I am pleased to present to you a draft copy of my Police and Crime Plan for 2021-2024, which you will find here:

The plan sets out my vision for policing and community safety in Cheshire. It also details the strategic priorities for Cheshire Constabulary over the next three years, as well as setting out how I’ll hold the Chief Constable to account against these priorities.

The plan has been produced with Cheshire residents’ priorities for community safety at its heart. It details how I will make the promises I made during my election campaign a reality.

The overarching priorities in the plan from now until 2024 are to:

• Prevent and tackle crime
• Make Cheshire’s roads safer
• Deliver justice for victims of crime
• Protect vulnerable people
• Improve public confidence in policing
• Modernise our police force

The plan also includes a commitment to take police officer numbers in Cheshire to 2,345 – their highest level in modern times and to continue to invest in neighbourhood policing to ensure there is a visible policing presence in all local communities.

Your views on whether this plan delivers your priorities for policing and crime are invaluable in ensuring it makes Cheshire safer. Now it’s your opportunity have your say before the plan is finalised during the autumn.

To take the short survey to give your views, please visit: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/JZS5JGD

As well as completing the survey yourself, I would be grateful if you could cascade this information across your networks to ensure the draft plan and survey reaches all of our communities.

I look forward to hearing local peoples’ views and to continuing these conversations over the coming years to understand key concerns in our communities and how I can work with local communities to develop sustainable solutions.

The consultation closes at 23.59 hours on Sunday 15 August 2021. Once the consultation is closed, the responses will be analysed and amendments to the plan will be made before the final draft is presented at the September meeting of Cheshire’s Police and Crime Panel.

If you’d like to request a hard copy of the plan or survey, please email pcc@cheshire.pnn.police.uk or call 01606 364000.

John Dwyer

Police and Crime Commissioner for CheshireAddress: Clemonds Hey | Oakmere Road | Winsford | Cheshire | CW7 2UA

Directions For Men want to help men who are having a tough time. We meet to talk about the things affecting us, support each other and learn better ways of coping with problems. We also arrange activities you can take part in to take your mind off things.

For more information, please see the attached flyer:

A heat health alert has been raised by the Met Office see:

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/heat-health/?tab=heatHealth&season=normal#?tab=heatHealth

The War Memorial standing outside St Mary’s Church, Weaverham was dedicated and unveiled on 24^th July 1921.  Weaverham Parish Council is arranging a service to commemorate the centenary of the memorial on Saturday, 24^th July 2021 at 11:00am.

As Acton Bridge is within the ecclesiastical parish of Weaverham there are some Acton Bridge residents named on the memorial, including:

John Buckley
William Dutton
Edward Harcourt Drowley (From Milton)
C L Kyffin (From Dutton Locks)
Thomas Lightfoot
Gordon Eric Martin
Arthur Shallcross

Weaverham Parish Council would, therefore, like to extend an invitation to Acton Bridge Parish Council and any residents of Acton Bridge who may wish to do so, to attend the service, which will be held next to the Memorial.  There will be light refreshments in the Church Hall after the service.

Have you ever heard about a bus service that changes its route and times to suit passengers?

Cheshire West and Chester Council would like your thoughts to help with the planning of an innovative new bus service. In addition to the current bus services operating along regular routes at specific times, imagine being able to book a bus journey, to a local destination of your choice, that will pick you up at, or near, your home, at a time convenient for your needs. Such journeys may be to places of work, to get you out for leisure and recreation, or to the cinema and other evening activities.
 
We would like to design our flexible bus service to help offer you these opportunities. Your journeys will be booked using an app (a non-electronic booking facility will also be provided) and you will receive live real time information so you will know exactly when the bus will arrive as well as much more information. By using this service, you will have an important role of supporting your community and hopefully also reducing the environmental and congestion impacts of local travel by car and enjoying new lifestyle benefits.
 
Our proposal is for the service to be available in the areas of Helsby, Frodsham and the surrounding rural communities areas including: by Kingsley, Commonside, Crowton, Acton Bridge, Norley, Hatchmere, Flaxmere, Delamere, Manley, Mouldsworth, Alvanley, Hapsford, Ince & Elton, Ashton Hayes, Sutton Weaver, Aston and Dutton. The service could offer links to the surrounding urban areas of Ellesmere Port, Cheshire Oaks, Chester, Runcorn and Warrington making use of train and other bus services.

For us to plan the service, we would like to know more about how people might like to use it and to recognize that people like flexibility. We need to provide a service that people will want to use!

Our aim is for a service that can help meet your wishes by bringing people together and making these journeys easier than before.

This online survey will give you the first opportunity to let us know how this service could help you  https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/CZ2MI6/

If you do not have access to an online facility, we can post you a paper copy of the survey (01244 97 3353).

The survey deadline is 1^st August 2021 – if you could encourage residents to take part in the survey that would really help shape the service and delivery model going forward.

If you require further information please contact – Gerard.Rhodes@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk

Plans to transform waste and recycling services in west Cheshire have been given the green light by the Council’s Cabinet. 

At its meeting on Wednesday 9 June, Cabinet members agreed to accept the recommendations of a report into the new Waste Management Strategy, which will make the service more sustainable, fairer and provide better value for money. 

The existing Waste Management Strategy is outdated and in need of modernisation. 

The new model will put a greater emphasis on reducing the amount of waste the borough produces and provide residents with more opportunities to recycle. 

It will help the borough respond to the challenges of Climate Change and support the Council’s target of making west Cheshire carbon neutral by 2045. 

The key changes approved by Cabinet today, include: 

• Household waste collected fortnightly using a 180 litre wheeled bin (as per the current arrangement). 
• Two larger capacity recycling bins on wheels collected fortnightly to replace existing 55-litre boxes.
• Food collections weekly using existing small food bin (as per the current arrangement).
• People will be supported with special arrangements if their housing circumstances make it more difficult to accommodate larger bins.
• A chargeable garden waste collection service to be provided over 40 weeks of the year, covering the growing season between March and November.
• The garden waste collections to continue fortnightly, in line with the frequency of the proposed kerbside collection service.
• There would be a charge of £40 per year per container for garden waste collections. This equates to £2 per collection and is in line with the current additional capacity charge.

The changes to the service would reduce carbon emissions by 220,000kg a year. 
The majority of local authorities across the country already charge for garden waste collections and revenue generated from the charges would help to fund vital Council services that people in the borough rely upon. 

The new service would also respond to residents’ concerns by removing the existing boxes that some people find difficult to carry and are easily damaged. 

The changes to the services would reduce carbon emissions by 220,000kg a year.

The recommendations in the Waste Management Strategy follow consultation with residents which took place earlier this year. 

More than 73 per cent of those who responded agreed with the Council’s key priorities to reduce waste, maximise recycling and deliver an efficient and cost-effective service.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment. Highways and Strategic Transport, Cllr Karen Shore said: “It is clear that our waste management system could better support our residents to reduce, reuse and recycle the waste we produce.”

“Our Waste Management Strategy needs to move with the times, recycling levels are good but there is room for improvement and we need to continue the conversations with our residents and work with them so we can all play our part to meet our Climate Emergency objectives.”

“We appreciate that introducing a choice-based system will be unpopular with some due the charging element but we have to balance this in the context of the budget challenges, the Climate Emergency and the other pressures the Council is facing.”

“Garden waste collection is a discretionary service and we will be introducing a choice-based system that people can opt into. “People may also choose to home compost or take their waste to the Household Waste Recycling Centres.”

Cllr Shore added: “Through the strategy we want to create a cleaner, safer borough and a more sustainable waste service for generations to come. We look forward to working with our residents to achieve this aim.”

The proposed new Waste Management Strategy will now move forward to be debated by the Full Council at its meeting on Thursday 15 July. If it is adopted, the changes will be introduced in 2022. 

For more information about the new Waste Management Strategy, visit: 

https://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/residents/waste-and-recycling/waste-management-strategy.aspx

Outbreaks of COVID-19 have been reported in Northwich and Winsford. Take a free PCR test by booking at: Get a free PCR test to check if you have coronavirus (COVID-19) – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) or call 119.

Remember, hands, face, space and fresh air

Originally sited in the former Methodist Chapel in Chapel Lane, two plaques to the fallen men of World War I and World War II were relocated to the Parish Rooms in September 2020. The Parish Council also purchased a new plaque detailing the origin of the Chapel plaques and all the names of those from the Village who fell in both World Wars. Thanks go to the Rev T Simms, formerly of the Methodist Chapel who performed a rededication service on 13th July 2021 and to local businesses Edmund Nagle, Yoxall Ltd and Whitby’s who removed, restored and mounted the plaques free of charge, and also to Bob Heaton who co-ordinated the whole project.