Newsletter 6
March 1st, 2014
Fracking: Inskip Meeting 6 March 2014
Fracking (hydraulic fracturing of rock to release gasses) is a technique designed to extract gas (and oil) from shale rock and as has been well documented elsewhere is highly contentious. Plans have been announced to site a drilling platform close to our village so in all likelihood it is an operation that could affect the residents of the parish in some way in the future.
In an effort to glean more information the Parish Council is facilitating this public meeting to be held between 7pm & 9pm at the YiPs Building on Nelson Gardens to which all villagers are cordially invited. Invitations have been made to Residents Action on Fylde Fracking (RAFF, who are against Fracking) and Cuardrilla the oil and gas exploration company who are working to extract gas from shale in this area. Both parties have been invited to provide short presentations to be followed by a question and answer session for residents.
Bus Service 80
The vast majority of residents will be aware that this service which links this and other parishes with Blackpool, Poulton Le Fylde, Fleetwood and Preston, was dramatically withdrawn shortly before Christmas without any prior warning as a result of the failure of Classic Bus Northwest Ltd.
Over the Christmas/New Year period a number of Parish Councilors from Inskip, Elswick and Great Eccelston parishes made strenuous efforts to have LCC reinstate the subsidised bus service but when this was not readily forthcoming the Parish Councils worked together to put in place a temporary service so that the residents of the parishes would not be totally stranded.
Archway Travel subsequently began to operate some scheduled services on this route on a commercial basis to determine if there is a sustainable demand. That unfortunately has failed and from 31st March Archway will deploy a much reduced timetable whereby there will be three buses per day (Mon-Fri only) run through the village in each direction on a route between Fleetwood and Preston. This revised service is a commercial operation without the benefit of any LCC subsidy so you are (again) urged to ‘use it or lose it’.
The Parish Council, in conjunction with neighboring Parish Councils, are continuing to make representations to LCC in an effort to secure future services being run through our village.
Your 2014/15 Council Tax Bill
Wyre Borough Council has made much of their freezing of council tax for the coming year which is fine for those living in the urban parts of the Borough but not necessarily so for those resident in the rural areas. For many years each of the Wyre Parish Councils has received an annual sum of money referred to as the Rural Grant. That has now been withdrawn despite the protestations of this Parish Council. Disappointingly it was a council decision supported by Cllr Susan Catterall (one of our elected representatives on WBC) and as a result has cost this Parish Council in excess of £1300 worth of annual funding. With no other means of making up this deficit, that sum has been added to our precept for the coming (and future) financial year(s).
The Parish Councillors sincerely regret that they have to make good the loss of income by increasing the level of precept, a decision that they feel has been forced upon them by Wyre Council.
Parish Plan
The purpose of the Parish Plan is to identify community priorities through consultation, which if delivered could improve the quality of life for the local community. The Parish Plan would also help the Parish Council in decision making and would cover issues that affect the daily lives of the residents of the parish.
Interest in the project has come from the school, both churches, Young Inskip People, farmers, senior residents and residents from Sowerby along with some commercial businesses. Should anyone have any constructive suggestions that could improve our community for the future Geoff Hogarth would be more than happy to receive your ideas.
Wyre in Bloom
Every year you may have noticed that the village gets planted up with bedding plants, that extra weeding takes place and additional attention is given to the general appearance of the village. We hope that you think that this brightens up the village as well as heralding the arrival of summer and helps bring a smile to your face.
So where do these extra bedding plants come from and what is it all about? Wyre Council have an initiative every year whereby all of the towns and villages can get involved in making their local area look attractive not only for the local residents but also for people driving through the area and for visitors.
Each area that registers an interest in taking part must have someone who is willing to attend three meetings during the year at the council offices in Poulton. The aim of the meetings is to get likeminded people together to share ideas and to offer support with this initiative. A budget is allocated to each area and Inskip with Sowerby receives approximately £600 that we can use to improve the look of our village in accordance with the aims and rules of the competition.
All parishes that takes part in this annual initiative are automatically entered into the Wyre in Bloom, a friendly competition where the parish competes against other towns and villages of a similar size. The judging, carried out by an independent team of judges, takes place in July and the competition culminates in a presentation event that celebrates the competitors achievements. Inskip-with-Sowerby has received silver awards on several occasions and is always striving to do better.
Now that you know a little bit more do you feel that this is something that you would like to get involved with? Do you have a flare for flowers and have a talent in this area and ideas just waiting for a chance to bloom? If the answer is yes then please talk to Alan Lingard who will be pleased to welcome you whether it’s helping with the litter picking, looking after one of the flower-beds or taking a more active role in leading a Parish group and representing the Parish at the steering group.
Please feel free to contact Alan on 01995-679239 or you may wish to attend a Parish Council meeting where you will be made most welcome.
Carr House Green Common – Mowing Trial
Carr House Green Common is one of a very small number of large unimproved areas of land west of the A6 which has never been farmed. The common is a Biological Heritage Site (BHS) and this is one step down from a Site of Special Scientific Interest or SSSI.
Natural England (NE) advised the Parish Council that because the common was not being grazed by cattle and was not being mown, the acid grass land was becoming rank much to the deterrent of wildlife. As a result the biodiversity of the common was beginning to diminish and in order to redress this situation NE advised the Parish Council that they should mow or graze areas in rotation had have the grass cuttings removed.
Last May an area of approximately one acre of the common, adjacent to the B5269 (Preston Road), was mowed. The results of this trial are to be evaluated by a representative of Natural England this spring.
Blackpool & District Canine Society Dog Show Ground Pinfold Lane
The Parish Council have written to the Blackpool & District Canine Society requesting that they keep the residents and the Parish Council fully informed ahead of any works or event connected with the dog show that has the potential to cause congestion and or disruption to the residents of this parish; in response the secretary of the society was not in a position to confirm that their dog show would take place in the field off Pinfold Lane this year because he was unsure if the preparation works would be completed in time.
Welcome
The Parish Council should like to formally welcome the Reverend Calvin Howard and to wish him a happy and successful tenure in our village.
Play Area
The Parish Council is most pleased to see the completion of this project following years of lobbying to Wyre Borough Council, and would like to thank the young parents and YiPs for helping drive this forward.