Lydiate – Will a volunteer ‘In Bloom’ type group take off?

Well I would like to think so as it could build on the work of Lydiate Parish Council which created the lovely garden area at Southport Road/Nedens Lane and the grassed/planted area outside St. Gregs Church on Liverpool Road. My previous blog posting about the gardens at Nedens Lane refers at:-

tonyrobertson.mycouncillor.org.uk/2016/02/10/lydiate-a-lovely-oasis-amongst-its-urban-surroundings/

And here’s a shot of the flower beds outside St. Gregs Church:-

Of course Lydiate Parish Council also used to provide beautiful hanging baskets along Southport Road and outside the Coronation Road shops but it stopped them a couple of years ago due to the cost implications. If a way could be found to reinstate them that would be a great.

And now a bit of history. Maghull in Bloom and its award winning volunteer groups used to be called Maghull & Lydiate in Bloom but became Maghull in Bloom due to the vast majority of its volunteers coming from Maghull. That volunteer group together with Maghull Maghull Station Volunteers has been going for 10 years now.

Sheila and I whilst living in Lydiate these days have been volunteering for Maghull in Bloom for two or three years now and we maintain the Lydiate/Maghull boundary planter on Southport Road outside Astor Court flats.

Helen Jones is trying to pull together a Lydiate volunteer group and she can be reached via this e-mail address:-

lydiateinflower@outlook.com

If you want to get involved please get in touch, Sheila and I have found working with Maghull in Bloom a real treat as you get to meet locals who also care for the local environment and make new friends too.

Maghull – Weeds festooned around new Home Bargains Site

So we know that Home Bargains is going to occupy the new store on the old Maghull Library/former Stafford Moreton Youth Centre site but have you seen the weeds that are growing in the ‘landscaped’ parts of the site!

Click on the photo to enlarge it

Who is the land owner I wonder and when will their grounds maintenance regime kick in?

As a Maghull in Bloom volunteer my view is that we need the owner to step up and make the landscaped parts of the site a credit to Maghull and the sooner the better please.

Maghull – Rotary Club’s purple4polio campaign to eradicate Polio.

Maghull in Bloom volunteers are supporting Rotary’s purple4polio campaign which aims to eradicate polio worldwide. Rotary has joined forces with the Royal Horticultural Society to distribute 5 million bulbs to ‘In Bloom’ groups across Britain and Ireland to raise awareness about their campaign.

They gave Maghull in Bloom 5000 purple crocus bulbs which have been planted at various locations, including the circular planters and barrier baskets in Maghull Square/along Westway and in the Maghull boundary baskets such as the one on the Maghull/Lydiate boundary on Southport Road.

The first photo also is amongst my Flickr shots at:-

www.flickr.com/photos/86659476@N07/

Lydiate Parish Councillor accused of impersonating Santa

Lydiate Parish Councillor Tony Robertson has found himself in deep water (or is that snow) for impersonating a Santa. He was rumbled by a little girl who came up to him this lunchtime outside Morrisons Store in Maghull and said ‘are you George’, no replied Santa I am Santa.

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But eventually Santa had to admit that George had been the previous Santa but that he had now gone back to Lapland. The little girl was seemingly unimpressed with that story and forced Santa to confirm that George had indeed just returned to his Maghull home.

But Santa’s embarrassment was all in a good cause though as funds were being raised for the good causes supported by Maghull & Aughton Rotary Club and the work of Maghull in Bloom’s volunteers.

Thanks to the generous folk of the locality for their contributions to the fund raising today and throughout the festive period.

Lydiate – Its volunteer litter pickers – An update – And is a 3rd local litter picking group about to be formed in Maghull?

Below is the text of a report/update e-mail sent to Lydiate Parish Council recently on behalf of Lydiate’s volunteer litter picking group.

Subject: Litter picking 28/11/16 – Lydiate.

Sorry to not have given feedback sooner…..in truth the above date was not
particularly effective, particularly as we faced a new challenge – it was an
icy day and it’s hard to pick litter frozen off the ground!!

That said, Southport Road and Lambshear Lane had been done the previous
week. We did manage Liverpool Road, Moss Lane, Sandy Lane and I am told,
Virginia Avenue.

The Parish Council [Lydiate] have given us litter sticks and these are great – thank you.

I think it is fair to say that this year we have collected in the region of
300 bags of litter. A huge achievement and frankly not the most onerous task
in the world. We have deep-cleaned areas where rubbish has clearly lain for
years. It means it is a lot easier to keep the momentum going now.

It seems a little unfair to cite the next litter pick on Saturday 31st
December and perhaps we deserve a little time off during the winter season.

May I propose the next date as Saturday 28 January 2017.

Thank you all so much for your dedication and hard work in trying to keep
Lydiate litter free.

A Maghull canal scene between the Green Lane and Westway road bridges. A stretch of canal tow path regularly litter picked by Maghull in Bloom volunteers.

A Maghull canal scene between the Green Lane and Westway road bridges. A stretch of canal tow path regularly litter picked by Maghull in Bloom volunteers.

I am sure I will see some of you over the festive period, but those I do not
I wish you and your families a relaxing and festive Christmas and New Year.

Thank you again,

There is of course another group of volunteer litter pickers who work under the banner of Maghull in Bloom – they keep the Leeds Liverpool Canal tow path clear of litter through Maghull and up to Bells Lane in Lydiate.

I also heard the other day that there may well be steps being taken towards a new volunteer litter group being set up in Maghull. If and when I hear more about this I will post some information.

Note:- Just to be clear I am not a part of the Lydiate volunteer litter picking group and whilst I am a Maghull in Bloom volunteer I am not a part of the canal litter picking group.

Maghull – It took over 3 years but someone has finally cut back the overgrown shrubs blocking the Westway pavement.

westway-hedging-cut-back-at-last-11-16

I could not quite believe what I was seeing recently when I realised that the overgrown shrubs that had significantly narrowed the pavement in Westway adjacent to The Dell & L’pool Rd Nth Traffic lights had actually been cut back!

I commented on this back in September 2013, see link below:-

tonyrobertson.mycouncillor.org.uk/2013/09/20/westway-maghull-dangerous-narrow-pavement/

I wonder who did it, an NHS or Sefton Council contractor?

Note:- The reference to Maghull in Bloom offering to take over the management of The Dell came to nothing sadly. It was meant to be a project where Kennet Prison would be involved too but first it was recategorised from an open prison (Cat C) to a closed one (Cat B) and then of course the prison closure was confirmed.