Last night was the regular meeting of Prestwich Local Area Partnership. This is the body which brings together the nine councillors in Prestwich, together with representatives of partner organisations (police, NHS etc) and community groups.

Last night because of a family bereavement I got to stand in as Chair of the Local Area Partnership, not something I want to be repeating on a regular basis…

The main issues included:

Meet the Partners – each meeting we have a short presentation from one of the partners in the LAP. This time is was the turn of the Jewish Representative Council who talked about their work in Prestwich and beyond.

Toodle Hill Chldren’s Centre – the centre manager from the new Holyrood Ward children’s centre at Heaton Park Primary School gave a presentation to the meeting. The centre which will open soon will provide a range of services from the centre, in addition to things which are already happening in nearby buildings and play areas. (Toodle Hill is, apparently, a place in Prestwich’s history – it is mentioned on a grave in St Mary’s church in the late 1700s, the same period that lots of my Pickstone ancestors are buried there, so perhaps they went to Toodle Hill……..)

Public Forum – members of the public raised a number of issues which included:
– the state of the Cussons site on the border with Salford
– the future of the Longfield Centre (which was recently saved from closure)
– police action to prevent illegal quadbiking in Prestwich Clough
– the future of School Crossing Patrols
– Bury’s Transformation budget strategy
– Prestwich Tip – the Partnership agreed to write to Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority and to Bury’s two representatives on the Authority to expresso our opposition to the closure of the tip.
– future of the LAP – we noted the current uncertainty about the future of LAPs, but stressed the need for partners in Prestwich to keep meeting and continuing the good work we have developed in the area.

Police Update – Inspector Kenny from the Whifefield and Prestwich police team gave an update on crime issues in the area and there was particular discussion on a recent spate of graffiti in the area and the need for public intelligence to help catch the culprit(s).

Youth Service Update – Prestwich Area Youth Manager came to the meeting to give an update on the good work that her team and volunteers are doing in the area.

Any questions, don’t hesitate to ask. The papers for the meeting are here.