Knowsley Online

More medals for Halewood's Tae Kwon-Do's at Cardiff

Halewood Tae Kwon-Do's recent success at the 2011 Welsh Championships, held in Cardiff on 22nd May. 12 Halewood fighters travelled down to represent the club, earning 14 medals overall – 4 gold, 6 silver and 4 bronze.

Our new 2011 champions include Lauren Butler (9) and Maira Malik (13), who took gold after beating all their opponents in the blue belt girls peewee and lightweight sparring divisions. Maira and Lauren later teamed up with Faye Clifton (11) for the team sparring event, where they each won a silver medal.

Housing staff hit the road

Housing trust staff took on a 5k challenge to encourage people to get on the right road to health and wellbeing.

A group of 22 staff members from Knowsley Housing Trust (KHT) took part in the Active Knowsley Challenge on Sunday, May 15, to promote a healthy lifestyle.

They joined around 200 people who braved the pouring rain to complete the run, held on the picturesque grounds of Lord Derby’s estate at Knowsley Hall.

Taking place on the day was also a 3k and 8k walk and a 2k Junior Active Challenge for young people aged 7 to 16.

 “It was great to see so many of our staff showing their support and getting involved,” said Collette King, KHT’s Operational Director of Organisational Development.

“We promote the importance of a healthy lifestyle in many ways across KHT, through funding projects such as community allotments and a community veggie van.

“So it is great to show that KHT staff are also committed to the health and wellbeing agenda.”

Knowsley welcomes government green light for Kirkby transformation

Plans to transform Kirkby have been given the go-ahead by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

The scheme, brought forward by Spenhill (the regeneration subsidiary of Tesco), will bring more than £200 million of investment into Kirkby and create a new Tesco superstore, additional retail space and other improvements.

The Spenhill development will complement other projects which are either already ongoing or planned in the area. This includes the creation of a new state-of-the-art health facility, £1 million of enhancements to Kirkby Market and improvements to other council buildings, including the Kirkby Suite.

Cllr Dave Lonergan, Knowsley Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Economy & Skills, said:

“We are delighted that the decision made by our Planning Committee has been upheld and we are now able to go ahead with this major development. It has been a long, and sometimes challenging, journey to secure the right kind of regeneration for Kirkby but we are thrilled that our proposals will now be able to proceed.”

“In the current economic climate, the benefits of this project cannot be underestimated. The development will bring a welcome boost to the local area at a difficult time and will vastly improve the facilities and opportunities available to local people, something which the community of Kirkby has been demanding and something which it so richly deserves.”

No date has yet been set for work to commence on the Spenhill development.

Steven Gerrard unveils new health centre on home turf

Knowsley GP, Dr Peter Ayegba joins Steven Gerrard to open The Blue Bell Centre in Knowsley

Liverpool FC captain, Steven Gerrard, officially opened a new state-of the-art primary care resource centre on Monday 23 May on the Knowsley estate where he grew up.

Knowsley Health & Wellbeing enlisted the help of the superstar footballer and local schoolchildren to officially open The Blue Bell Centre in Huyton, Knowsley which offers easy access to a range of primary care services.

Members of the community joined local dignitaries and Steven Gerrard to celebrate the full opening of one of the most eco-friendly health centres in the country. The Blue Bell Centre houses four GP practices, a pharmacy and a range of PCT services and has been developed in close consultation with the local community.

Silver Surfers get online

Elderly residents in Knowsley have been learning how to surf the internet as part of a national initiative to get older people online.

Knowsley Housing Trust (KHT) invited some of its older residents to specially held Silver Surfers sessions at KHT offices last week.  They learned how to shop safely, research their ancestry, book holidays and much more.

Many of the residents taking part had never used a computer before.

For Georgina Holmes, 76, from Cross Street in Prescot, it was the first time she had used the internet.

She is going on holiday to the Orkney Islands and used the session to find out more about where she would be staying.

She said: “I found the day really useful. Having never used the internet before I now know how to check where I am going on my holidays.”

New Mondo athletics track opened in Knowsley

World-class paralympic athlete Baroness Tanni Grey Thompson officially opened Knowsley’s new Mondo athletics track at the weekend.

The six lane Mondo track, at Kirkby Sports College, provides the fastest surface currently used in track and field in the world. It was opened in advance of the international two-day Paralympics Grand Prix, which took place on 21 and 22 May, with over 90 athletes from 10 nations competing in a number of events.

Despite difficult weather conditions over the weekend, nine UK athletes and one Romanian have already achieved confirmed qualifying times for the 2012 Paralympics. It’s hoped a few more records will be confirmed once fully ratified by the International Paralympic Committee.

The new track was funded by NHS Knowsley and Knowsley Council, who are committed to providing excellent facilities that are particularly accessible for para-athletes.

Town Centre car parking charges in Knowsley

As of 1st June 2011, new parking charges will apply to shoppers and visitors in Huyton, Kirkby and Prescot town centres. The new charges will be payable in any council owned car parks, Monday – Saturday, 8am - 5pm (excluding bank holidays).

In addition to the new charging regime, the maximum waiting time on some car parks will also change.

Details of the new charging policy and the car parks affected will be clearly signposted in town centres.

Additional information is available via http://www.knowsley.gov.uk and in one stop shops.

The charging structure being introduced will bring Knowsley in line with other local authorities who already charge for car parking. The implementation of the new policy is part of the council’s efforts to generate valuable income which will help to protect essential services and jobs in Knowsley.

The charges for all public car parks will be as follows:

Up to 1 hour: 50p
Up to 2 hours: £1
Over 2 hours: £2

Tickets must be purchased from the machines located in the relevant car park and clearly displayed on the dashboard, so it can be seen by the parking attendant.

Visitors are urged to read the signs provided for any specific restrictions or details.

Disabled spaces will be clearly marked in all public car parks. Blue Badge holders are NOT exempt from parking charges and should purchase a ticket from the nearest machine.

Foster Carers Fortnight

Foster carers from across the North West are back on your TV screens and radio stations over the next couple of weeks, with the hope to find many more people with the time to care.

Knowsley Council and 22 other local authorities from the region are using national Foster Care Fortnight (16 – 29 May) as an opportunity to repeat the You Can Foster adverts and promote the need for foster carers.

There’ll also be a variety of events being held where people can meet fostering teams and find out more.

Foster Care Fortnight is an annual campaign to raise awareness of fostering in the UK. The North West has the largest shortage of foster carers in the UK, outside of London. To tackle this shortage, 23 councils joined forces for the You Can Foster campaign to find more homes for the children that really need them.

Click below to open the 'Prescot Festival' programme

Download Prescot Festival programme

Councillor Christina O’Hare is the new Mayor of Knowsley for 2011/12.

Roby-born Cllr O’Hare has served the borough since 1996 and was the Deputy Mayor last year.

Cllr O’Hare received the chains of office from outgoing Mayor, Cllr Diane Reid, at Knowsley Council’s Annual General Meeting.

Her husband, Cllr Brian O’Hare, is her Consort.

Cllr O’Hare’s charity for 2011/12 is the newly-created ‘Mayor’s Magic Fund’, which has been set up by young people in the borough to support them.

Cllr O’Hare said: “It is an absolute honour and privilege to be chosen to represent Knowsley as the Mayor this year.

“I’m really looking forward to working hard to raise money for the Mayor’s Magic Fund which will help to support young people across Knowsley and improve their life chances.

“There is so much to be proud of in Knowsley and I’m delighted to be serve the borough as Mayor this year.”