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 Timperley councillors Cllr. Jane Brophy and Cllr Neil Taylor welcome Rochdale MP 

Cllr Jane Brophy, Altrincham & Sale West Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Spokesperson, welcoming Paul Rowen MP to the dinner at the Bowdon Hotel in Hotel said;"It gives me great pleasure to introduce Paul Rowen MP. Paul started out in the Young Liberals and helped get Cyril Smith elected as the Rochdale Member of Parliament in 1972.Paul was previously Leader Lib Dem Group for Rochdale and then Council leader for a number of years before being elected to Parliament in 2005. He has campaigned on climate change, spoken against Trident and is currently a member of the Lib Dem Work and Pension's Team. He has seen is job widen, under Nick Clegg, to include work, welfare reform and disability employment.

Paul Rowen MP for Rochdale speaking at Altrincham & Sale West said: "There are three things people remember about Rochdale 

1. Cyril Smith
2. Gracie Fields
3. The Co-op
   
   Cllr Jane Brophy also spoke and recalled her first job working for the Liberal Democrat MPs in the House of Commons Press Office. She mentioned that this involved standing by a Fax machine for long periods as there were no emails in the 1980s. She then had to get in the office at 6:30am to read ALL the newspaper to prepare press cuttings for 9:30am MPs meeting. A friend who worked for Ming Campbell then found her a job at the Vegetarian Society in Altrincham. She said "That's why I came back to live in this area"
   
   Cllr Neil Taylor said "As party chair it was warming to have Paul Rowen MP visiting Altrincham during a very busy period for him. Those in attendance had a most enjoyable evening"

In the Photo above Lord John Lee, Cllr Neil Taylor, Cllr Jane Brophy, Paul Rowen MP & Cllr Mark Clayton,

at the Altrincham & Sale West Annual Dinner, Bowdon Hotel, Altrincham 6th March 2010

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Liberal Democrat Timperley Ward councillors lead a Big Tidy-Up in Timperley 

20 people turned up to help Cllr. Neil Taylor and Cllr. Jane Brophy with the Big Tidy-Up in Timperley on Saturday 27th February. We were delighted that the group included Cllr. Coup, Trafford’s Executive Member for the Environment. The Lib Dems embrace organisations like Keep Britain Tidy and their Big Tidy Up, and it’s nice to see local authorities like Trafford taking part in this initiative. 

 The Timperley Tidy-Up started tackling rubbish near the Metrolink Station, along Park Road, around the Sylvan Avenue embankment and the Brookfield Avenue shops.  We collected 19 bags of rubbish which will all be recycled; amongst the items found were a pair of pliers, an old shoe and some rusty keys!

Cllr. Jane Brophy said “We hope our actions highlight litter problems in Timperley, and encourage everyone to start disposing of it properly. Rubbish must not be allowed to blight our environment.
It was particularly pleasing to clear rubbish away from the hedge opposite the Metrolink Station. This hedge is the home of many house sparrows, which are of conservation concern due to rapidly declining numbers in recent years.”

Cllr Neil Taylor said “I would like to personally thank everyone who turned up. Because we had so many volunteers I was able to lead a group all the way to the end of Brookfield Avenue to clear rubbish at Black Bridge. 
I hope working on ‘The Timperley Tidy-Up’ will highlight the problem, create a sense of community, and for our younger volunteers, it will be their first taste of active citizenship.” 

One volunteer commented: “I can recommend A Tidy Up as a fun way of being active in our community."

 

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Liberal Democrat Timperley ward councillor seeks answers on health inequalities

An assessment of on how well Trafford's public services were performing, by the Audit Commission's ‘quality of life’ survey, was published in late 2009 through the independent Oneplace website.  This highlighted areas where there was good performance, but also flagged significant concerns about two aspects of service delivery.
 Oneplace provides an independent overview of local public services. It help people see how well their local services, including councils, police and the NHS, are serving their needs and how well these services are working together to improve an area's quality of life.
At the full council meeting on Wednesday 24th February 2010, Cllr Jane Brophy sought a progress report on the areas requiring action through the following question:

“Please could the appropriate Executive Member outline what Trafford Council is doing following the two red flags, highlighting that there are significant concerns and that action is needed, achieved from the Audit Commission in December on 'Working with local organisations' and 'Inequalities in Health?”

In a supplementary question, Cllr Brophy asked: “Why only Adult Health and Well-Being was a Corporate Priority and not Children & Young People?” Cllr Colledge agreed that this should change.
After the meeting Cllr Jane Brophy, Altrincham & Sale Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Spokesperson said,  “I would like to congratulate all those involved in achieving a green flag on 'Tackling gun crime and gang violence’.  However, health inequalities are also an important issue, few people realise life expectancy varies by up to 11 years across Trafford; this is quite simply unfair.  The Trafford Partnership, which brings together public services and representatives from private and voluntary organisations all have an important role to play in improving public health.  I will continue to press for these inequalities to be addressed.”

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Lib Dems question provision in Trafford for young people with Special Needs between the ages 18 - 25.

Cllr Jane Brophy, Timperley Councillor asked at the most recent Full Council at Trafford Town Hall:
"Please could the Executive Member outline what provision there is in Trafford for young people with Special Needs, for example Asperger Syndrome, between the ages 18 - 25. I have had casework which suggests a gap in service at 18 once a young person leaves the Education System. Apparently at this age they can fall between services unless they qualify to be seen by the Mental Health Team or Learning Disability Service. I am aware that Trafford funds young people to attend Aspirations in Trafford."
 Cllr Jane Brophy went on to ask a supplementary question about the need for continuity of the same people doing assessments on young people with Special Needs.  She asked what are our Trafford Services, working with these young people, are doing to make this happen.