SINGLETON Parish Council is strongly objecting to a proposal from the travellers at Hardhorn to install utility buildings, cesspools, fencing, and hardstandings for their caravans.
Although the travellers are not residing in our parish, Singleton PC is one of the neighbouring councils asked for their views by Fylde Borough Council as part of standard planning consultation procedure. The travellers application, no.09/0830 registered on 25th January 2010, is for a change of use from agricultural land.
The site continues to generate controversy, parish councillors heard at their meeting on Thursday, 11th February 2010. In the latest formal police letter to Singleton residents, dated 5th February, the police reported several incidents involving travellers’ dogs, including a farmer’s shooting of two dogs which were worrying sheep. The letter also reported that there were now 34 caravans housing around 80 people.
Fylde Borough Council’s community meeting at Staining Village Hall on Wednesday, 10th February, was packed with at least 300 people and possibly even as many as 400, Cllr Maxine Chew reported. Many of the local people attending made angry protests to the police speakers, who said they were maintaining a regular presence at the travellers’ site at Hardhorn.
Councillors have been told the re-routing of the no.75 bus along Hardhorn Lane has nothing to do with the existence of the travellers’ site but was due to a rescheduling following temporary changes to a route at Poulton.
Please report anything suspicious
Please report any crime or suspicious incident, no matter how minor, say local police. PCSO Annette Begg attended the parish council meeting to report on crime figures for January, and once again asked for more members of the public to report incidents to the police so that more accurate crime figures can be produced. The number to call for any non-emergency is (01253) 293933 (Blackpool police).
NB: The next PACT meeting is on Wednesday, 3rd March 2010, at Staining Village Hall, starting at 2pm. All are welcome.
Sewerage planned for Mains Lane
FYLDE Borough Council is working with United Utilities on a plan to introduce mains sewerage to Mains Lane. The Mains Lane project is theoretically due to be completed by March 2012, but Fylde is hoping to extend the deadline to 2014/2015 to link in with a similar project at Poulton, which will be carring the sewage from Singleton, and will overcome the problems of otherwise mismatched systems.
Garden competition
SINGLETON TRUST has welcomed the council’s proposal for a gardening competition to be staged alongside the church’s 150th anniversary and has promised £300 for funding the prizes for the best gardens in the village. Councillors are to discuss details at their next meeting.
Grit bins
LOCAL resident Don Sidebottom, of Singleton, has offered to pay for some grit bins to be sited around the parish. He has also offered to pay for a new noticeboard and litter-bin. His generosity was warmly welcomed by councillors.
Other issues
- The parish council is keen to refurbish the fingerpost in Sandy Lane which is believed to have been lopped by an overenthusiastic hedge trimmer.
- Cllr Maxine Chew is contacting Lancashire County Council to see whether the lamp-posts due to be replaced in the village could be old-fashioned ones which Rural Futures is happy to fund with a grant.
- Councillors had no objections to plans to drill an exploratory borehole to test for hydrocarbons at land off Grange Road. The application was for temporary change of use from agricultural land and included the construction of a drilling platform and access point.
Next meeting
OUR next parish council meeting is on Thursday, 11th March 2010, once again in St Anne’s Church vestry and beginning at 7.30pm. All are welcome.