Category: Council Services

The Inspectors who carried out the Examination in Public of our Local Development Plan (LDP) last year have now shared their post hearing thoughts, expressing concern about only two aspects of the LDP: housing and Gypsy and Traveller sites.

They do not raise concerns about other aspects of the Plan, such as the strategy, settlement hierarchy, employment, retail, affordable housing, transport, minerals or environmental policies. They require the Council to submit a statement to address specific queries and requests for information and will hold further hearings in February and March.

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We are now working to respond to the concerns raised and will submit further factual evidence before hearings in March or April.

Lawrence Isted, Chief Officer Planning and Regulatory, said: “It is not uncommon for such letters to be issued by Inspectors during an Examination in Public allowing us to respond to it and undertake further work before adoption of the LDP. We have had clarification from the Inspectors and are now preparing our response by the due date of January 31. We will continue to cooperate fully with the Inspectors to ensure the LDP can be taken forward to adoption”

“Next steps for the LDP”

The Inspectors have set out the next steps in taking the Plan forward:

• They require us to submit a statement by 31 January 2020 answering a series of questions and providing additional information under various topic headings
• giving objectors/representors until 16 February to respond to our statement
• arranging 3 further public hearings – confirmed as:
  • 25 February (Council Chamber)
  • 11 March (Memorial Hall)
  • 12 March (Catrin Finch Centre)

The inspectors have yet to confirm the topics that will be discussed at, or the agendas for, these hearings, as this will depend on our statement and the objectors/respondent/s further submissions.

It is at the end of these next steps that the inspectors will determine whether we are in a position to take the plan forward to the next stage.

The Inspectors’ letter/note and our letter have been translated and placed on the our LDP web page. This will keep objectors/representors and the wider public informed of the Inspectors’ thoughts and intentions. Information on the Council’s statement and the further hearings will be publicised via our Local Development Plan website at:

https://wrexham-consult.objective.co.uk/portal/examination_library_page

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In response to the fire incident at Kronospan, the Council are advising local residents of the following:

A quantity of logs and woodchip material situated on an area of Kronospan’s Logyard  caught fire at approximately 02.00 hours on Monday, January 13 2020.

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The Fire Service has been in attendance since responding to the incident and has confirmed that the fire is contained and under control. The managed fire will continue to burn for a period of time. The fire will be extinguished as soon as practicable, depending on the prevailing weather conditions.

In the meantime the Council would advise residents of the local community to heed the following advice issued by Public Health Wales:

“If you are in a place affected by smoke, stay indoors and keep doors and windows closed when affected by the smoke, but open them again to air your home when the smoke passes. If you need to be outdoors, avoid areas affected by smoke or ash, or limit the time you spend in them. Motorists who have travel through the smoke should keep windows closed, turn off air conditioning and keep their air vents closed.

Smoke can irritate airways, the skin and the eyes leading to coughing and wheezing, breathlessness and chest pain. This can also mean that problems such as asthma get worse; people with asthma should carry their inhaler with them at all times.

Odours associated with fires can cause annoyance, stress and anxiety, nausea, headaches or dizziness. These are common reactions to odours, rather than to the substances that cause the smell. We are able to detect odours at levels that are much lower than can cause harm to health.

Anyone concerned about their symptoms should contact their GP or NHS Direct on 0845 46 47. The symptoms usually disappear quickly and should not lead to long term health problems.”

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Free parking after 2pm has now been agreed by Executive Board 🙂

“Cllr Mark Pritchard, Leader of the Council, said: “This is a very positive move to supporting the town centre and I hope residents and traders take advantage of this offer. It’s for a trial period of 12 months which will give us a reasonable time-frame to judge how popular it is and how traders have benefited from its introduction. I would like to thank all the coalition members for their support on this and thank staff who have worked hard on this initiative.”

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Free parking will not start immediately. There’s some legal action to be taken first before it can be offered. We expect this will be completed by April so please don’t park without paying until it’s safe to do so or you will receive a parking fine.

“Free parking after 2pm – where?”

The plans do not include Tŷ Pawb but do include the council’s car parks at:

• Waterworld
• Wrexham Library
• St George’s Crescent
• Crescent Road
• St Giles
• Market Street

You can read our previous report below:

Town centre could see free parking after 2pm🙂

Gallai canol y dref weld parcio am ddim ar ôl 2pm 🙂

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Areas around the county borough will be monitored this weekend as we are aware of 4×4  off roading events that could be damaging to our environment. We’ll be working with North Wales Police to ensure that our protected woodlands are respected and that off-roading activities adhere to the relevant legislation.

Please ensure you only attend properly organised and legal events and be aware we will not hesitate to prosecute anyone who is in breach of the legislation.

The first Executive Board of 2020 takes place on Tuesday (14.01.2020) and here’s an overview of what’s on the Agenda.

First up members will be asked to endorse a new vision for Wrexham which has been put together by the Civic Leadership Group. A group of leaders from a range of organisations and businesses in Wrexham who are united in their ambition to support Wrexham achieve its full potential.

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The vision “Wrecsam’s Common Purpose – a vibrant town centre ready for further investment” aims to complement existing plans and bring investment from a wide audience.

Next they’ll be taking a look at the Council Plan performance report for Quarter 2 2019/20 and this will be an opportunity for them to challenge any areas they may have that are of concern.

Other items include approval to appoint two chief officers to replace the Chief Officer for Education and Early Intervention which becomes vacant in August and the Chief Officer Social Care which becomes vacant in March.

A Regional Strategy for Carers will also be discussed along with Wrexham’s Adult Protection Policy.

“Want to know more about this Executive Board?”

You can take a look at the reports here and the meeting will be broadcast live from our website and you can get the link here (https://wrexham.public-i.tv/core/portal/home

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At the next meeting of the Executive Board members will be asked to approve the “North Wales Carers’ Strategy.”

The Strategy recognises the key role that carers of all ages have in the health and social care environment and the need to value them for the support in their vital role. It also recognises the importance of working in partnership with carers throughout their contact with the service.

But not all see themselves as carers. They will describe themselves as a parent, husband, wife, partner, son, daughter, brother, sister, friend or neighbour, but not as a carer.

A parent carer is a parent or guardian who has additional duties and responsibilities towards his/her child because his/her child has an illness or disability. Parent carers will often see themselves as parents rather than carers, but they may require additional services in order to meet or continue to meet the needs of their child.

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As a carer they can benefit from a range of services including information, advice and support. They can also have one to one support, join support groups, forums, cafes, receive emotional support, counselling, training, therapies, benefits advice, carer breaks, peer support activities, advocacy, direct payments, supported and grants.

The Strategy looks further than the services however, it has taken on board what carers have said about needing good quality reliable support for the person cared which is of paramount importance and contributes to their well-being as carers. They’ve also said that they really value the range of support provided by third sector organisations.

They’ve also said that they appreciate being listened to, being recognised, respected and heard by people responsible for designing and providing services for them and the person they care for.

“Now thinking as carers”

The report will be presented by Cllr Joan Lowe, Lead Member for Adult Health and Social Care, who said: “By looking through the eyes of carers a real insight into their needs has been achieved. This has resulted in services now thinking as carers,would, involving them in decision making and working with them to produce services around their needs. The Strategy is a real step forward in improving the well-being for this amazing group of people who do a fantastic and selfless in looking after loved ones.”

The Strategy was co-produced with the Carers Trust, Nroth East Wales carers Information Service, Barnardo’s Cymru, Wrexham Carers Service, Hafal, Carers Outreach Service, Action for Children and Wrexham, Conwy and Denbighshire Young Carers.

You can read the full North Wales Carers Strategy here.

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