Author: Ollie Cowan

As part of the Liverpool City Region 2019 Year of the Environment, Green Sefton will be hosting a celebration day at Southport Eco Centre on Friday, 31 May , from 10am to 4pm.

Working with the team at the Eco Centre, the free public event will feature exhibits and displays from across the region, looking at green issues including transport, energy and transport.

Guided walks will explore the Queens Jubilee Nature Trail to enjoy the priceless flora and fauna of the Sefton coast, while there will also be the opportunity to find out more about neighbouring parks, including Kings Gardens and the fabulous border at Rotten Row.

We would like to invite you to drop into this all-day event to learn more about the 2019 Year of Environment and help celebrate what the borough’s greenspaces and coastline have to offer.

We hope you can join us to learn more about the 2019 Year of the Environment on May 31^st.

Southport Eco Centre can be found on the Esplanade, Southport, PR8 1RX.

Find out more about the Liverpool City Region 2019 Year of Environment here: http://yoe2019lcr.org.uk/

Three inspirational women from Sefton and a Bootle-based voluntary service have been named finalists in the Merseyside Women of the Year awards 2019 and a public vote has been opened to decide the overall Merseyside Woman of the Year.

Laura Hughes, Margot Walker and Brenda Porter will join Bootle based organisation RASA to make the shortlist of 26 unsung heroes from across the region at the annual independent awards ceremony, which will take place on Friday 28 June 2019 at the Crowne Plaza in Liverpool City Centre.

The categories for 2019 are Women’s Group, Young Apprentice, Arts & Media, Entrepreneur, Inspirational Woman, One to Watch, Social Impact, Woman of Courage, Business Leader, Woman Making a Difference and Community Change.

Laura Hughes, Formby, Sefton – Laura Hughes is the sister of Colin McGinty, who was brutally stabbed to death. She campaigns to prevent young people carrying knives and ensure that other families don’t endure the pain hers has suffered.

Margot Walker, Blundellsands, Sefton – Margot’s independent family-run pawnbrokers has survived despite competition from large national companies for over 100 years. For many years she was the only woman representative of the National Council of Pawnbrokers, eventually becoming President.

Brenda Porter, Ainsdale, Sefton – Eighty-year-old Brenda is a tireless “Champion of the Community” in Ainsdale and her impact is far reaching. Brenda has not let much get in her way but her age and gender have meant that she has always had to work harder to prove herself.

RASA, Bootle, Sefton

RASA has worked tirelessly for almost 35 years to support victims of rape and sexual abuse. The small grassroots voluntary service welcomes close to 3,000 new clients each year.

A public vote is now open to decide the overall “woman of the year” (closes 10th June).  The winner will be announced at the annual ceremony on 28th June. 

To find out more about the finalists and vote for your Merseyside Woman of the Year 2019 visit https://merseysidewomenoftheyear.co.uk/mwoty-finalists

Sefton Council has been informed that due to an unforeseen technical issue with the BACS payment system, teacher pay has not been processed today (May 23).

A spokesman for Sefton Council said: “We apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused and can confirm that all salaries will be credited to individual bank accounts tomorrow (May 24).

“Individuals affected have been contacted directly and further updates will be provided later today to clarify what will happen around issues such as bank charges.

“If any member of staff suffers bank charges as a result of this issue, please send evidence of the charge to centralpayroll@sefton.gov.uk for the Council to resolve.

“We would like to thank staff for their patience while the problem is rectified.”

Voters across Sefton and the North West go to the polls this Thursday (May 23) to elect the region’s eight Members of the European Parliament (MEPs).

Thousands of polling stations will be open in Cheshire, Cumbria, Lancashire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside from 7am to 10pm on the day.

People who have received their postal vote are being encouraged to complete and return it as soon as possible. Anyone who leaves it too late to post can still drop it off at any polling station in the local authority area where they are registered between 7am and 10pm on Thursday, May 23.

MEPs represent the whole of the North West region and so everybody who is eligible to vote in the region will be voting from the same list of parties and individual candidates.

The European Parliamentary Elections are conducted using a form of proportional representation. Each elector has ONE vote, which can be cast for a political party or an individual candidate. The allocation of the eight MEP positions will depend on the overall share of the vote that a party or individual candidate receives across the region.

Counts will take place across the North West on Sunday, May 26, with the overall regional result being declared in Manchester on the night. Votes will be counted at Aintree Racecourse in Sefton.

Joanne Roney OBE, Regional Returning Officer for the European Elections in the North West, said: “There are more than five million eligible electors across the North West in 39 different local authority areas. Some have already voted by post. We don’t want anyone who wants to vote to miss out and are keen to ensure that those who are voting in person are aware of polling day arrangements.

“Your poll card will show which polling station you need to vote at, or you can check your local authority website. You will only be able to vote in person at this polling station. But you don’t need to have your poll card with you to be able to vote.”

For more information visit www.northwestvotes.gov.uk

Mark Waterhouse, Principle Social Worker at Sefton Council, has been recognised for the positive difference he has made to the health and social care sector at Liverpool Hope University’s Leaders Club Awards 2019.

The awards celebrate individuals who have made a significant impact to the Liverpool City Region by demonstrating excellent leadership skills and promoting excellence in leadership in others.

Mark’s work with Sefton Council’s Integrated Re-ablement and Assessment Service has been key to developing a multi-agency collaboration that has delivered transformative support care for those with support needs across the Liverpool City Region.

This work has led him to be awarded the top prize in the award’s health and social care category.

In each category, the judges have looked individuals that demonstrate a number of leadership values, traits and qualities including honesty, integrity, courage, empathy, competency, communication, co-operation and impact.

Mark’s career in social work began 30 years ago when he mistakenly applied for a job in the civil service while looking for work in the catering industry. However, he quickly fell in love with the social care profession and has gone on to do great things for Sefton’s most vulnerable residents.

Dwayne Johnson, Director of Social Care and Health at Sefton Council, said: “Congratulations to Mark for all his hard work with Sefton’s Integrated Re-ablement and Assessment Service – his contribution has helped deliver joined-up care for some of our most vulnerable residents. Well done Mark, this award is very well deserved.”

Mark added: “I’m delighted. I have never won anything before and it was a huge surprise – I didn’t even know I was nominated let alone that I’d won the award! It means so much as I was nominated by the NHS clinical commissioning group. I’m proud of my contribution to the project.”