april2021 – Fylde Council

SMART Testing van hits the road

Fylde Council — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 14:03:36 +0000

Fylde Council has increased its lateral flow testing capacity with the addition of a new mobile testing unit.

The van, which will come into service on Tuesday 27th April 2021, will be placed in strategic locations across Fylde to carry out regular asymptomatic testing within the community.

Its first confirmed location will be in the car park at B&Q at Whitehills Retail Park from 9.30 until 4.00pm every Tuesday morning.

Other locations are being considered to complement the SMART testing centres in Kirkham, Lytham and St Annes.

It is part of the area’s significant testing capacity which also includes the permanent PCR testing site at the Beach Cafe car park as well as mobile testing units in Kirkham, Freckleton, Elswick and Staining.

Richard Hurt, Fylde Council’s Health Protection Practitioner, is delighted that the new testing van is hitting the road.

He said: “As we progress along the national roadmap to unlocking it is really important that people test regularly to ensure they aren’t asymptomatically carrying the virus.

“We want to offer people as many opportunities as possible to be tested and this van is the latest in a long line of testing initiatives launched by Fylde Council.

“There are plans in the pipeline to secure regular locations across the borough so that anyone who doesn’t have symptoms can attend for regular testing at a time and place convenient to them.

“This supports the national strategy where anyone can order lateral flow tests online or collect them from pharmacies and other locations.

“If people have symptoms, or are generally feeling unwell they must be tested at one of the five PCR testing sites in Fylde.

“The infection rate in Fylde is low and decreasing, so we must all play our part to ensure we keep our community safe by stopping the virus in its tracks. Regular testing means we can continue to get back to doing all the things we love.”

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New RSPB Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre set to soar!

Fylde Council — Fri, 23 Apr 2021 12:38:35 +0000

Following the award of National Lottery Heritage Funding in December 2018, Fylde Council is delighted to announce the opening of the new RSPB Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre. Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, the new visitor hub run in partnership by the RSPB and Fylde Council will open on Friday 29^th April.

The new RSPB Visitor Centre, which was formerly known as the Ribble Discovery Centre will still be home to the RSPB shop, but also includes new interactive information boards that tell the story of Fairhaven’s development from shingle bank to boating lake. The centre will celebrate the areas natural heritage as well as its rich history. The interior has had a full restoration exposing the original vaulted ceiling and heritage features.

Jo Taylor, RSPB Learning and Visitor Experience Officer says “Alongside the improvements to the sea defence wall and promenade at Granny’s Bay this re-development of the buildings, lake and gardens is really making Fairhaven an even better place to visit. We can’t wait to open our doors and welcome people back into the newly refurbished visitor centre and RSPB shop. Our friendly team will be back on hand to help visitors discover more about the incredible wildlife of the Ribble Estuary and exploring Fairhaven Lake. Following the makeover to our shop, there’s going to be plenty of the old favourites in stock such as our popular bird food and binocular ranges along with some exciting new surprises for nature-lovers of all ages.”

This is the first building of the exciting restoration project to be opened. The new watersport centre is due to open later in May along with the restored café in July. This follows the successful excavation of the Japanese garden and landscape works completed over last winter.

Activity Development Officer, Julie Vale says “After years of hard work from the project team, volunteers and stakeholders it is amazing to start to see the projects vision coming to life. We can’t thank our funders, supporters and the local community enough for getting behind the project.”

Supported through the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) and National Lottery Community Fund, the project aims to conserve and restore Fairhaven’s heritage buildings and landscape, improve the lake’s infrastructure and water quality, and provide an exciting new programme of events. New information boards will help visitors better understand Fairhaven’s heritage. Other funding bodies to the overall project include Fylde Council, Sport England & Lancashire Environmental Fund.

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Supporting local shops in Fylde

Fylde Council — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 10:59:58 +0000

Fylde Council is urging residents to shop local and support retail on its high streets.

Non-essential retail reopened on Monday 12th April as part of Stage 2 of the national roadmap out of lockdown.

Shops across the borough have implemented a wide range of measures to ensure a Covid-secure, enjoyable experience and have been supported by the commercial teams at the council.

A spokesperson for Fylde Council, said: “From the historic high street of Kirkham to the cosmopolitan stores in Lytham and St Anne’s to the small, independent shops across Warton, Freckleton and beyond, Fylde shoppers don’t need to go far to find everything they need.

“We are delighted that so many shops have been able to reopen and they have all worked incredibly hard to welcome people back safely.

“Our teams here at Fylde Council have been supporting retailers in many ways including distributing grants and coordinating business rates relief as well as offering advice and practical assistance.

“After many months of closure and uncertainty, it is wonderful to see our high streets come back to life again.”

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Fylde tills start to ring

Fylde Council — Fri, 16 Apr 2021 10:01:36 +0000

Hundreds of Fylde businesses have reopened as part of Stage Two of the national roadmap.

Outdoor leisure, non-essential retail, personal care, libraries, community centres, gyms, swimming pools, self-contained holiday accommodation and outdoor hospitality are all now able to operate under Covid-secure guidelines.

Fylde Council continues to work closely with businesses to ensure they can safely welcome customers back.

Carole Pilling, Senior Manager for Accommodation at Ribby Hall Village, said: “Our teams are thrilled to be back at Ribby. We’ve really missed our holiday guests, homeowners, health club members and day

visitors. We’re delighted to be safely welcoming everyone back.

The atmosphere through The Village is fantastic. It’s time to have some family fun at Ribby Hall Village!”

Lytham Hall, which is bursting with spring colour, is set to wow visitors as they return and explore the beautiful surroundings.

Elizabeth Watson, Head Animal Keeper at Lytham Hall said: “We’ve worked hard to get everywhere looking wonderful for the return of our visitors and Winston, our French Lop, can’t wait to say hello to our visitors again.”

On the seafront, the owners of St Annes Beach Huts and St Annes Beach Apartments, are looking forward to a great British summer. Owners, Stuart & Zoe Robertson, said: “We want to welcome visitors back safely.

“We have risk assessments in place and we are following all the regulations. We are Covid safe with extensive cleaning in between bookings. The soft furnishings are cleaned with anti-bacterial spray and the floors are steam cleaned. These are private spaces which are well set up for a family.”

Staying in St Annes, The View Fish and Chip Restaurant has now started offering table service. Donna Azzopardi, Front of House Manager said: “Come along and enjoy seaside fish and chips at The View looking out across the wide sandy beaches of the Fylde, it’s beautiful.”

Council owned facilities including the bowling greens, tennis courts, multi-use games area, St Annes mini links, skatepark and BMX track are also now open and ready for the public to enjoy.

Tim Dixon, Tourism and Cultural Services Manager at Fylde Council, has been busy making sure the borough is ready for people to return safely.

“It has been a long and difficult winter for everyone here in Fylde and we have done everything we can to support businesses while they were closed and as they prepared to re-open.

“The sun was certainly shining brightly on Monday 12^th April as shutters were raised, doors were opened and the ovens and beer pumps fired back into action.

“We are excited to be able to welcome people back to Fylde and cannot wait to see the rest of our hospitality and leisure in full swing when we reach Stage Three of the national roadmap.

“Of course, with the cancellation of many of our usual events, this summer will still be a little different to what we are all used to, but as the vaccination and testing programmes continue in earnest, we are confident that events will be back with a bang next year.

“It is absolutely vital that everyone continues to follow social distancing and other guidelines in the coming months and teams from all our departments are working together to ensure Fylde is a safe and tidy place to live, work and visit.”

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Leading Designers Appointed To Develop Historic Kirkham’s Regeneration Masterplan

Fylde Council — Thu, 15 Apr 2021 13:49:33 +0000

An award-winning international design consultancy has been appointed to develop plans for the multi-million pound regeneration of an historic Lancashire town.

Urban design and regeneration specialists The Paul Hogarth Company – whose work includes the transformation of Belfast’s famed waterfront and Titanic Quarter into a world-renowned tourist destination – will play a key role in reshaping and revitalising Kirkham.

The ancient market town – a former Roman settlement situated in the heart of the North West’s beautiful Fylde coast – has successfully secured funding through Historic England’s £95m High Streets Heritage Action Zone (HS HAZ) scheme.

Historic England’s £1.8m HS HAZ grant, together with funding from Fylde Borough Council and Kirkham Town Council, will see £3.5m spent on reviving Kirkham’s historic core Conservation Area.

This investment is a vital part of the wider £10m Kirkham Futures masterplan which aims to re-energise Kirkham town centre for residents, businesses and visitors by:

Restoring and repurposing key buildings
Improving the visual appearance of shops, streets and open spaces
Introducing diverse uses of buildings to create new opportunities for retail, residential, employment, training and skills
Encouraging new leisure and restaurant businesses to create a more diverse offer and enhanced evening economy
Supporting sustainable economic and cultural growth

The Paul Hogarth Company team, based in Edinburgh, Belfast and Dublin, in partnership with Fylde Borough Council and Historic England, will formulate and deliver plans to improve outdoor spaces within Kirkham’s Conservation Area – which includes the town’s famous Market Square and central streets.

Their first task will be to gauge the views of local residents and businesses as part of a series of consultation events, beginning on Monday April 19.

And you can join #TheKirkhamConversation by completing an online questionnaire at www.kirkhamfutures.org

Andrew Haley, Director with The Paul Hogarth Company, said: “We are thrilled to have been appointed to develop proposals for Kirkham. This project truly resonates with our commitment to ‘making a difference by designing places and spaces with people and the environment at their heart’.

“Critical to the success will be the participation of local people and businesses and we look forward to working with as many as possible to help shape the designs.

“We want to ensure the proposals can make a really positive difference – not just as the town centre recovers from the impact of the pandemic, but as a sustainable vibrant place for the long-term. For that reason, we urge everyone to join #TheKirkhamConversation!”

In developing proposals specific to Kirkham, The Paul Hogarth Company team will draw on their experience from across the UK and internationally – including recent award-winning projects at Hillsborough Castle, the Royal Residence in Northern Ireland, with its heritage focus; the revitalisation of Lisburn City Centre and the Wild Atlantic Way, which has through tourism underpinned economic regeneration on the west coast of Ireland.

Historic England’s Tamsin Cooke said: “The Paul Hogarth Company has a proven track record of delivering high quality, heritage-led regeneration. We’re excited to see the results of their collaboration with the local community on the future shape of Kirkham’s historic high street.”

While the Paul Hogarth team’s initial work will be centred on Kirkham’s Conservation Area – which includes sections of Poulton Street, Preston Street, Freckleton Street and Church Street – it is hoped this will soon be widened across the town centre.

Fylde Borough Council is currently awaiting final approval of its successful bid to central government for funding from the Future High Street Fund (FHSF).

A FHSF grant of more than £6m was provisionally approved in December and it is hoped the funding will enable a new Heritage and Eco Skills Centre, Arts Centre and Community Cinema, together with re-development of empty shops and new town centre housing, creating new work and leisure opportunities.

Andrew Chatterjee, Fylde Council’s HS HAZ Project Manager, said: “The challenges Kirkham’s high street faces are significant, and transformation of the scale needed cannot be achieved without considerable investment, new thinking and new partnerships.

“We are therefore delighted to have appointed The Paul Hogarth Company. They have delivered many important regeneration projects over the last 30 years and their knowledge, skills and vast experience will be instrumental in delivering a successful project for Kirkham.

“The views and involvement of local people is absolutely crucial to the success of the masterplan and I would urge everyone to get involved in the consultation and join #TheKirkhamConversation.”

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Lytham 1940s Wartime Weekend cancellation

Fylde Council — Thu, 15 Apr 2021 10:52:45 +0000

It is with a heavy heart that we announce we have taken the difficult decision to cancel this year’s Lytham 1940s Wartime Weekend.

Whilst we understand the dates of the event which would have been 14^th and 15^th August would have been some time after stage 4 of the Governments COVID Recovery Plan, there is still uncertainty around running large events in the summer with the formal approval only scheduled to be given in June.

The Lytham 1940s Wartime Weekend is an event that is free to visit without the ability for the organisers to restrict large numbers attending both on Lytham Green and in the town centre. As such, maintaining social distancing both at the event, in the town centre and in the many marquees over the weekend would be extremely challenging.

We appreciate we have not shared many details regarding whether the event will go ahead or not over recent weeks and months, but after much deliberation it has been decided that timescales unfortunately would not allow the event to be planned properly.

Tim Dixon, Tourism and Leisure Manager for Fylde Council said: “We will always place public safety as our number one priority and with this in mind feel that cancelling the event, even in the position of covid cases currently falling is the right thing to do given the uncertainties about hosting large scale events in the summer.”

“We have the full support of the event committee and we look forward to beginning planning for 2022 shortly.”

“We look forward to welcoming you back to Lytham on 20^th and 21^st August 2022 for what we are sure will be a fantastic event.”

As always, the Council would like to thank you for your continuing support of the Lytham 1940s Wartime Weekend. Stay safe and we look forward to welcoming you back in August 2022.

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Fylde Council to take on ownership of Fairhaven Lake Spitfire Memorial

Fylde Council — Tue, 13 Apr 2021 13:54:42 +0000

At a recent meeting of the Tourism and Leisure Committee, Members agreed to take on the management and maintenance of the Spitfire Memorial at Fairhaven Lake.

In 2011 the former Leader of the Council John Coombes approached the Council with a proposal to create and install a permanent memorial in recognition of the local efforts made during World War 2. At the time Members agreed Fairhaven Lake would be the preferred location.

In 2012, a full-sized replica of a Mark VB Spitfire airplane memorial with associated landscaping and lighting was put in place.

Since it’s installation, the Spitfire Memorial has been a popular attraction for visitors to Fairhaven Lake.

In 2020 Mr Coombes approached the Council to advise that there was less funding being generated by the Spitfire Display Team for the upkeep of the Memorial due to a number of factors. Without sustainable funding there was a risk that the Spitfire would need to be removed, and as a result, a request was made to the Council to take over the ownership of the Memorial.

A thorough assessment has been carried out by officers of the Council to consider the ongoing costs of upkeep for the memorial, with annual costs looking to be in the region of £2,000 per year, although periodic costs of maintenance due every 15 years would need to be considered as part of a relevant capital bid process by Members.

The new agreement sets out that the Council will take on ownership of the memorial at no cost, with the Council taking over management and maintenance of the memorial for a minimum period of 10 years.

Paul Walker, Director of Development Services at Fylde Council said: “The agreement by the Tourism and Leisure Committee to take on the ownership and future management and maintenance of the Spitfire Memorial secures its future for at least the next ten years. Fairhaven Lake provides a fitting backdrop to this popular and important attraction.”

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Family History Stars In Artistic Celebration Of Kirkham’s Proud Past

Fylde Council — Tue, 13 Apr 2021 13:49:09 +0000

From Roman centurions, war heroes to textile mills, matchstick men and even a much-loved cobbler’s shop – Kirkham’s Heritage Treasure Trail certainly had it all!

Throughout Easter residents and local businesses were encouraged to celebrate the Fylde coast town’s proud history by creating pieces of heritage-inspired window art.

And Kirkham folk of all ages proved what an artistic bunch they are by creating some striking displays.

The winning entry was created by Adele and Peter Walsh whose wonderful creation not only featured many famous local landmarks – such as St Michael’s Church, the Wynde Milne windmill and the old flax mills – but a personal ode to their own family’s history.

Adele’s grandfather Thomas Ross worked as a cobbler in the early part of the last century, and his former shop on Station Road, Wesham, is lovingly included in the artwork.

Receiving the first prize of a luxury hamper, courtesy Morrisons supermarket, Peter said: “Myself and Adele had a lot of fun creating our window installation as a journey through Kirkham’s industrial heritage. It was really nice to be able to create something that charted both the history of the town and our own family. We’ve loved taking part.”

The Heritage Treasure Trail is part of Kirkham Treasures – an interactive heritage programme set-up to commemorate the town’s history through the art, words and stories of local people.

Adele said: “Kirkham Treasures is a wonderful project that encourages the community to get together and celebrate the town’s history. We’ve really enjoyed walking around town looking at all the artwork that has been created. It’s lovely to see such community spirit – especially in these difficult times.”

Kirkham’s former Roman garrison, the town’s history as important textile hub, its role in both World Wars and LS Lowry’s famous painting of the town’s Church Street were among the many images to feature in Treasure Trail.

Artist Alex Blakey, who is now working on a series of community projects as part of Kirkham Treasures, was impressed by local people’s enthusiasm and creativity.

Alex said: “It’s been brilliant. So many different aspects of Kirkham’s history were covered – from the Romans, to the flax mills, Lowry’s painting to scenes from the modern day. And what has been especially nice is people have included their own family history and personal stories in their artwork – as we saw with Adele and Peter’s wonderful piece.”

Barbara Parkinson, Morrisons (Kirkham) Community Champion, said: “Morrisons is proud to have supported Kirkham’s Heritage Treasure Trail and we loved seeing all the artwork in local shops and in people’s windows throughout Easter.

“We were thrilled to present a luxury hamper to Adele and Peter – their artwork was wonderful – together with Morrisons’ vouchers for second and third places and Easter Eggs for everyone who entered. Well done everyone who took part – you really did Kirkham proud!”

Kirkham Treasures has been created by the town’s Cultural Consortium, which was launched to deliver engaging community projects as part of Kirkham’s successful bid for High Street Heritage Action Zone (HS HAZ) status.

Funded by Historic England, Fylde Borough Council and Kirkham Town Council, the £3.5m four-year HS HAZ programme is designed to revive the high street, restore local historic character, improve health and well-being and develop a new cultural vision for the town.

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Ensuring Fylde is a safe and tidy place to live, work in and visit

Fylde Council — Thu, 01 Apr 2021 13:01:27 +0000

It’s all hands to the pump at Fylde Council as the rollout of the national roadmap continues.

Teams from every department are working together to ensure Fylde is a safe and tidy place to live, work in and visit.

The commercial department is working tirelessly with local businesses that are preparing to reopen with activities including help with site risk assessments, clarification on guidance and what is expected and helping with resources.

In addition, from the Easter weekend, Fylde Council is deploying up to 40 additional staff during busy periods and weekends with refuse staff emptying bins and picking up litter, Covid Ambassadors providing information and support and reporting any issues, Covid Marshals dealing with any business compliance breaches and CSP Officers will be assisting rangers and emergency services in patrolling the coastline to address any anti-social behaviour.

Hundreds of new signs are being placed across Fylde to remind people of the Covid-19 rules and guidelines as well as additional messaging focusing on litter, dog fouling and the dog exclusion zone.

Shared Space signage is being refreshed and placed at key locations and digital signage, which can be updated with important information instantly, has been placed at Fairhaven Lake, St Annes Beach and Lytham Green.

Other information points, such as digital advertising vans and online advertising campaigns are being rolled out in the coming weeks.

The number of bins is being increased to well over 400, including the introduction of 13 huge 770 litre bins at key locations in Fylde, and the emptying and maintenance schedule is being ramped up.

A council spokesperson, said: “We have been planning for the day we can safely welcome visitors back to Fylde safely for a long time and, of course, these plans include how we can ensure that residents and those that work in the area can also enjoy everything we have to offer.

“By working with our local businesses to help them safely reopen, increasing the number of people on the ground during weekends and busy periods, clearly communicating key messages and providing additional bins that will be emptied more often, I am confident that we can look forward to a great Spring and Summer season.

“It will be some time yet before things are back to normal, so it is really important that everyone follows all the rules and guidelines as they change in the coming months so we can meet the targets set and the roadmap can roll out as planned.”