I was elected for the first time as a Labour Councillor, in May 2016, representing the Crosland Moor and Netherton Ward which includes the areas of Netherton, Crosland Moor, Beaumont Park, Thornton Lodge, Park Road, Park Road West and Lockwood. The Ward has a population of 18,723.
Case Work
I have been working throughout the CM & N Ward, door knocking and attending community events. This allows me to get to know people and raise their concerns.
I also attended events to support the City Connect consultation event to improve the Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Crosland Moor Community Centre.
As part of last year’s Huddersfield District Committee I supported the funding for the Crosland Moor Community Centre.
Before I talk about my own work, I would like to express my gratitude to Ex Councillor Molly Walton who retired in May 2016. Molly was my election agent and worked tirelessly to help ensure that I was successful in the election. I am grateful for having the opportunity to carry on with the work she has done for over 26 years in her Ward. She is a source of encouragement and continues to provide guidance when needed. Thank you Molly.
I would also like to single out Alan Shepherd for praise. Alan was indefatigable during the election campaign, and afterwards, due to Molly’s ill health, served as secretary of the branch in all but name. Generous to a fault, he championed my cause and without his kind advice and guidance I would not have been able to succeed. His decency and compassion and ability to inspire remain undiminished. His humour and wit keep me grounded and on my toes. I am proud to call him my friend and mentor.
Thanks also to my excellent Ward colleagues, Councillors Mohammad Sarwar and Erin Hill and to the other councillors from different wards from Huddersfield and Colne Valley Constituencies, as well as Labour Party Branch members, for all their support and assistance.
Thank you too, to all the Ward residents who elected me with a large increased majority. I am honoured to be able to represent them and promise to continue to work hard and advocate on their behalf.
Case Work
Since my election last year I have dealt with numerous cases of individual enquiries. I have made many site visits, including Saturdays and Sundays, to resolve issues such as:
- Missed bin collections
- Dog fouling
- Planning applications
- Street cleaning
- Pot holes – road repair
- Damaged pavements, overgrown bushes
- Immigration issues
- Several passport, driving and licensing applications
- Fly tipping – and its prompt removal
- Noise and anti-social behaviour
I have been working throughout the CM & N Ward, door knocking and attending community events. This allows me to get to know people and raise their concerns.
With the prospect of HRI’s closure on the horizon I have been actively supporting the campaigns to keep this essential facility open in our town.
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| With Deputy Leader, Tom Watson |
Despite big budget cuts, my fellow ward councillors, Erin Hill and Mohammad Sarwar, and I was successful in enabling the traffic flow to be improved at Thornton Lodge: a junction on the busy Manchester Road which was a great cause of concern amongst both drivers and pedestrians in the area. The installation of a budget friendly road side detector working with the current Pelican Crossing should make it much safer for drivers to emerge onto the main road.
In this year’s June snap General Election I have campaigned with my colleagues in the Colne Valley and Huddersfield Constituencies and helped the successful campaigns of Thelma Walker, Barry Sheerman and Paula Sherriff respectively.
Challenges Ahead
The drastic budget cuts being implemented by the Tories has affected Kirklees badly with the resulting challenges being faced by our Ward.
One area that is being hit hard is education. School Admissions are oversubscribed and parents are increasingly worried about getting their children into decent schools. To address this problem in our ward, a new Primary School at the fields of Moorend Academy School is under construction and will be ready to take in children by the end of 2018 or early 2019.
Antisocial behaviour is high and there have been some drug related issues in my Ward but I am working very closely with multi agencies and local people to make sure that our community is safe.
There is lack of accessible leisure activities mainly in Thornton Lodge and Walpole areas which needs addressing.
There is a pressing need for consideration of the health and wellbeing issues faced by these local communities. They affect everyone in the Ward but these two areas have particular health issues with very high rates of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
To help these local communities it is important to get out targeted information, raise awareness and have access to leisure/sport facilities which are lacking.
Pressures resulting from budget constraints make it difficult to obtain funding for community projects, business growth initiatives and environmental issues. However, along with my two ward colleagues I will continue to work hard to secure services in the Ward and address the concerns of all our residents.
I try to meet as many people as possible in the ward and, in addition to regular door knocking, I attend community events and groups throughout the ward. Some of these are listed below, along with the training and development sessions I have attended. Finally, here are my Kirklees Council Committee appointments and outside bodies.
Attendance of Local Community groups and organisation
- Thornton Lodge Community Centre
- Walpole Community Centre
- Friends of Beaumont Park
- Crosland Moor and Netherton Ward Labour Party Branch meetings and Community Centre.
- Colne Valley Constituent CLP
- Huddersfield CLP
- Greenhead Branch Labour Party meetings
- Moorend Academy Awards Ceremony
- Netherton Community Centre
Full Council and Committees meetings –attendance
- Council meetings
- Labour Group meetings
- Huddersfield District committee
- Huddersfield Planning Sub-committee
- Licensing and Safety committee
Training and Development sessions - attendance
- New councillors training
- Planning Committee Training
- Licensing and safety Training
- LG Development Seminar
- LG Democracy Commission Seminar
- LG Development Form
- Early Intervention & Prevention Session
- Transport Committee Workshop
Committee appointments
- Annual Council
- Appeals Panel
- Council
- Extraordinary Council
- Licensing and Safety Committee (Reserve)
- Licensing Panel
Appointments to outside bodies
- West Yorkshire Combined Authority – Kirklees District
- Consultation Sub-Committee
- West Yorkshire Combined Authority – Transport Committee
