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Beat the Christmas bulge
Made the annual New Year’s resolution to keep fit this year? Still sat on that sofa? Well here’s your chance to shed those Christmas pounds.
Lancaster City Council’s Cycling Demonstration Town (CDT) team has organised drop in cycling sessions for those seeking a healthier lifestyle in 2008.So whether you’re trying to beat the bulge or just fancy a leisurely ride, why not scoot along to Salt Ayre Sports Centre every Friday morning from January 18.
The free rides start at 11am, last for an hour and are not only a great way to keep fit and healthy but also a chance to meet new friends.
The sessions can help returning cyclists or those who lack that bit of confidence to get back on their bikes. Instructors will be on hand to offer advice and support to riders.
Cyclists should bring their own bikes although there is a limited supply available for hire from Salt Ayre. Those wishing to hire a bike should contact the CDT Team in advance - see contact details below.
Councillor Eileen Blamire, cabinet member with responsibility for cycling, said: “If you’re looking to get fit in the New Year, these sessions provide a great opportunity for you to stay healthy alongside like-minded people.”
There’s no need to book - just turn up.
For more information please contact the CDT Team on 01524 582392 / 582086 or celebratingcycling@lancaster.gov.uk
NEWS FROM THE NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICE
Huge Drop in Crime in the West End
Police in the West End have reported a significant drop in crime figures over the past 12 months.
There have been reductions of more than 30% in crimes that most affect people’s quality of life. Assaults and criminal damage are down by 35% with dwelling burglaries reduced by 32%. Thefts from vehicles are also down by 39%.
PC Andy Taylor, Community Beat Manager in the West End says the figures are testament to the hard work of a number of partners involved in the Winning Back Morecambe’s West End project. He also praised the Police Community Support Officers for their hard work.
PC Taylor: “The police have worked tirelessly along with other partners to make the West End of Morecambe a safe and secure area for people to live and work.
“This work will continue with the implementation of various operations. Over the last 12 months all types of crime has fallen and we hope this will continue to be the case using intelligence-led policing and agencies working more effectively.’’
Recent reports in the local newspaper have portrayed the West End Gardens as a ‘haven for muggings’. PC Andy Taylor wants to set the record straight. He said: “There has been two isolated incidents on the West End Gardens both of which the offenders have been arrested and currently on bail for. Other than those this is not a haven for muggings and the public should be reassured of this.
“Police carry out regular high visibility patrols in the area of the West End including the gardens and any persons who commit any offences will be dealt with by the police. This area has CCTV coverage and good street lighting and the gardens are there for the public to use.’’
John Deacon, Project Director for Community Engagement, Winning Back Morecambe’s West End, said: “We welcome the significant drop in crime in the West End and thank the Police and Police Community Support Officers for all their hard work.
“The West End Partnership is engaged in a wide range of activity which is improving the environment and people’s quality of life in co-operation with our Police colleagues and other partners.”
Profile
Name: Andy Taylor
Job Title: Community Beat Manager for the West End of Morecambe,
Police Constable, Lancashire Constabulary.
Current role: As a Community Beat Manager and Police Constable for the West End of Morecambe, PC Andy Taylor is responsible for tackling crime, disorder and anti-social behaviour in the area and with great success – recent figures show that crimes that affect quality of life have been reduced by over 30%. Operations run in the West End recently, included Operation Boat which tackled lead and metal thefts and Operation Borderline which tackled juvenile-related problems such as under age drinking, criminal damage and anti-social behaviour. A current project, Operation Bourbon, aims to tackle problems associated with houses of multi occupancy such as poor conditions, drug dealing and anti-social neighbours.
Another role of Andy Taylor’s job is to run the Police and Communities Together (PACT) meetings. These meetings are held on a monthly basis for members of the local community to come along and talk about any issues that arise in their neighbourhood.
PC Andy Taylor said: “Recent feedback from the public at PACT meetings is very good and people are pleased with how the West End is becoming a better area to live.”
Background: Andy has served in Lancashire Constabulary for over 13 years. During this time he has worked around the division, including Blackpool, Lancaster and now Morecambe. Prior to joining the police force, Andy served over ten years in the British Army. He served abroad in Germany, took part in two tours of Northern Ireland and was part of Operation Desert Shield in the Gulf war.
On his time serving in the army, Andy said: “It was a difficult time, in 1988 whilst in Northern Ireland I saw a number of colleagues killed. During the gulf war I was a dispatch rider on a motorbike in the desert often riding at nights without lights on so that the enemy could not see us. It was very scary especially when I ended up riding off the end of a cliff!”
In his spare time, Andy likes to keep fit. Whilst he was in the army he represented his regiment in boxing and was captain of the football team.
Nowadays, he enjoys more serene hobbies including running his own art business selling paintings of landscapes and portraits of people. He also represents Lancashire in police snooker competitions. Andy said: “I am the current Police snooker champion and I’m going to Cheshire soon to play in the North West Finals”.
Help our Local Bobby Walk the Great Wall
The four charities benefiting from your donations are:
Medequip4kids
Bolton Lads and Girls Club
Youth Federation
The Children’s Adventure Farm Trust (CAFT)
Andy plans to take part in the challenge of a life time but needs the help of the community and local businesses to dig deep into their pockets and sponsor his charitable effort. He needs to raise a minimum of £2800 before the trek takes place in September.
Complete the Pledge form below with the amount that you would like to donate, and add your name, address and contact telephone number, and return it to Winning Back Morecambe’s West End, 61-63 Albert Road, Morecambe, LA4 4HY. Please do not send any money with your pledge, Andy will contact you to arrange a collection date.
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PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
I would like to pledge a total of £……………….to be shared between the following charities:
Medequip4kids
Bolton Lads and Girls Club
Youth Federation
The Children’s Adventure Farm Trust (CAFT)
and support PC Andy Taylor in his challenge to walk the Great Wall of China.
Name………………………………………………….
Address……………………………………………….
……………………………….post code……………
Telephone number…………………………………
Recent Police Operations
Operation Bow
Police Community Support Officers have been offering advice in reducing the changes of residents being the victims of car crime.
They have delivered leaflets containing the following advice:
•Fold in your wing mirrors when you park, especially when you park up for the evening
•Park in a garage or driveway
•Remove items nearby which could be used to damage your vehicle
•Remove any items on display in your vehicle which could tempt someone to break into your vehicle
•Don’t leave your car unattended with the engine running to defrost
A third of all damage to vehicles is the result if people kicking off wing mirrors. 11% of vehicle damage is caused using bricks, rocks and other rubble found in the area around the car.
Operation Borderline
Police have been tackling the problem of juvenile nuisance and underage drinking in the West End.
Large numbers of youths (up to 200 on occasion) were gathering at Heysham High playing fields, making it difficult for officers to deal with the situation effectively. Youths were also congregating at the Essington Avenue/Schola Green Lane play area and field and the West End Gardens.
The youths had been causing numerous problems for local residents including littering and noise and in some instances criminal damage.
The operation ran over 5 consecutive Fridays and officers were specifically tasked with a hotspot area to target and extra staff were utilised to deal with the high number of youths.
As a result of the operation, police officers confiscated alcohol and issued Youth Referral Forms to the youth’s parents. Penalty notices were also issued, arrests were made, and some youths were taken home and spoken to in front of their parents. This action had a huge impact on the youths involved, and their parents. Consequently the area as a whole has felt the positive outcome of this operation.
The Neighbourhood Policing Team has also been supporting the diversionary activities that have been part funded by Winning Back Morecambe’s West End.
The activities have been taking place on a Friday evening in an attempt to give young people something to do and keep them off the streets. Some of the activities on offer include DJ-ing and MC-ing at More Music, and abseiling and climbing at Regent Park Studios.
Mission to Reduce Bike Theft a Success
West End Police Community Support Officers, Sam Wilkinson and Sarah Houghton have worked hard to reduce the number of pedal cycle thefts.
Figures showed that from 1st January 2007 to 30th September 2007, 63 pedal cycles had been reported stolen in the West End area. This averages at 7 stolen bikes a month over the period. If this was to have continued throughout the final 3 months of the year, another 21 bikes could have been stolen.
Sam and Sarah had noticed that many of the stolen bikes had been left unsecured outside shops and play areas, and some had been left in back yards or unlocked sheds. Very few of the stolen bikes had been chained up. To tackle this problem, Sam and Sarah decided to visit the local primary schools and provide pupils with bike and cycling safety talks whilst offering to post code bikes. Lots of pupils got involved and had their bikes post coded, and they received a free bike lock, a high visibility vest and the details of the bike (make, model, frame number) were recorded on a card which could then be supplied to the police should the bike ever get stolen.
Figures have shown that since the bike and cycling safety talks, only 4 bikes have been reported as stolen (compared to the 21 predicted). None of these bikes had been locked at the time they were stolen.
The police Community Support Officers are continuing to post code bikes, and there are plans to hold sessions at Heysham High School.
On Your Bike
Two local primary pupils were riding high on fantastic new bikes after winning a cycle safety competition.
PCSO Sarah Houghton said: “In the West End alone 63 bikes had been stolen since January 2007 with 60 of those bikes being left unsecured in gardens, sheds, pavements, outside the arcades or against shop windows while people popped into the shop for a short time.
“Since this initiative only one bike has been stolen since November and we hope that continues.’’
The PCSOs also spent a few afternoons at each school post coding 72 bikes and handing out cycling information, ‘Be safe, be seen’ stickers and reflective bands.
Bike locks and high visibility vest which were funded by Winning Back Morecambe’s West End and other goodies were provided by Oggy’s Cycles on Regent Road.
Added Sarah: “This initiative has been a great success and we are extremely grateful to Oggy’s and Winning Back the West End for all their help and generosity.
Alan Winters from Winning Back the West End said: “This has been a super project and we are delighted to have been able to support it.
“The feedback we have had has been excellent and I would like to thank the police and Oggy’s for their time and effort.’’
Pupils Learn About Making the Right Choices
PCSOs have been visiting Year 7 pupils at Heysham High School to talk about substance abuse and anti-social behaviour.
The ‘Choices’ workshops, are run by the Police Community Support Officers and last for an hour with all Year 7 pupils taking part.
The substance abuse workshop talked about the different classes of drugs and how the law deals with users. The sessions showed how to recognise the different drugs and the symptoms and effects of drugs on users. Discussions were held around the reasons for taking drugs and how people affected by drugs can get help and advice.
The Anti-social behaviour workshops contained information on juvenile nuisance and the effects on the neighbourhood, why Anti Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) and Youth Referral Forms are issued and what they mean.
The sessions have been very well received by the students and following on from their success, the PCSOs are planning on holding drop-in surgeries at Heysham High School to develop greater links with the students.
New Dates for PACT Meetings
The dates for the ‘Police and Communities Together’ (PACT) meetings will be held on the following dates at the Community Shop on Yorkshire Street from 7pm:
Tuesday 19th February
Tuesday 18th March
Tuesday 15th April
These meetings are for residents to meet up with their Community Beat Manager to discuss local crime issues.
Additional weekly drop in PACT surgeries will be held from 1pm until 3pm every Wednesday, also at the Community Shop.
If you are unable to attend the meetings but would like to raise a concern, please call 596903.
Dog Owners - Bag it and Bin It
Free poop scoop bags are available from the Winning Back Morecambe’s West End office in a mission to reduce dog fouling on the streets.
Dog fouling is a nuisance and we would like to encourage dog owners to be responsible for their pets and clean up after them.
Please come and pick up your free bags and remember to put used bags in the bin.
Allowing your dogs to foul on the pavement could land you with a £50 fine and repeat offenders could be fined up to £1,000. The Police Community Support Officers can issue fixed penalty notices for dog fouling.
Please report any dog fouling ‘hot spots’ to the Lancaster City Council Dog Wardens by telephoning 582935.
The free poop scoop bags are also available at Oggy’s Cycles on Regent Road.