Newsletter No.17 – March 2019
March 1st, 2019
Parish Council Meetings
Members of the public are always welcome to attend Parish Council meetings. There is a regular agenda item “Open Forum for the general public” at the start of each meeting when you can raise any issue that concerns you. Meetings are usually held on the third Thursday of the month at the YIPS Centre in Nelson Gardens at 8pm. The next meetings are at 8pm on Thursday 21st March and Thursday 18th April.
Parish Council meeting notices and agendas, meeting minutes and other public notices can be found on our website at: inskip-with-sowerby.org.uk
2019/2020 Council Tax Bill
The Parish Council can report that the Parish Precept, which forms part of the overall Council Tax Bill that households receive from Wyre Borough Council, remains unchanged for a further year – which means that the Parish Precept has now been maintained with no increases for four years in a row.
Parish Council Elections
Parish Council elections are scheduled for Thursday 2nd May 2019. If you feel that you could contribute by becoming a Parish Councillor then you’ll need to submit nomination papers at the Civic Centre in Poulton-le-Fylde by 4pm on Wednesday 3rd April – look out on the Parish Website and Noticeboards for further information.
Fracking
Residents will recall last year the Parish Council in conjunction with the Roseacre Action Group (RAG) and other local Parish Councils opposed the Cuadrilla appeal at a second Public Inquiry into their application to allow fracking at Roseacre Wood.
We are delighted that the Secretary of State has finally rejected the Cuadrilla appeal, that common sense has prevailed and the people have been listened to for once. Lancashire County Council, local MPs, County and District Councillors, local Parish Councils, and the vast majority of the local population all opposed the Cuadrilla Transport Strategy to route large numbers of heavy goods vehicles down narrow country lanes to service their proposed shale gas exploration works at a site at Roseacre Wood in the heart of the rural Fylde. The narrow country roads are completely unsuitable for this heavy industrial purpose. In addition, the Parish Council welcomes the fact that there will not now be a heavy industrial development just over a mile directly upwind from the village, which could have detrimentally impacted upon the health and wellbeing of the whole population, in particular the students at our Primary School.
Subject to any appeal for judicial review of the Secretary of State’s decision that Cuadrilla might attempt to mount (and given that their application has already been rejected by Lancashire County Council and by two Public Inquiries it seems unlikely that they would succeed) – it means that we’ve won!
Whilst it would be worth praising a number of members of the Inskip community without whose tireless efforts this victory would not have happened – and they know who they are – one name stands out, that of Mr. Tom Hastey. It was Tom’s thorough preparation and presentation of the road safety concerns that directly led to the successful result. Many thanks and well done!
Fracking in Lancashire – Drop-in Coffee Morning
Though we’ve won one victory over Roseacre Wood the fight continues as Cuadrilla and INEOS continue to seek changes in the regulatory framework for fracking. Local anti-fracking groups have organised a Drop-in Coffee Morning on Saturday 9th March between 11am and 1pm at Elswick Village Hall where you can find out more about what is going on and how you could help to oppose fracking – or you can come along if you just want a nice cup of coffee and a cake.
Wyre Local Plan
When the original Wyre Local Plan was issued for comment in 2017 it proposed 200 extra new homes at Inskip on top of the 55 currently being built and the 27 recently completed by Create Homes. The Parish Council vigorously opposed this proposal working in close collaboration with the Inskip Residents Action Group (IRAG), an independent pressure group established at the suggestion of Parish Councillors at a public meeting organised in the village.
After the Parish Council and IRAG presented objections at a Public Inquiry held last May the Public Inspector recommended that the number of additional homes at Inskip be reduced to ‘just’ 100 extra in a modified Local Plan issued for public consultation in September 2018. Both the Parish Council and IRAG then submitted further objections in response to the modified plan. These comments along with all others submitted by members of the public were forwarded to the Planning Inspector who has now issued his final report.
We’re glad that the Inspector has noted our concerns that there was neither a demand for a further 100 homes on top of the 82 currently being built or recently completed and that the rural infrastructure out here in Inskip could not easily support this level of development. Instead the Inspector now recommends that the Local Plan should only permit a further 30 homes, on land adjacent to the School, over the course of the Local Plan up to 2031. The members of IRAG and the Councillors who put in so much effort to collect and present evidence to the Inquiry and to achieve this result deserve the thanks of the community.
It means that the fields behind West Drive, North Drive and Manor Road and the field opposite to the Derby Arms are safe for now. Whilst this looks like a great result for the village there are a few caveats. Firstly the Inspector anticipates that these further 30 homes might be developed sooner rather than later. Then he notes that the village shop proposed by De Pol as part of the current development may not be viable in a community as small as Inskip. Also owing to the modest scale of development there is no realistic opportunity for developers to provide community open space such as a village green. And of course it is possible for the Local Plan might be reopened earlier than 2031 allowing hungry developers a further bite of the cherry!
An updated Wyre Local Plan has been submitted for formal approval at an Extraordinary Meeting of the Wyre Borough Council on Thursday 28th February. Details of the documents to be approved at this meeting can be found on the Wyre Council website at: https://wyre.moderngov.co.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?MId=646&x=1
Carrs Green
As reported in previous editions of this Newsletter the Parish Council is trying to develop some ideas for the Common. Obviously we don’t want to do too much as it needs to be maintained as a unique natural habitat for the birds, insects, other wildlife and flora that use it. It is also used by dog walkers and ramblers so it will be a case of balance. Using some windfall funds received a couple of years ago and earmarked for development of the Common, the current ideas are to:
• create a circular walk from the village by making the current public foot path more usable;
• place some picnic tables as an amenity to encourage visitors;
• Possibly creating some ponds and bird watching screens;
• Introducing boards that tell you what sort of things you may see.
We need to work with the commoners and residents close to the common and we are engaging the bird watchers too and will continue to consult as our plans develop.
One issue that has stopped us from developing the plan so far and doing something is the lack of time we have been able to spend on it. As you know we have been stretched this last year representing the village at the inquiries for both housing development and fracking. Therefore, if you are looking for a new year’s resolution, maybe a ‘friends of the common’ group would be a way forward? If you would like more information please come along the Parish Council meetings or keep an eye on the meeting minutes published on our website.
Fly-tipping
Residents may be aware of a number of instances of fly-tipping on Carrs Green before Christmas. If the tipping is on the roadside the District Council are obliged to clear it up when it is reported to them – and Preston City Council workmen did remove one skip-load dumped on Woods Lane when it was reported to them. Unfortunately if the fly-tippers dump rubbish more than a metre from the roadside then it’s the landowner’s responsibility instead – and a couple of fly-tippers did just that in November. As the Parish Council own the Common on behalf of the public then the Parish Council have to sort it out – either by paying a contractor to remove it for us or by taking it to the Recycling Centre ourselves. If you see someone fly-tipping you can report it to Wyre Council on their website at:
https://www.wyre.gov.uk/forms/form/76/en/report_fly-tipping
Given the remote location of Inskip the culprits may well be local. If you can take details of the vehicle registration of the fly-tipper then that would be great and if it is safe to take a photo then that would be a bonus. Wyre Council need all the evidence that they can get if they are to prosecute the culprits and stop this scourge of the countryside for good!
Health Centre – ordering repeat prescriptions
Members of the public are reminded that from the end of March the Great Eccleston Health Centre is withdrawing the service of accepting repeat prescription requests by phone. Instead members of the public need to either order on-line via Patient Access or by dropping off your repeat prescription slip into the box provided at the surgery. To register for Patient Access you will need to complete a form and take it to the reception at the Health Centre along with two forms of ID for verification.
Public Access Defibrillators
Thanks to the generosity of the British Heart Foundation who funded the equipment a few years ago the Parish Council maintain three public access defibrillators in the village. They should only be used under instruction from the Ambulance Service – so phone 999 first! Defibrillators can and do save lives – so it’s worth knowing where they are located. You can find one at the Derby Arms, at Inskip Baptist Church, and at the YIPS Centre in Nelson Gardens. Also if members of the public want training in resuscitation then please let a member of the Parish Council know. If we get sufficient numbers then training sessions can be arranged locally.
Water Pressure
Low water pressure has been a problem at a number properties for some time and last year the Parish Council engaged with United Utilities in order to obtain a resolution. We also sought help from our MP. A pressure maintenance gauge was replaced in August 2018 which appeared to alleviate the problems but more recently it is understood that properties have complained to United Utilities of further water pressure problems. If you do experience low water pressure then please contact United Utilities and report it as unless they understand the full scope of problems then they are unlikely to get to the bottom of it. The relevant webpage is: https://www.unitedutilities.com/emergencies/got-a-problem/low-water-pressure/
Wyre in Bloom
Congratulations to Alan Lingard, his wife, and the rest of the team who put in sterling work planting up for the annual Wyre-in-Bloom – and also to our Lengthsman, Andy, the lawnmower king, for keeping the beds watered through the scorching weather. We are proud of the North-West in Bloom Silver Gilt honour that Inskip won in this year’s competition.