Burscough Parish CouncilMartland Mill, Mart Lane, Burscough, Lancashire L40 OSD Telephone: 01704 894914Email: admin@burscoughpc.org.uk www.burscoughpc.co.uk

Infusions Christmas LunchOn Wednesday 21st December Infusions Bistro hosted a Christmas lunch for several

needy homeless people. The following day 8 lunches were provided which were mainlylocal elderly residents. Craig Walsh, owner of Infusions, said “We had fantastic support

from the community which included meals being sponsored by around 10 Burscoughresidents. The generosity of Burscough folk is really special. We have got an excess of meals still

available so we are doing an Easter Maundy Thursday Lunch for 10/12 people on the 13th April. It has been a pleasureto give something back to our community.” If anyone wants to nominate a neighbour, relative or friend in need pleasecontact Craig directly at Infusions.Thank you Burscough!

NEWSLETTERJANUARY 2017 / ISSUE 43

GENEROUS BURSCOUGHCOMMUNITY

Fundraising at it’s BestThe Wellness Centre on Burscough Industrial Estaterecently held a ‘Gymathon Family Fun Day’. An amazing£2000 was raised for local girl Hannah Lyson, who as youknow has been diagnosed with bowel cancer. MarieWinders, from the centre said ‘We held gym classes, back-to-back from 8:30 to 4:30, for which participants made aminimum donation of £5 to take part, with the help of thecentre’s amazing instructors along with a guest appearancefrom Mickie Edwards, ex St Helens rugby league player andfitness instructor, and we all worked out hard and fast tosome fantastic music courtesy of Joe George. Local hairsalon owner, Hayley Webster did a sponsored 3 hour spinbike ride on the day, which contributed towards the total.There were mini-facials courtesy of Jennifer Mushrow, mini-manicures courtesy of Lianne Kershaw, kids face painting

along with various games. There were Body Shop goodsand Younique goods to purchase, each with their own raffleto raise funds too. We had a young man, Lewis, a fantasticmagician to entertain kids and adults alike and with the helpof our members and friends, an abundance of cakes,biscuits, tea, coffee and refreshments to keep everyonegoing throughout the day. We also had a Tombola andRaffle on the day with a huge amount of 60 prizes rangingfrom kids ride-on tractors to local companies offeringvouchers and free gifts. The weather on the day wasabsolutely abysmal with so much hail and wind we fearedthe worst but luckily so many good natured people turnedout on the day to help us raise this amazing amount, whichgoes to prove that Burscough really is a great community.”This goes alongside other community events to raisefunds for Hannah including Christmas Markets & a MusicMarquee Night.Burscough residents also donated thousands of £ to

support the families of two young people who were thevictims of separate road collisions - Georgia Addy and KaiJohnstone. Everyone in Burscough wishes them both aspeedy recovery.

ROTARY CLUB OF ORMSKIRKwishes to thank the people of Burscough fortheir outstanding generosity towards ourChristmas Charity Collections in local stores.

❤

Staff & membersreally enjoyingtheir ‘Fun Day’.

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BURSCOUGH PARISH NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2017

Pupils from Lordsgate Township, St Mary's & St John's RC Primary Schools attending the Armistice Service at HMS Ringtail Monument on11th November 2016. All the pupils were a credit to their schools.

HMS RINGTAIL CEREMONY 11TH NOVEMBER 2016

REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY 13TH NOVEMBER 2016

BURSCOUGH EXHIBITION 3RD DECEMBER 2016

The Images of Burscough Exhibition was a great success! Itwas held on Saturday 3rd December, 2016 at the StanleyInstitute and attracted over 600 visitors. Surprisingly not onlylocal people attended but many others from all over thecountry! One couple turned up and informed the organisersthat through the ‘Images of Burscough’ facebook group theyhad recently traced one another and are now engaged to bemarried! Michael was thanked several times and invited to thewedding!

Many people brought in lots of old local photos, but onelady, Ina France (nee Mason) who is 94 brought in thefavourite image of the day showing the old Smithy in VictoriaStreet. Ina also had many stories to tell and it was a pleasurelistening to her.

(The Smithy photo is shown with Jim Mason (centre) whostarted at the Smithy after serving in WW1 – he is Ina’s father).

David Lavery opened the event, attending with his sisterErica Lavery and their mother, Mrs Lavery.

Mildred Ashcroft (nee Disley) used to work for Laverys backin the 1950s. One of the old photos shows Mildreddemonstrating her cake decorating skills to HRH The Duchessof Kent, with Vera Vickers and Richard H Spencer (a companydirector) looking on at the Daily Mail Home Exhibition inLondon in 1953.

Michael Dawson and his colleagues would just like to thankeveryone who attended on the day and everyone who helpedmake the day possible.

Photographs courtesy of Michael Dawson.

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BURSCOUGH PARISH NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2017

Burscough at it’s bestInto the Ark Childcare goes from strength to strength - Outstanding OfSTEDInto The Ark Childcare & Forest School are celebrating theirrecent OfSTED inspection where they were thrilled to beawarded ‘Outstanding in all areas’. After teaching in inner-cityprimary schools for many years, Jenna & Amy Mackintoshbecame frustrated by schools being increasingly driven byresults and targets and there being less emphasis on the childas an individual and their relationship with the world aroundthem. They decided to set up a childcare provision where theethos was all about being outdoors, enjoying nature, learningthrough play and being able to respond to the child’s needs ina holistic way.

In 2014 they started running ‘Free Range Fridays’ for nurseryaged children where they spend the whole day in the woodsfollowing a forest school ethos. This year Jenna Mackintoshbecame an accredited forest school leader and Into the Ark hasfinally become an accredited Forest School.

They now support & care for 28 children from Burscough.Congratulations on such a fabulous accolade - ‘Outstanding’from OfSTED!

Christmas Shop Window CompetitionWinner 2016Burscough Parish Council wish to thank every village shop so much fortaking part in the Christmas Shop Window Competition. This year the 16judges were members of Burscough U3A (University of the 3rd Age).Their decision was made on the afternoon of Tuesday, 13th Decemberover warm drinks at Infusions Café. Each of the judges wrote downthree nominations and wrote down why they thought those windowswere best, and then they voted for the winner. The voting was extremelyclose. Based on written nominations, the vote was initially equally splitwith the Post Office and the Little Flower Shop each receiving 4 votes,Sue Gallagher and Queenscourt each receiving three votes and WaltonCarpets receiving 2 votes. Due to there being no outright winner, thejudges took a final tie breaker vote and they chose the Little FlowerShop as the winner. The Little Flower Shop has been awarded a £100cash prize and their name will be engraved on the shield, which they willhold for one year. All businesses taking part should be applauded: theshop windows are wonderful and each shop’s effort adds to the muchdesired sense of community and we hope attract business to the centreof Burscough. Burscough Parish Council has followed the same formatfor four years now: your thoughts are welcome about whether we shouldchange anything before we start to plan for Christmas 2017.

If you would like to provide feedback about the competition, or aboutany other aspects of the work of the Parish Council please contact Tessor any member of the Parish Council or go to www.burscoughpc.co.ukfor more information.

Lancashire Tourism AwardsThe 13th Lancashire Tourism Awards took placeon Thursday 10 November at BlackburnCathedral. Local Burscough attractions werenominated in three categories standing againstextremely challenging competition. Eachorganisation worked so hard to earn theprestigious recommendations. Every Burscoughresident should be extremely proud of theirachievements! Pride of Burscough!

Chef Paul Moore with owners Craig Walsh and his wifeCathy at Infusions Café Bistro.

Lancashire Producers & Makers AwardArtisan Foodworks @Merlins CaféBurscough Industrial EstateVisitor Experience AwardSwan Spectacular at WWT Martin Mere Wetland CentreTaste Lancashire AwardInfusions Café Bistro

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BURSCOUGH PARISH NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2017

NATIONAL BEE AWARDBurscough Community Group Wins at DEFRA Bee AwardsThe Tree Bee Society has received an award from DEFRA (Department of Environment,Farming and Rural Affairs), recognising it’s conservation efforts at “The Bees’ Needs Awards”.

TBS Director, Abigail Reade said, “It’s fantastic to be recognised for the hard work we put inthroughout the summer and for providing pollinator stations.”

Beeswax and honey from their bees is used to create natural, handmade cosmetics, such ashand creams, soaps, lip balms and even hair care products. To learn more about theirconservation work go to their website www.treebee.org.uk.

FLOODING IN WEST LANCASHIREThere will be a public meeting atthe Memorial Hall, Halsall on 8thFebruary at 7.30pm at which theissue of the Internal DrainageBoard (IDB) and the five pumps willbe fully discussed. Cllr JohnHodson, the Environment Agencyand the National Farmers Unionare among those intending tospeak. Reports on the IDB will begiven to the public who attend.They do expect a largeattendance, last time it was a fullhouse – 200+ people werecrammed in. Be there early!

CANAL TOWPATH UPGRADEA plan is coming together for the upgrade of thecanal towpath between the Wharf and WheatLane. The improvements were originallyrequested by members of Burscough HeritageGroup, who advised that the walking surface wasvery poor particularly in bad weather. The parishcouncil has lobbied consistently for the upgradeof the canal towpath, and now Canal and RiverTrust and WLBC have agreed to fund the £180kproject between them, (with CaRT contributing£30k and WLBC contributing £150k). It is hopedthat the work will be undertaken in the comingyear. The towpath improvement plan has been thecatalyst for other improvements along that stretchof canal that would see Burscough Bridge, with itsexcellent places to eat and drink, becoming moreattractive to visitors and locals alike: • The Parish Council is working with Burscough

Cricket Club to improve land fronting the canalas a pleasant recreation area. Funding is inplace for fencing that will provide security forthe Cricket Club that has suffered so much fromvandalism in the last couple of years. A lockablegate from the canalside will provide access tothe allotments and clubhouse and facilitiesthere. Further funding is being sought tocomplete the work and the garden area.

• The Neighbourhood Plan consultations showstrong support for a bridge linking Heathfieldswith the village centre. This would enableaccess to shops, local amenities and schoolswithout the need for a car. The plan is stillaspirational as land has to be acquired;agreement has to be reached with the Canaland River Trust and funds have to be raised tomeet the cost, but progress is being madesteadily.

• Volunteers from Burscough Heritage Groupare working on the Dry Dock at Top Locks tomake an already pretty conservation areaeven better.

ACCESS FOR ALL – NOT JUST THE MOST ABLE!For most people Burscough Village is a pleasant environment forshopping or eating out, but for people with difficulty in walking or who arevisually impaired it may be very different.Our Access Walk was a realeye-opener: Residents MariaDonoghue, Gillian Carter andSaime Higson kindly agreedto act as our guides for a walkaround the village to highlightsome of the places whereneglected repairs, poorhighway design or simplyinconsiderate parking causemassive problems that canleave people stranded with noway to navigate a safe route. The group was accompaniedby Parish Councillor JulieAtherton, County Councillor Cynthia Dereli, Borough Councillors JohnDavis, Dave Evans and Kevin Wright, Cllr John Davis said: “I found thewalk really enlightening – equality has always mattered to me but I wasunaware of the detailed issues that prevent access for all. My colleagueCllr Kevin Wright, Portfolio Holder for Health and Wellbeing, appreciatedthe opportunity to participate and congratulates Burscough on its pro-active approach to access for all”.The walk highlighted many difficulties faced every day by people withlimited mobility. While poor design and pavements in bad repair causeproblems, what caused most difficulty was careless and inconsideratebehaviour by other road users such as parking by a dropped kerb or onthe pavement so that wheelchair users couldn’t pass. This wasparticularly bad at the Health Centre around Stanley Court and at SchoolLane at the corner by the Hopvine and St John’s Church.

Photograph Alan Birch

Access Walk attended by Burscough BoroughCllrs. John Davis & Dave Evans accompaniedby portfolio lead for Health & Wellbeing Cllr.Kevin Wright with residents Maria Donoghue,Gillian Carter & Saime Higson.

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BURSCOUGH PARISH NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2017

CATENIAN TREE DONATIONThe local Catenian group believes goodwill is all aboutsupporting their local communities.

The Catenians are a worldwide association andoriginated in Salford in 1908.

This year some local parish councils have had tostruggle to provide a Christmas tree as funds are muchmore scarce. Burscough Parish Council was delightedwhen local Catenians made a donation of £100 towardsour community tree. Burscough Parish Council & ourresidents warmly thank our local Catenian members fortheir kind generosity.Brothers Tony Charnock and Michael Brookes presenting the cheque toBurscough Parish Council’s representative, Councillor Abigail Reade.

ROAD SAFETY UPDATEA message from the Road Safety Group:Thank you to the local community for the support they have given with our Road Safety Campaign. Immense thanksalso go to Lordsgate Primary School and Burscough Village Primary School for the efforts of their pupils for thefabulous designs for our poster. When this is published every household will receive a copy delivered with theChampion. The group has met with Rosie Cooper MP who is taking our concerns forward to LCC and LancashirePolice. Our volunteers will keep the Facebook Campaign page updated with any developments. The winner of theposter competition attends Burscough Village Primary School – many congratulations! 

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BURSCOUGH PARISH NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2017

FAIRTRADEBurscough Fairtrade Town steering groupcelebrated in December when they heard thatthey had been successful in  renewingBurscough’s Fairtrade Town status.

Burscough first achieved Fairtrade Town statusin 2007 and one of the conditions for gaining thistitle is to have an active steering group keeping up the profile of Fairtradeto convince everyone to buy more Fairtrade products.

So over the last month the group members were busy attendingChristmas Fairs in local schools to spread the word.

Cynthia Dereli, chair of the group said: ‘The best way to explain whyFairtrade matters I think, is to consider the alternative. Most tea andcoffee, for instance, are produced on large estates owned by multi-national corporations who pay so little to the people who work for themthat they can hardly afford to feed their families. At the same time thesecorporations do not pay taxes locally so there will be no services such asschools or health care for the people. The Fairtrade label guarantees thatthe workers have been paid a fair wage and also that a premium hasbeen paid into the farm or locality – often a  cooperative, to provide suchlocal services.’

Fairtrade Fortnight in 2017 begins Monday 27th February – so watchout for special events.

Cynthia Dereli at St Johns RC Primary School Fair

FREECOMPUTER SESSIONS ON‘KEEPING SAFE ON-LINE’1st Wednesday of each month starting

from 1st February Time: 9.30am – 11.00am.Venue: Methodist ChurchOrrell Lane, Burscough

Spring Sessions will cover:

1. How to manage files and folders.2. An introduction to simple photo editing.3. An introduction to Excel spreadsheets.4. What is social media? A basic guide to facebook,

twitter, instagram, etc.Organised by the Burscough Hub Group, withfunding from the Police and CrimeCommissioner’s Fund.Also Drop-in Computer help sessions continue onother Wednesdays of the month from 11thJanuary 9.30am to 11.30am(Free for your first 4 sessions).

For further information or to book to be sure ofa place call Tess on 01704 894914 or Cynthiaon 01704 895247.

CALLING ALL BUSINESSESThe Parish Council is very conscious of the need toreduce costs and make your money go further. At arecent meeting the Parish Council agreed to look athow sponsorship might help stretchbudgets and is now interested inhearing from businesses thatwould like to get involved.

Would you like to sponsor abus shelter, planter, or roadsidegarden, or a prize for “Bloomin’Burscough Garden Competition”?By sponsoring our newsletter youcould make more money available for areas of spendsuch as youth provision, road safety or grants to localorganisations.

If you would like to get involved, or know moreabout opportunities for sponsorship in Burscough,please call the Clerk on 01704 894914 or emailtess.reddington@burscoughpc.org.uk.

COMMUNITY CAR SCHEMEDid you know West Lancashire Diala Ride runs a volunteer CommunityCar scheme in addition to itsfamiliar red and white accessibleminibuses? The Community Carscheme works by local car ownersvolunteering their time to drive

elderly or disabled residents to appointments or to the shops.Volunteer car schemes are a more efficient alternative tominibuses in rural areas and have proved very popular withresidents in West Lancashire where we have been running ascheme for over two years.

We need more car drivers. Would you consider volunteering?Volunteers can choose how much time they are willing to offer andare paid a generous rate for the mileage they cover on thescheme. No special driving licence or insurance is required.Applicants must undergo a driving assessment and securitycheck. If you would like to know more please ring Dial a Ride on01704 893373 or email manager@wldar.org.uk.

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BURSCOUGH PARISH NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2017

BURSCOUGH COMMUNITY FARMOn Boxing Day 2015, Burscough Community Farm was under five feet of water and it didn’t look like anything would be growingthere this year. The burst bank of the Ellerbrook caused by a lethal combination of record rainfall and a high tide poured millionsof gallons of water through the field and created a lake from the edges of Burscough right through to Rufford. It was a cruelblow that killed 40 hens and ducks. 

“After the water had receded and wefound flat fish in the field we didn’t thinkthat we would be growing anything thisyear,” said Neil Hickson, founder and co-ordinator of the farm. 

But nature gives as well as takes andthe growing season has gone on to be thebest yet with 16 different varieties of fruitand vegetables going into the weekly vegboxes at one point during the summer.The season for the veg boxes has nowclosed but they will be back in productionnext spring.

There is plenty to do on the farm in thewinter with trees to plant, basket willow tocut and building work to finish off in thebarn, which is also used as a packingshed for veg boxes. The farm relies on itsteam of dedicated volunteers to runthings.

The farm isn’t just about growing cropsthough, the volunteers come from manywalks of life, pre-school children mixingwith retirees all learning about organicfarming, wildlife, crafts and sustainability.You can find out more atwww.burscoughcommunityfarm.org.Volunteer days are usually Mondays,Thursdays and Sundays from 10am.Please call Neil on 07803 925446 for moreinformation.

Burscough is a really proactive, caring community. Wedemonstrate that in a number of ways, but especially throughour care and concern for others. Please note the location ofeach defibrillator - if you know where they are at a critical timeyou could save a life. Thank you to Rob Medway for collatingthis information. Please keep the Parish Council Clerk informedif other locations are added so we can keep the wholecommunity up-to-date.

DEFIBRILLATOR LOCATIONS IN BURSCOUGH

Available during opening timesSports CentreTescoSt. John's RC School - Chapel LaneKelly Shirley School of Dance, Unit 602 Merlin ParkAvailable 24hrs a dayBurscough Bridge Railway StationSt. John's CE School - School LaneThe Stanley InstitutePriory High SchoolTaylor’s Farm - Hall LanePlannedMunchkins Village Nursery - Junction LaneBooth’s SupermarketAbbey Lane Playing Fields

NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANNINGThe Neighbourhood Plan moves along slowly. At the moment, the plan is beingreviewed by Borough Council before going out for its first round of public consultationin Spring. The Parish Council has received further funding of £7000 to coverconsultant’s costs and has recieved in kind support to complete a StrategicEnvironmental Assessment and a Character Assessment. The Parish Council wouldalso like to include more precise figures relating to housing need, and a further bid forsupport has been submitted to Locality for that work to go ahead. It is intended that theNeighbourhood Plan, the first to be produced in West Lancashire, will be completedduring 2017.

BURSCOUGH COMMUNITY INTERCHANGEA business plan has been completed and application has now been made toLancashire County Council for the Interchange building to be taken into localownership. The Parish Council have agreed to set up a trust to manage the building ifLCC agree to hand it over. The acquisition is not straight-forward: Although the buildingis owned by Lancashire County Council, it stands on land which is owned by NetworkRail, who charge a lease and may dictate conditions about what the building can beused for. The Parish Council has agreed to acquire the building, but only if it can beachieved without being a burden to local residents and subject to the renegotiation ofthe lease. Discussions are on-going and are expected to continue during the firstquarter of 2017. It is unlikely that a ticketIng facility will return in the near future and inthe present economic climate. It is expected that a re-configured building will providea mix of community uses, with some managed office space providing regular income,and some space for community benefit. Any groups or individuals interested in usingthe building in the future should contact the Clerk.

COMMUNITY TRANSPORT SERVICEThe Parish Council has been advised that the Burscough to Skelmersdale bus servicehas been saved for another year, but the future of bus services generally is uncertainand many Burscough residents are left without adequate public transport. Variousoptions have been considered over the past year, and continue with Lancashire CountyCouncil, West Lancs Borough Council and with other parishes. £25,000 was put asidefor this purpose this year and has been carried forward for use in 2017/18.

PRECEPTDuring November and December the Parish Council examine the finances and considerbudget proposals for the coming year. The final decision will be made by the ParishCouncil in February and proposals include: • Street Scene budget (street cleaning, bus shelters, floral displays and planting,

street furniture etc) be increased to £25,000 because people generally tell us thatthey want the area to look nice and to be well cared for.

• The Parish Council hold a budget for consultancy services of £7000, so that it canpresent a professional case when arguing against development, or forimprovements to infrastructure etc.

• A further £15,000 be put aside towards future youth facilities. • The Annual Garden Competition, piloted in 2016, be continued and expanded, and

that a budget of £1000 be set aside for its development. • The Parish Council seek sponsorship to offset costs • The revenue received to date from Community Infrastructure Levy should be

allocated to the improvement of Mere Avenue Play Ground and to the CanalImprovement Project between the Wharf and Top Locks, and should be used tolever in additional funding.

FLAG POLEBurscough Parish Council has written to the Borough Council in support of the RoyalBritish Legion’s request for a flag pole at the War Memorial at the corner of JunctionLane and Liverpool Road North.

EASY READ NEWSLETTERWould you prefer your newsletter in a different format?Local firm AA Transcription Services who are based at Martland Mill specialise increating documents in wide range of formats including easy read and braille as well asproviding educational talks,  and they have kindly provided a braille copy which isavailable to borrow in Burscough Bridge Post Office.

This magazine, and back copies are also available in electronic form on our websitewww.burscoughpc.co.uk.

MEMBERS’ CONTACT DETAILS

CHAIRMAN - Alan Bullen VICE CHAIRMAN - Brian Kennedy

BURSCOUGH TOWN WARD

Alan Bullen1A Mill Dam Lane, L40 7TG Telephone: 896032

Patrick Mackrell52 Langdale Drive, L40 5SF Telephone: 07809 098439

ELLERBROOK WARD

Nichola Makin14 Belmont Close, L40 7TR Telephone: 07979 052614

Brian Bailey60 Hesketh Road, L40 7SQTelephone: 07518 757059

Ronnie Sutherland2 Lathom Close, L40 5XWTelephone: 897466

NEW LANE WARD

John Crawford201 Liverpool Road South, L40 7RETelephone: 895297

RED CAT WARD

Abigail Reade65 Manor Avenue, L40 7TTTelephone: 07749 297999

RICHMOND PARK WARDDavid Hardisty 105 Rivington Drive, L40 7RWTelephone: 894781

ST JOHN'S WARD

Julie AthertonRose Cottage, 57 Moss Lane, L40 4ALTelephone: 895944

Roger BellHaydock Farm, School Lane,L40 4AETelephone: 897491

Brian Kennedy37 Weaver Avenue, L40 4LE Telephone: 895374

STANLEY WARD

John Taylor14 Christine's Crescent, L40 7SJTelephone: 892557

John Leyland1 Square Lane, L40 7RGTelephone: 894049

Graham Warrilow16 Belmont Close, L40 7TRTelephone: 075967 42847

CLERK TO THE COUNCILTess ReddingtonOffice 17, Martland MillMart Lane, L40 0SDEmail: admin@burscoughpc.org.ukwww.burscoughpc.co.ukTelephone: 01704 894914

Burscough Parish CouncilMartland Mill, Mart Lane, Burscough, Lancashire L40 OSD Telephone: 01704 894914

Email: admin@burscoughpc.org.uk www.burscoughpc.co.uk