Community Spirit in Brooklands and Northern Moor

Marie Raynor, Chairman of Wythenshawe & Sale East Conservatives and Wythenshawe Conservative spokesman, comments on the recent 'The Duchess on the Estate' television programme:
"On ITV, in August, there were two programmes about the apparent poor conditions and lack of facilities in Northern Moor, which is part of Brooklands (Manchester) ward.

The Duchess of York was filmed meeting families and talking to young people who appeared to have nothing to do and nowhere to go.

Regrettably, most towns and suburbs do have some deprived areas and it will be wonderful if Sarah Ferguson does manage to help this community.

However, isn't it strange that the programme producer took her all the way to Blackpool to find someone who has opened a community centre for young people and do terriffic work in getting them off the streets?

If they had carried out proper research, they would have discovered that a very valuable community project is running successfully, only half a mile down the road from Northern Moor, in Brooklands.

Pat Higson is Chairman of our Brooklands Tenants and Residents Association. During the last 2 years, members of her committee have established a youth club, which is now so popular that there is a waiting list to join.

Brooklands Community Spirit is an offshoot of Brooklands Tenants and Residents Association, who together organise street dancing, talent spotting, a small gardening competition for young people, a summer ball, and the newest venture, the Summer Fayre, which was a huge success, on 8 August.
However, they desperately need a building which can be converted for community activities.

The mystery is, why did this TV programme not show any of this positive activity and give credit to the volunteers, who have worked so hard, on the same council estate as Northern Moor?"

BTRA Chairman Pat Higson, with special guest from TV's Coronation Street, open the Brooklands Summer Fayre

The Fayre takes to the streets. Community spirit alive and well in Brooklands!

The Sale Hotel!

Local campaigners and Trafford Councillors were delighted by the Council's decision to serve a Preservation Order on the historic Sale Hotel on Marsland Road. The iconic hotel, which first opened in 1879, was a central feature of the Botanical Gardens that once occupied the area. Up until its closure this year, the building was a popular local pub.

The Sale Hotel was saved from demolition at the eleventh hour, when it became clear that the developer was hurriedly preparing to demolish the building. After quick action by local campaigners, Council Officers, Executive Councillors, Brooklands Conservative Councillors Pam Dixon and David Higgins, Labour Councillor Brotherton and MP Paul Goggins, Trafford Council served a notice to the developer that the building was to be preserved until the application to list the building had been considered. This process is ongoing, but English Heritage are now 'minded' to list the building after all.

Local Brooklands Conservative Councillor Pam Dixon, who worked very hard to get swift action from the Council to protect the Hotel, commented 'This is a great victory for Sale people. Thanks to the hard work of local campaigners, and Trafford politicians putting aside their differences to work together, we have saved this historic building from being demolished and replaced with a characterless block of flats. Hopefully English Heritage will now make the right decision, and help us to preserve this important piece of Sale's history for future generations to appreciate.'

Cllr Pam Dixon at the Sale Hotel, after Trafford Council's swift action secured it against demolition

Street Surveys

Your local Conservatives have been continuing our programme of door-to-door surveys throughout both Wythenshawe and Sale.

If we have not knocked on your door yet, and you would like to get in contact with us about local issues or concerns, please see the contact details on the right hand side of this page.

Cllr Christine Bailey and local campaigner Rob Chilton take to the streets in Sale Moor

The Conservative team in Sharston

Making Sale's parks safe

Over the past few weeks, Sale Moor Councillor Christine Bailey has been busy responding to resident's concerns about anti-social behaviour in various Sale parks, including Worthington Park, Moor Nook Park and the Mersey Valley areas.

Christine said 'Sale has some of the best parks and green spaces in Greater Manchester, and it is only right that local people should feel safe to use them whenever they like. So lately, I have been liasing with Sale's Neighbourhood Police Team, Trafford Council's anti-social behaviour officers, Trafford's Chidren & Young People's Service, and senior Executive Councillors, to tackle some of the youth nuisance that has been causing problems in recent months.'

'To conbat this, extra patrols have been brought in at the most sensitive times, and certain ringleaders have been identified, and issued with behaviour contracts, with the threat of arrest and prosecution if those contracts are violated.'

'It must be remembered that most young people are well-behaved and sensible, and it is only a tiny minority who want to spoil the facilities for everyone else. Also, incidents in our public areas in Trafford are incredibly rare (with wrongdoers mostly coming in from other areas), and Sale people should always feel perfectly comfortable using their local parks and open spaces.'

'If anyone ever has any concerns around their safety, they should immediately contact the police in the first instance; if you are able, make sure to get a log number from whoever answers the phone. Similarly, if anyone has any concerns around youth nuisance, or feels intimidated or threatened, but is in no immediate danger, they should contact the Council's Traffordwatch helpline on 0161 912 2400 (24 hour helpline). If they are very concerned about a continuing problem in their area, they can always contact me on 0161 865 3374, or by email at mailto:christine.bailey@trafford.gov.uk.

'Don't forget, I was elected to represent you, and represent you I will'

Saj Karim MEP visits Sale

On Saturday Wythenshawe & Sale East Conservatives were pleased to be joined by Sajjad Karim MEP, who spent some time in Sale meeting local people and campaigning on the doorsteps, speaking to local residents about their priorities and concerns.

Rob Chilton, Priory ward spokesman, said 'We were delighted to have Saj with us today. Here in the North West, we have three very hard-working Conservative MEPs, who always keep in touch with their constituents and speak up for them at the European Parliament, where important decisions are made which affect us all'.

Saj commented 'This is the best part of my job. Coming back to the grass-roots and maintaining a dialogue with my consituents is crucial to my role as an MEP. Here in Wythenshawe & Sale East, there is a very hard-working team of Conservative Councillors and activists, and I am pleased to be able to support them in their campaigns'.