meanwhile across Bury Old Road plans for a new “Ball Zone” are being discussed on spare land at Heaton Park Primary on Cuckoo Lane. The facility would be aimed at older children and provide a multi-use play area for football, basketball or similar games.

Cllr Vic D’Albert, who is the Chair of Prestwich Local Area Partnership welcomed the news. “We’ve been desperately short of good play and activity space for children and young people in this area. The two new facilities will be a great boost for children and families in the area.

More information is available from Carran O’Grady, the Prestwich Area Coordinator (C.O’Grady@bury.gov.uk) or from any of your local councillors (see over for details).

Application number: 48706         Type of application: Full         Date Registered: 25/09/2007
Applicant: Bank Machine Ltd
Location: 56-58 BURY OLD ROAD, WHITEFIELD, M45 6TL
Proposal: RETROSPECTIVE PERMISSION FOR AUTOMATED TELLER MACHINE TO FRONT ELEVATION (RESUBMISSION)Should you require further details please contact the case officer: Jennie Townsend on: 0161 253-5320 or reply by email. For advice on the Planning Application process or how to comment on applications pease contact your local councillors or Bury Council’s E-planning pages on their web site www.bury.gov.uk

A new planning application has been received which is within Holyrood Ward of Prestwich as detailed below:-
Application number: 48625         Type of application: Full         Date Registered: 26/09/2007
Applicant: Dr A Salam Darwish
Location: 71 PARRENTHORN ROAD, PRESTWICH, M25 2RL
Proposal: TWO STOREY SIDE & REAR EXTENSIONShould you require further details please contact the case officer: Janet Ingham on: 0161 253 5325 or reply by email. If you require advice or clarification about either the Planning process or how to comment on applications please don’t hesitate to contact your councillors. Further information can also be found at the Councils E-planning pages at www.bury.gov.uk

Although its not in this Ward, local residents may be interested in the current consultation on mini-Roundabout at the junction at Ringley Road and Stand Lane, Whitefield which was introduced during Spring 2006. Since the opening of the mini-roundabout, residents have suggested that a considerable number of damage-only collisions and near misses are occurring that go unreported.

In response to these concerns Bury Council is currently reviewing the operation of this junction. A consultation exercise is underway and open until Friday 21 September 2007 after which the outcome will be analysed and reported to the Whitefield and Unsworth Local Area Partnership meeting on Thursday 18 October

Consultation documents containing more information and response forms are available online at www.bury.gov.uk/traffic-calming or they can be requested from Planning, Engineering & Transportation Services, Lester House, 21 Broad Street, Bury BL9 0AW (phone 0161 253 5782

Your local councillors have been closely monitoring the night-time working on the Metrolink line. We have recently received more information about work over the coming week. Nighttime working on the line is expected again over the Bank Holiday weekend, but the contractors have assured us that all residents have been contacted.

The night time work is required in order to complete the upgrade of the line before it re-opens on 9 September 2007. If the work causes problems, or if work is happening in your area and you haven’t been notified please contact either Bill Rees 0161-253 5517 or Gary Brown 0161 253 6100 at Bury Council, or you can contact any of your councillors.

The proposal to introduce a congestion charge for Manchester raises too many questions for local people and should be opposed - say local Lib Dems.

Liberal Democrats in Prestwich have raised concerns about the proposals to charge local people up to £5 a day for driving into into Manchester with toll points at the M60 and the “intermediate ring road”.

 • Charging people to cross the M60  will divide the local communities of Prestwich and Whitefield. Why should we pay to make a local journey to schools, shops or health facilities that doesn’t go anywhere near Manchester!  Either all roads will have charges or terrible “rat runs” will be created. What happens to Simister village just outside the M60?
• The scheme just isn’t Green. It does nothing to tackle the big source of air pollution in Prestwich/Whitefield, the M60.

• For an extra tax of up to £1,300 per person a year what do we get? A few more trams and a few school buses? Using the tram costs more than the proposed charge!

Lib Dem leader Cllr Tim Pickstone said: 
“Everyone knows we need to work hard for the environment and to reduce congestion, but this scheme just seems so wrong for our local area. We cannot support a scheme that divides our local community and does nothing to solve the major environmental questions that face us today.

Tell us what you think. Sign our online petition at www.prestwichsaysno.com