Knowsley Online

Knowsley reduces alcohol-related hospital admissions

Knowsley are one of only six areas across the North West to have reduced its alcohol-related hospital admission rate according to latest figures released as part of Alcohol Awareness Week (14-20 November).

Figures unveiled show that 2,786.2 hospital admissions per 100,000 population were alcohol-related last year, a reduction which hasn’t been seen in Knowsley since 2002.

Alcohol-related hospital admissions have been increasing nationally over the past decade.  Last year there was a 12 per cent increase in the number of admissions for alcohol-related conditions across Britain, but thanks to a series of innovative services in the borough, Knowsley is one of only six out of 39 local authorities in the North West that is defying the trend and reducing the number of admissions.

KHT launches new website

A housing trust has launched a new website that will give tenants more ways to get in touch and greater access to its services.

Knowsley Housing Trust (KHT) residents can now check their rent balance, report a repair or report anti-social behaviour in their neighbourhoods through the revamped site, which went live on Monday (November 14).

Tenants will also be able to pay their rent 24/7 through the new website.

Sharon Steele, Head of Communication and Intelligence at Knowsley Housing Trust, said: “Our website is the first port-of-call for many of our tenants and we wanted it to be more user friendly, more interactive and with a wider range of functions.”

The new site has been designed to be easier to use and will be regularly updated with photos, videos and the latest KHT events and news.

KHT also keeps tenants up to date through its Facebook page and Twitter feed.

“Our tenants should now be able to find their way around the website much easier and have more options for how they get in touch with us,” said Sharon.

KHT is asking tenants to send in their contact details so it can keep them up to date with news and updates to the website.

Tenants who would like to receive updates are asked to email marketing@k-h-t.org with their current mobile number and email address, along with their name and postal address. Details will not be passed on to any third parties.

New Hurst Park Court care home opens its doors

Carers at Huyton’s newest care home were delighted to show off its facilities to members of the caring profession yesterday, to mark its imminent opening in the local community.

Hurst Park Court in Longview Drive, Huyton is operated by Ideal Care Homes and will provide a home for 41 local older people suffering with dementia.  The brand new, luxurious home from home facility, which is managed by Lorraine Sharpe, was visited by 30 sector workers as the care home opened its doors for the very first time.

KHT open day strengthens partnerships

Knowsley councillors were taken on a tour of the new homes that have been developed in the borough over the past 12 months.

The tour was part of an open day organised by Knowsley Housing Trust (KHT) to strengthen its partnerships with Knowsley Council and to give local councillors the opportunity to learn about what the Trust has been working on.

Councillors were invited to come and meet KHT employees, learn more about what they do and about the roles of the different departments.

KHT Chief Executive Bob Taylor said: “This was an opportunity for our employees to meet Knowsley councillors and to find out about how each other works.

“Local councillors play a major role in local communities and meeting with them gave us a great opportunity to discuss their priorities for the areas they represent.

From a library to a landscape.

A woman who once handed out books at a library in Knowsley has returned there with an exhibition of her paintings.

Sue Stevens worked as a library assistant in Knowsley in the 1980s and 1990s and left to become a publicity officer then director at the Citadel Arts Centre in St Helens.

Her interest in painting grew and she left to study at Goldsmiths College in London for a post graduate diploma and Masters degree in Art Psychotherapy.

Now she is back in Huyton library with an exhibition called “Landscapes – imagined and real”.

“I am so proud to be showing my paintings in the place where I got my first job,” said Sue, who is now living back in Knowsley.
 
“This is my largest solo exhibition to date with well over 100 paintings and I think it’s full of life, energy and passion.
 
“The library service gave me so much. I learnt a lot and made lifelong friends. This is my way of saying thanks.”

Sue studied art psychotherapy as she felt that “art was not just about pretty pictures, it had an impact that reached further.”

Of the paintings in the exhibition, she says they “explore a recurring visual sense of isolation but also afford a space where the viewer can stamp their own sense of time and place”.

The exhibition runs in the Huyton Gallery at Huyton Library on Civic Way until January 7 2012. Opening times are: Monday and Friday 9.15am until 5pm, Tuesday and Thursday 9.15am until 7pm and Saturday 10am until 1pm

A landscape painting by former librarian Sue Stevens who now has an exhibition of her work at Huyton library.

Grid thefts man is jailed

A man who stole grid covers from Knowsley roads has been jailed.

31-year-old Thomas Thanasis Margariti from Heydon Ave, Kirkby, was given an eight month prison sentence by a judge at Liverpool Crown Court.

The manhole and grid covers were taken at the beginning of the year, prompting concern for the safety of road users and an appeal from the council for information on the thefts.

The number of metal road covers going missing has been rising since the start of this year, according to police. It is thought that the metal is being sold as scrap, but the thefts leave local authorities with expensive bills for replacements and put lives in danger.

Cllr Dave Lonergan, Knowsley Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Economy and Skills, said: “Obviously there is a cost to the taxpayer of replacing stolen metal grids, but even more worryingly, when manhole and grid covers are removed from roads it can cause serious accidents and put lives at risk.

“We would ask all members of the public to be vigilant, and report any suspicious behaviour to Merseyside Police on 0151 709 6010, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111 and any Knowsley roads with missing grids to the council on 443 2400, so we can take action as soon as possible.”

Knowsley Council is to use the “Smartwater” security marking on all its grids and manhole covers, making it easier to prosecute offenders and rogue scrap metal dealers.

Get switched on for Christmas

There’s a whole host of festive fun to mark the switch on of the Christmas lights in Knowsley.

Everything from fairground rides to donkey rides will be laid on in the three town centres across the borough.

Santa will be making an appearance at all of the events and there will also be music and entertainment from the KCC Live radio station’s road show.

All the fun and entertainment is free and starts at 3pm with the big light switch on at 5pm.

The Christmas lights go on in Huyton town centre on Thursday November 17 and there will be an ice rink, a Christmas workshop for children and fairground rides.

Kirkby town centre’s switch on is on Friday November 18 and there will be another ice rink, face painting and lots of children’s entertainment.

Apprentice Video Stars

A touring recording studio forms the next part of the recruitment process for the Merseyside Apprenticeship Programme.

Young apprentice hopefuls will feature in their own video as part of the next stage in the recruitment process.

A bus, specially converted into a mobile recording studio, will tour through Knowsley, Liverpool and Sefton throughout November, stopping at various locations to allow the so far successful candidates to record their very own unique CV video.

The candidates have already carried out literacy and numeracy tests as part of the earlier stages of the rigorous recruitment process.

The Merseyside Apprenticeship Programme will place 100 16-24 year olds in a variety of occupations with companies across the three local authorities as part of a European Social Fund financed initiative.

Local shop relocated – to other side of the road

A much-loved local shop has opened the doors to its new premises – on the opposite side of the road to the spot where it stood for 14 years.

Kellie’s General Store in Huyton opened in its new building this week after being relocated from the Woolfall Heath Shopping Parade.

The parade is earmarked for demolition under regeneration plans for the area, but locals had insisted that Kellie’s be saved and relocated as near as possible to its current location.

Store owner Kellie Owens said: “We’ve loved working in the old precinct but the new shop is fantastic and what our customers deserve.  The regeneration partners promised us a new shop and that’s what we’ve got and we can’t thank them enough.”

Kellie’s was the last remaining shop operating on the parade and it now stands on Woolfall Heath Avenue next to Sedem’s Pharmacy.

The old shopping parade is due to be demolished before Christmas and houses will be constructed in the area.

The Olympic Flame is coming to Knowsley

The Olympic Torch that will light the 2012 games in London is coming to Knowsley on its way to the capital.

The historic flame, that represents peace, unity and friendship, will arrive in England from Greece on May 18.

It will make a 70-day journey around the UK towards the Stadium, carried by 8,000 inspirational torch bearers.

On Friday June 1, the Flame will arrive in Knowsley and there will be an official welcoming ceremony that will involve the whole community.

The torch will be carried through the borough by some of the area’s most inspirational characters.

Cllr Eddie Connor, Knowsley’s cabinet member for Leisure, Community and Culture said: "We’re already doing a lot to create a legacy for the London Games.

“We’ve created fantastic new leisure facilities, we’re hosting international disability events and hosting training camps for Paralympic athletes.

“To have the Olympic flame here is the icing on the cake – it’ll give our schools and neighbourhoods a chance to really get involved in the spirit of the Games.”