Voting takes place on 6th May 2010 - 6.00am - 10.00pm at polling stations throughout Prestwich. Your polling station is marked on your polling cards which you should have received.

If you have a postal vote then these are being despatched from Saturday 25 April 2010 - the two different ballot papers will be in different envelopes and probably arrive on different days. If you have forgotten to post your votes back, you can take them to your local polling station on the 6th May.

All the ballot papers for the local Elections are YELLOW, all the ballot papers for the General Election are WHITE.

General Election Candidates
(Bury South Constituency)
Paul Chadwick (UKIP)
Vic D’Albert (Lib Dem)
George Heron (Green)
Ivan Lewis (Lab)
Valerie Morris (English Democrats)
Jean Purdy (BNP)
Michelle Wiseman (Con)

Local Election Candidates

Holyrood Ward

Carl Curran (Con)
TIm Pickstone (Lib Dem)
Ben Shatliffe (Lab)

Sedgley Ward

Andrew Garner (Lib Dem)
Johnathan Grosskopf (Con)
Alan Quinn (Lab)

St Mary’s Ward

Noel Bayley (Lab)
George Heron (Green)
Donal O’Hanlon (Lib Dem)
Raymond Solomon (Con)

Mark Sanders, acting returning officer, said: “Although some of you may have voted in previous local or European elections, we know that for others this year’s UK general election may be the first time they vote.”

So, for the first time voter, here’s what you need to know:

1. If you want to vote, you have to be on the electoral register. Your name does not go on the register automatically once you have turned 18, or just because you are paying council tax.

2. To vote in May’s general election, you need to register by April 20. Registering is quick and straightforward: you can print off a form from www.aboutmyvote.co.uk or call 08003 280 280.

3. What’s the most convenient way for you to vote? You can vote in person at your local polling station, which is open from 7am to 10pm on Thursday May 6. Once you are on the electoral register, Bury Council will send you a card with details of where your polling station is.

4. Alternatively, you can apply to vote by post. This means your ballot paper is sent to your home address ahead of the election day. The deadline to request a postal vote is 5pm on April 20 – the application form is on www.aboutmyvote.co.uk

5. The other way of having your say is called voting by proxy, where someone you trust casts your vote for you if you cannot or do not wish to vote in person or by post. Again, look at www.aboutmyvote.co.uk

6. When it comes to filling in your ballot paper, simply put an X next to the name of the candidate who you want to represent you as your Member of Parliament.

Bury Council staff are here to help, so call them on 0161 253 5113 if you have any questions.

The clean-up will be led by Ian Rogers of Bury’s Ranger Service, who is based at the Phoenix Centre in Prestwich, who will provide the equipment.

Anyone who can help is asked to meet at St Mary’s Flower Park at 10.30am, and the operation will last no longer than two hours.

Bury residents are reminded that they will see no change to their household waste collections over Easter. Collections of rubbish and recycling will be made as normal on Good Friday.

There are no scheduled collections on Easter Monday as the service operates on a four day week, Tuesday to Friday.

Residents due a collection on Good Friday are reminded to leave their bins and recycling bags out for collection by 7 am and to ensure they are clear of obstacles such as parked vehicles.

Councillor Dorothy Gunther, Executive Member for Environment and Transport said “There can be a big increase in the amount of waste we produce at Easter-time with Easter cards, Easter eggs and extra waste from entertaining family and friends, but cutting down on how much waste we create is vital to protecting the environment and tackling climate change. One easy way to do this is to buy items that have the least amount of packaging or none at all. For example, by choosing to buy loose fruit and vegetables rather than pre-packed.”

Further advice from the Waste Management Service is as follows.

Cardboard packaging from Easter eggs and other products can be recycled at the kerbside in the green bag or plastic carrier bags.

Plastic bottles, metal cans, tins and foil, as well as clear and coloured glass bottles and jars, can all be recycled at the kerbside in the blue bin.

Residents planning work on their gardens over the Easter weekend can recycle their garden waste at the kerbside by placing it inside the brown bin.

And, if a Spring-time clearout or clean-up is planned the household waste recycling centres at Bury (Fernhill Depot); Radcliffe (Cemetery Road); and Prestwich (Clifton Road) will all be open as normal throughout the Easter weekend between 8 am and 8 pm (7pm at Prestwich).

Residents are further advised that the Council’s telephone helpline will be closed on both Good Friday and Easter Monday. Anyone wanting to check their collection details can do so online at www.bury.gov.uk/binandbagcollections. Any problems can also be reported online by going to www.bury.gov.uk/reportaproblem.

Remember that these revised plans include a massive 2.4m perimeter fence around the site, as well as further fenced off car-park, going up towards the reservoir. You can view all the plans at Manchester Council’s Website.

This could well be our LAST CHANCE to save Heaton Park - this is the third time that Goals have submitted their plan, but the first that its actually made it to the agenda for a committee meeting. The recommendation from the Planning Officers is to “Approve” the report.

We’ve had a terrific response to the campaign so far: hundreds of people have sent in objection letters and emails; signed the petitions and written to the press. Thank you for everything that people have done so far.

We still need help to stop this application:

If you are available on THURSDAY afternoon, join us outside Manchester Town Hall (Albert Square side) at 1.30pm. We’ll be going into the Committee meeting (this starts at 2.00pm) together where we’ll be allowed one person to speak on our behalf. Its important that as many people as possible come along and show the strength of feeling against the proposal.

Its not too late to apply pressure to your elected representatives - MPs and Councillors. If you live in Manchester please email your councillor telling them how strongly you oppose the application and ask them to represent you. You can automatically email all your councillors by entering your postcode at this website.

If you live in either Bury South or Manchester Blakeley Parliamenary constituencies why not email your MP telling them how strongly you feel?

Bury South - Ivan Lewis MP (Labour): ivanlewis@burysouth.fsnet.co.uk

Manchester Blakely - Graham Stringer MP (Labour): Link to email

Carry on keeping up the pressure:
- tell your friends
- if you’re on facebook copy this message to your friends
- if you use twitter - tweet about this!
- use any opportunity in the press, or in internet discussion sites to object to the proposals.

Follow these links to the Planning Committee agenda and the actual report.

Agendaf

Report

Keep up the campaign!

The proposals include a 20mph zone as the road nears the area of Park View Primary School (Rectory Lane roundabout to Scholes Lane, including Park View Road itself.

The full details of the scheme can be downloaded here.

Now is the time to act, whether you have signed the petition or not, if you care about the future of our local community centres then it is crucial that you complete a consultation form.

Forms are being circulated and are available in Council buildings and the Civic suites themselves. The consultation can also be completed online here .

Don’t forget to let Bury Council know what you think, don’t forget to tell all you contacts about the consultation.

Don’t leave the future of our community centres to someone else, act now!

Due to the huge public outcry Goals Soccer Centres have failed to present their plans to Manchester City Council Planning Committee for a second time.

They are trying everything they can to get these plans approved. It’s up to us to stop them.
They have tried and failed in other parks. We must fight them every inch of the way.

Goals have been stopped before

Regents Park - REJECTED
Mordern Park -REJECTED

Lets stop them in Heaton Park and make it three nil for all those people who love open
parkland.

We urge you to object to this new planning application
The new planning application from Goals includes raising the level of the pitches by
80 centimeters which is almost a metre higher than they were originally planned. Making this blot on the landscape even more obvious.

Additionally security fencing is also planned. This physical and visual barrier will effectively cut off this area of parkland and thereby detract from the special character of this area of the park.

You need to send your objections to Manchester City Council by 3rd February 2010 If you have already sent in an objection during the last consultation period you will still need to send in another objection.

A - Sign the Online Petition HERE

If you’ve already signed - find TWO friends to sign! - Ask them to join the “Save Heaton Park” Facebook Group.

Here’s the link to the petition to send to a friend in an email.
http://www.saveheatonpark.org.uk/?page_id=2

B - Download and email / send in an objection letter.

Download the letter here - you can amend this letter to include your own words and objectsion.

Email your objection to r.griffin@manchester.gov.uk

C - Write your own Objection Letter

Quoting Application No: 090370/FO/2009/N1

and send to:

Peter Babb
Head of Planning
Manchester City Council
P.O. Box 463
Town Hall Extension
Manchester
M60 3NY

D - Attend the Save Heaton Park Meeting
Find out what has been happening with the campaign.

Monday 25 January 2010
7.00pm Church House (St Margaret’s Road, Opposite the Church), Prestwich.

Thank you for all your support so far!



]]> http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?feed=rss2&p=595 http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?p=593 http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?p=593#comments Wed, 20 Jan 2010 09:24:23 +0000 timpickstone http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?p=593 Residents are being asked for their views concerning the borough’s civic halls - so its time for Prestwich to have their say to save the Longfield Suite!

The consultation process will run for the rest of January and until the end of February.

The council is conducting a review of its civic venues “to make sure they are best placed to enjoy a prosperous future”.

According to a Council statement: No decisions about any of the venues have been made. There are no proposals to close any of them, but the council needs to look at the best way forward for each venue.

A review is being carried out by a Task and Finish Group. As part of this review, the council is keen to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to have their say.

All survey results will be considered as part of the overall review.

The survey will be carried out as follows:
* a paper form for residents and civic hall users to complete. These forms will be available in a wide range of venues, including the civic halls themselves. Staff will also be distributing the forms around the venues and town centres to ensure as wide a distribution as possible.
People will be asked how often they use the halls, for what purpose, and what they would like to see them used for.

* people can also fill in the survey online, at www.bury.gov.uk/howarewedoing

* an email address has been set up for people to put forward their views. This is: civichallsreview@bury.gov.uk

The Task and Finish Group will include a review of any letters, comments and press articles received as part of the consultation process.

The group’s recommendations will be presented to the council’s executive on March 10.

A Bury Council spokesman said: “We appreciate that some residents feel strongly about the borough’s civic venues. This is your chance to have your say and give us your suggestions on the best way forward.”

]]> http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?feed=rss2&p=593 http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?p=591 http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?p=591#comments Sun, 17 Jan 2010 09:25:16 +0000 timpickstone http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?p=591 Now that waste collections have started again, the council is aiming to reach all households on their usual collection day.

If the weather continues to improve, the council intends to collect grey bins, blue bins and green bags next week.

Any collections of the grey bin missed today (Friday Jan 15) in the Ramsbottom area will be mopped-up on Monday, so residents need to put their grey bin and any extra bags of rubbish out again first thing on Monday morning.

Brown bin collections are still suspended so that we can put extra effort into clearing the backlog of other waste.

]]> http://www.myprestwich.org.uk/?feed=rss2&p=591