Marie Bashforth

Councillor Marie Bashforth Annual Report

 

Cllr Marie Bashforth – Royton South Ward

MY WARDPRIORITIES

My primary role is to represent Royton South Ward and the people who live here.

To respond to resident’s queries and investigate their concerns. Listening to residents and then representing their views on council.

Communication with residents by telephone or email, always a top priority.

 

 

Surgeries - Due to the Pandemic the bigger face to face meetings with residents have not been possible over the past two years, but we are putting these back into place now and looking towards setting up surgeries again.

 

Street Surgeries - Along with face-to-face surgeries, we are going to start up our street surgeries again, which always worked well and means we can get to speak to the residents who want to talk to and tell us their issues.

 

Royton Town Hall and Library - We continue to work towards the renovation of Royton Town Hall and the Library. The project is ongoing and is progressing. In fact, some of the more structural work will be starting in mid-March this year. Which is exciting. The Town Hall should remain the Hub of the town for residents and should be accessible and usable for everyone. This will include a fit for purpose library, that everyone can use in all sorts of different ways.

 

Growth and Development of Royton Centre - We are working with private and public sector partners to support that growth and development.

 

Building on our unique heritage - wanting to make Royton a thriving place to live, work and socialise. We are promoting volunteering opportunities so residents can get involved in the community and do their bit.

 

Outdoor Spaces - We also want to increase the use of our outdoor spaces; we have some lovely parks and walking trails. And these spaces provide an opportunity for residents to take control and improve their health. There are local sports and park clubs to be used, so promoting these activities is important.

 

 

Work in the community

Personal Casework directed to me from residents

 

Meeting with residents one to one or in larger groups and meetings has not been possible over the past year. So, communication has been mainly by telephone and email.

 

Along with this work I am also involved in.

 

·         Supporting residents whilst work is taking place in their immediate area due to private land development to ensure all planning criteria is being followed and when this is not happening to ensure we act on their behalf to correct any breaches of the planning conditions put in place.

·         Providing a bridge between residents and the council.

·         Being an advocate for local residents and signposting them to the right people at the council.

·         Keeping residents informed about the issues that affect them.

·         Don’t Trash Oldham - attending regular Litter Picks around the area.

 

As much as I did come into this local political role to be here for local residents, over the years it has become clear to me that by taking on more ‘council based’ roles I can actually do more for our residents in Royton. Everything I become involved in, invariably comes back to my work and life in Royton.

 

The roles I have taken, have involved work that is borough wide, remembering that Royton is part of the borough, and that all the subjects and areas that are covered and improved mean that the whole of the borough benefit from decisions made and improvements made to all the services involved in that role, this would include Royton and Royton residents.

 

Adaptations Panel (When face to face meetings were possible) - Allocating funding from the Better Care Fund, we looked at applications from families who had family members in hospital or other care facilities, but who, with the right adaptations to the family home could be cared for in their own home and so be with their families.

 

Our aim was to approve the applications where possible, grant the funding and arrange for support for the work to be carried out. We scrutinised all applications to make sure the funding was being spent in the correct way.

 

I am on the Licensing Committee

 

Chair of the Learning Disability Partnership Board (2018 – 2020)

 

This board works to make Oldham a better place to live for people who have a learning disability and supports their families

Such as

•              • Is there the support individuals need to live long and healthy lives?

•              • Are individuals being treated with dignity and respect

•              • Are they able to live at home with family or independently but with the right support? And be close to their families and friends.

•              • And are they able to maintain relationships and get the support they need to have a healthy, safe and fulfilling life

 

The Board challenges professional bodies, to improve the delivery of services to the people and families who need them.

 

Ensures money is spent on good quality services and the Board is consulted and involved with regard to plans or changes that will affect everyone with a learning disability or their carers.

 

The Domestic Violence Partnership

 

The purpose of this partnership is to ensure and work towards a coordinated response from all partners including the Police, the MASH Team, Social Services, and all voluntary organisations.

 

This Partnership undertook a lot of work, which over the years has helped to bring forward a bigger awareness of the dreadful issue of domestic violence in our communities.

 

Such as;

 

White Ribbon Accreditation

 

The White Ribbon is there to promote the message of respect and leading by example.

 

White Ribbon status is an official accreditation and highlights our commitment to ending violence against women. This accreditation is now in place and a number of our councillors have become White Ribbon champions.

 

Chair of the Health and Well Being Board (2020 to 2022) –

 

Something I wanted to do, as wanted to have more say and input on how our Health and Well Being Services are commissioned and delivery throughout the borough.

 

The Board brings together a large group of people and is always very well attended. We have GPs, Nurse Practitioners, Care Providers, Housing Providers, the police, community residents and the voluntary sectors.

 

Our biggest and most recent work is around the very clear and worrying health inequalities in our borough. In order to help us with this work we want to involve more people in our meetings. Leadership of the council have the final say on how services are commissioned and how they are delivered, so their input would be valuable.

 

Everyone involved with this Board have a vital role into looking at why we have these inequalities, what they can lead to, and what can be done to bring about positive changes.

 

Health Inequalities - What are the five main causes of health inequalities?

 

There is ample evidence that social factors,

• Education

• Health service provision (GPs, hospital services)

• Employment status

• Income level

• Gender and ethnicity

• And housing, is it good quality housing?

• Financial situations and debt management

 

The Board considers services offered and are they delivered well.

GP services, Housing, Early Start and nursery services, Pharmacy coverage and access, Antenatal services, Smoking cessation services, Dental services, and accessibility.

 

Health Inequalities can lead to.

Heart disease, Hypertension, Stroke, Heart failure, Diabetes, Cancer, Liver disease, mental health issues and respiratory disease.

 

These facts show how important work around health inequalities is, due to wide range of areas and illnesses health inequalities affect.

 

 

 

Contact me E: marie.bashforth@oldham.gov.uk T: 01706 290313 M: 53 Penthorpe Drive, Royton Oldham OL2 6JL

Surgeries – Face to face surgeries are planned and will commence as soon as possible. Until then residents can contact me telephone and email. I will ensure to be available to help and support our community in this way. Also active on Facebook and keep in contact with residents through all local neighbourhood pages on Facebook.