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Temporary timetable changes on Merseyrail’s Southport line start from Monday 6^th March.

Brand-new trains

Part of the phased roll-out of the brand- new fleet of Class 777 trains, the changes are to support driver training. They will also affect the Ormskirk and Hunts Cross lines.

On the Southport line, the following Monday to Friday trains will be cancelled:

• Hunts Cross to Southport – 12:51;
• Southport to Hunts Cross – 14:13;
• Hunts Cross to Southport – 15:21;
• Southport to Hunts Cross – 17:58;
• Hunts Cross to Southport – 19:06
• Southport to Hunts Cross – 20:28.

There are no cancellations on the Southport line on Saturdays or Sundays.

Planner

Passengers can use the journey planner at merseyrail.org or use the Merseyrail App for the latest information.

Further announcements will be made ahead of the start of the roll out of the fleet on these lines so passengers will know exactly when to expect their new trains.

Exciting

Suzanne Grant, Commercial Director at Merseyrail, said: “Our driver training programme will be moving across to the Ormskirk line as we move towards the next exciting phase of the roll out of the new trains.

“This does mean a temporary reduction in the frequency of services on the Ormskirk and Southport line while this happens, but we will ensure that a full timetable can be restored as soon as possible.

“We apologise for any inconvenience that this temporary reduction in frequency will cause passengers and look forward to our Ormskirk line passengers experiencing the ground-breaking new trains in the near future.”

You can find out more about Merseyrail services here.

Sefton Council is encouraging young people across the Borough who have just turned 18 not to miss out on their first chance to vote.

New legislation

First-time voters and everyone else wanting to cast their vote at a polling station in Mays local elections will be required to show valid photographic identification following new legislation via the Elections Act 2022.

If they have them, younger people can use a driving licence or passport as photo ID at a polling station but if they don’t have these or one of the other accepted documents, they can get a free Voter Authority Certificate online.

Voters who do not want to vote in person at a polling station can apply to cast their vote by post.

You can find information on what is required and how to apply, along with details of registering to vote and getting a postal vote, here. 

To help ensure everyone is aware of the new requirements and encourage them to exercise their democratic right to vote, Sefton Council is running a Borough-wide advertising dubbed ‘IDeal Time’ on high streets and public transport.

Don’t miss out

Cllr Lappin, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regulatory, Compliance and Corporate Resources said: “We want to ensure first-time voters prepare now to ensure they don’t miss out.

“That’s why we are running our high-profile IDeal Time campaign to highlight what they need to do and by when they need to do it.

“Anyone without a valid photo ID can apply for a free Voter Authority Certificate up to six working days before the elections on Thursday, May 4th.

“And the cut-off date for registering to vote is Thursday April 13th, and the deadline for receipt of all postal vote applications is Tuesday, April 18th.”

Passports, driving licences and parking Blue Badges, along with older and disabled people’s bus passes are among the types of photo ID people can show to be allowed to vote under the Election Act 2022.

Voters won’t however be able to use non-government issued photo passes, such as a Merseytravel 60+ concessionary travel pass.

Prepared

Cllr Lappin continued: “Our teams are already working extremely hard to ensure everything is in place to meet the new requirements, but this is the time for voters across Sefton to make sure they are prepared too so we are not forced to turn anyone away on May 4th.”

There’s more information about the upcoming elections and rule changes, here.

To mark National School Governors Awareness Day, Sefton Council is launching a new recruitment drive to boost numbers of school governors across the borough.

Sefton launched the #GiveBackGetAhead campaign today to encourage people to think about being a school governor and shine a light on the fantastic governor cohort currently working with our primary and secondary schools.

The campaign will see governors explain how vital the role is, why they love it and what they get out of it. Being a school governor can enhance a CV, provide a place to learn and develop new skills and also give back to the local community and make a difference to children and young people.

No formal qualifications are needed to become a school governor; you just need to be aged 18 or over and pass a DBS check. Everyone has a range of experiences and skills to offer and an effective governing body has people from all kinds of different backgrounds.

The Council is offering a comprehensive series of governor training courses to enable governors to feel confident to carry out their roles when they first start. They also produce a termly governor training programme of learning opportunities which caters for new governors as well as the more experienced who want to further their knowledge in a specialised area.

The campaign will run on social media and in our public buildings and hopes to recruit more Governors  across Sefton primary and secondary schools.  

Cllr Diane Roscoe, Cabinet Member for Education said:

“I am thrilled to be celebrating our governors on National School Governor Awareness Day. They are a fantastic group of people who give their time and commitment to making our schools the best place they can be.

“We want as many people as possible to take a few minutes today to read over our information and think about whether they might want to be a school governor in Sefton.

“It is rewarding and valued position and I would urge anyone who had the time and passion for making a difference to our children, families and communities, to apply now.”

National School Governor Awareness Day aims to raise awareness of governance in our schools and celebrate the contribution that governors make to improving the experiences of children and young people.

An extension of Sefton Council successful Selective and Additional (HMO) Licensing schemes for private rented homes starts this week.

Consultation

Coming into effect on Wednesday 1^st March, the extension of the scheme was given the go-ahead after a consultation last year.

Since it introduced Licensing schemes in March 2018, Sefton Council has used them to secure improvements for people living in privately rented properties across the Brough. Over 3,000 serious health and safety hazards, including problems with fire safety, electrical hazards, damp & mould and excess cold, have been removed from licensed properties in that time.

More about the Licensing schemes, details of the properties they cover and how landlords can apply for the required licence, can be found here.  

Hazards

Cllr Trish Hardy Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing said: “Approaching 3,900 private rented properties across the Borough are registered through our Selective and Additional (HMO) Licensing schemes, which have enabled us the Council to step in and deal with poor management thousands of hazards being faced by tenants.

In most cases, we have been able to work with landlords to resolve the situations informally, but the Licensing schemes do give us additional powers for formal enforcement action, which we will use if we need to.”

This week Sefton Council is also supporting national Empty Homes Week.