Fantastic evening at the 2nd Hyndburn Business Awards

LCC: Grass cutting money to be re-assessed

Over the past few years, Hyndburn Borough Council has experienced severe cuts to the public realm budget allocated by Lancashire County Council. This had led to a reduced service and an increased number of emails from the public expressing dissatisfaction.

'Public realm' is the term given to areas which borough Councils do not own but maintain on behalf of other organisations for an annual fee, such as roadside verges, trees and certain grassed areas.

Cabinet member for Parks and Open Spaces, Cllr Ken Moss, has contacted the new Leader of LCC, Cllr Geoff Driver, to see if this decision can be reversed.

Cllr Moss said, "We simply don't have the money to cut certain areas as much as we would like and quite understandably this has led to complaints from residents. I contacted Cllr Driver to point out the knock-on effects such as unsightly areas, increased flytipping and pet fouling and was delighted to find that he agreed with me. He has assured me that he will reinstate the public realm budget as soon as possible and I would like to thank him for his support." 
 

Vote Graham Jones on June 8th 2017

Polls open at 7.00am on Thursday June 8th in a General Election to decide who will be the Member of Parliament for Hyndburn.

The incumbent MP is Graham Jones who has been the Labour representative in the borough since 2010. He lives in Hyndburn and has both grown up and worked in the borough his whole life.

The Hyndburn Labour Group wholeheartedly support Graham and would urge the public to vote him in for a third term as our local representative.

Baxenden: HBC issues legal notices to travellers

A traveller encampment on Baxenden recreation ground has generated many complaints from residents and Hyndburn Borough Council have issued enforcement notices.

Hyndburn MP and Baxenden resident Graham Jones said, "I've been to Baxenden Rec and the travellers have arrived. It's an illegal encampment and I've reported it to the Chief Executive of the Council by phone and asked for swift action. Last time they were removed within a week."
 
Notice of Direction to Leave land was served on Monday 15th May requiring the travellers (3 caravans) to leave as soon as practicable. The travellers have not complied with the notice so they will be summonsed to attend court at which time HBC intend to apply for an Order requiring them to leave the land.

The earliest available court date is next Wednesday, 31 May 2017.

Baxenden: Car park NOT for sale

A notice has been erroneously printed in the Accrington Observer advertising a car park for sale on Manchester Road in Baxenden. Although the advert is scheduled to appear in the newspaper for two weeks, it has been issued in error as part of a wider sceheme to dispose of pieces of land which are of little value to the Council and are not well-used by the public.

The Hyndburn Labour Group wish to apologise for the error and thanks are due to Graham Jones MP for helping to inform residents of the situation.

Barnfield: Regenerating Woodnook

After 13 years of neglect Hyndburn Council in 2011 under a new Labour administration began to fulfil our promise of regenerating Woodnook. We did it by inviting private investors into a long term plan.

We had a vision.

Place First (a newly established regeneration arm of a pension company) decided to partner Hyndburn Council it was a first in the UK. They have now been commissioned to regenerate housing in Morecambe, Colne and Liverpool as a result.

We are proud to be trailblazers (it was done because the previous Tory admin 1998-2011 had left no money) and it has won awards and received national media coverage. Hyndburn Council purchased the properties and transferred them to PlaceFirst on the terms Hyndburn Labour set out.

Here is a 1 minute video.

To find out about renting from PlaceFirst in Woodnook http://placefirst.co.uk/placefirst-announce-plans-for-next-stage-of-woodnooks-regeneration/

Hyndburn Labour Councillor Wins Cohesive Society Award

Hyndburn Councillor Wins Cohesive Society Award

Councillor Noordad Aziz from Great Harwood, was recognised for his work to build better communities in the inaugural Remembering Srebrenica North West Cohesive Society Awards last week.

Councillor Aziz, along with Dr Aidan Stonehouse and Armaan Chohan, won the Best New Event award for organising the UK’s first ever Srebrenica Peace March. As a symbolic end to Srebrenica Memorial Week on the 21stanniversary of the genocide in Bosnia, 21 Remembering Srebrenica Community Champions walked just over 21 miles between Blackburn Cathedral and Manchester Cathedral, visiting different faith venues along the way.

Chair of Remembering Srebrenica’s North West Board, Elinor Chohan, who joined them on the Peace March said:

“The time and effort that Councillor Aziz and the other volunteers have put into commemorating Srebrenica is inspiring. This event brought diverse communities together in remembrance as well as walking in solidarity with the survivors, mirroring the powerful ‘Mars Mira’ peace walk which takes place annually in Srebrenica. The work of our Community Champions really shows that people in the North West want their communities to be stronger and safer by uniting against hatred and welcoming everyone regardless of their race, religion, sexuality or ability.”

Dr Waqar Azmi OBE, Chairman of Remembering Srebrenica, added:

“Never has it been more important for us to learn the lessons from Srebrenica, so it is vital that we have talented and driven individuals like Cllr Aziz bringing people together. The dedication of our volunteers across the UK last year meant that we put on nearly 400 events, attended by over 50,000 people. By working with schools, councils, faith organisations and other community groups we can challenge those who spread divisive messages in their efforts to breed hatred and intolerance.”

Cllr Aziz said of his award: “'The Peace March is a great initiative to raise awareness of what happened at Srebrenica over 20 years ago. I am glad the North West has led the way and I hope it continues for many years. For me, it was also a way of honouring the mothers of Srebrenica, who I met when I went out there a few years ago, and whose quest for justice still continues today.”

Remembering Srebrenica’s volunteers in the North West put on 52 events just in July, which were attended by thousands of people to bring communities together and unite against hatred. The charity’s message in all these commemorations was to embrace difference while remembering the victims of the worst atrocity on European soil since World War Two. 

Event organisers focused on the lost generation in Bosnia who never had the opportunity to celebrate their coming of age. By helping communities to take action now, Remembering Srebrenica wants young people to join older people and help build a cohesive society for everyone.

Local councillors, educators, and Community Champions came together at Sanam's restaurant in Manchester on Thursday evening to celebrate their achievements in bringing communities together.

For further information in relation to the work of Remembering Srebrenica please see below:

Website: http://srebrenica.org.uk/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rememberingsrebrenica

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SrebrenicaUK