On the same site as the Centre for Learning, work is well underway on the construction of the new Primary School (yet to be named) that is set to replace Greengates when it opens in September.

This facility will incorporate the services of the Southern Area Support centre and will house outreach support staff.  Once in operation nursery and infant classes will be on the ground floor whilst junior classes will be on the first floor as well as an outdoor learning area.

Cllr Tina Harris said, “This new facility along with the already open Centre for Learning is nothing less than the children and young people of Halewood deserve.”

We have had confirmation that the long awaited scheme to replace 70% of our street lighting has been given approval.  The Department of Transport has agreed to provide up to £58 million.  This project will include a considerable number of replacement traffic  signs, bollards, beacons and subway lights.

As part of a huge capital investment programme, new innovative technology will result in improved lighting levels, which can be controlled to take into account natural lighting levels and when they should be activated. Furthermore, the column lights within residential and town centre areas will be fitted with white bulbs, which enhance visibility.  This will make our streets and pavements safer and more secure as well as enabling us to make more efficient use of energy resources.

Did you know that we now have over 8,500 residents recycling their food waste with our recycling service?  The service couldn’t be easier to use as the Council will supply you with a mini kitchen caddy, compostable liners and a small caddy for presenting at the kerbside.

Collections are every week on the same day as your maroon bin and the caddies have a sealed lid so you don’t need to worry about any smells!  Once collected, the food waste is composted and turned into a natural fertiliser which enriches the soil and returns the nutrients to the earth.

Rotting food in landfill sites generates methane, a greenhouse gas that is 21 times more harmful than carbon dioxide, so by taking part you will be helping us to manage our waste in a more environmentally friendly way.  You can sign up for the scheme by visiting www.knowsley.gov.uk or calling our Environmental Helpline on 443 2400 or indeed by visiting your local One Stop Shop.

As part of the ConDem government’s drive to drastically reduce public sector funding, to frontload costs and drive public sector services into the private sector or back into the charitable status that people enjoyed in the days before the “Poor Law”, Knowsley Borough Council has had to find savings amounting to some 20% of its total budget.

At a Special Borough Council meeting held on Wednesday 2nd March, The Liberal Democrats tabled an amendment to the 2011/12 Revenue Budget. This amendment seems to have been written that very afternoon on the back of a cigarette packet.

The Liberal Democrats went for all the “sound bites” that they thought the public would like to hear, such as reducing salaries for people earning over £50k a year, reducing Cabinet Members or reducing allowances to council members, but this type of statement was just a stab in the dark and designed to steer people away from the true facts.

Collectively, they have had very little input into the budget setting process or discussions and would not have known what has and what hasn’t been discussed on the road to presenting a balanced Revenue Budget to the full council for consideration. Their absence from this kind of council activity has been well and truly noticed.

Liberal Democrat Councillors on Knowsley Borough Council voted against A Balanced Budget that was achieved without their help. A budget that will deliver 20% cost savings with no compulsory redundancies, a budget designed to limit reductions to front line service provision and no increase in Council Tax.

Halewood Labour Party welcomes the approval of funding for 12 units of supported living accommodation in Leathers Lane.  Following funding being made available from the Homes and Communities Agency, Knowsley Primary Care Trust, and Knowsley Borough Council work is now in progress that will see these units in occupation by the end of the year.