Chris Gloster

I was elected to Oldham Council for the first time in May 2015.  I am now Deputy Leader of the Opposition having previously held the Health and Wellbeing Shadow portfolio.  As a consequence, I now have the Finance and Corporate Resources Shadow portfolio.

 

I am Shaw born and bred and very proud to represent all residents in the community.

 

I live in Fullwood, Shaw, with my wife Hazel, who works as an education advisor and is also an Oldham Borough Councillor.  We have two children, my son works in the home furnishings industry having completed an NVQ Level 3 in software development at Oldham College and my daughter is a pupil at Crompton House School studying for her A levels.

 

My interest in council affairs began during my time served as a community police inspector in Shaw and Royton when I worked closely alongside elected local councillors and council officers.

 

I have also been a school governor for 15 years and am currently serving in this capacity for Crompton House School and East Crompton St. James. 

 

My passions in life are helping to make Shaw a great place for people to grow up, live and work, and – when I have time – motorsport.

 

Annual Report

 

Cllr Chris Gloster – ShawWard

MY WARD PRIORITIES

·         Continue to support residents and businesses
throughout Covid-19 

·         Support residents and businesses affected by increase in spiralling cost of living especially energy costs

·         New Health Centre for Shaw 

·         Protecting Green Belt/Spaces 

·         Listening and engaging with residents 

·         Environmental Improvements 

·         Local Policing ASB/crime 

·         Bus and tram services 

·         Highways, footways and speeding traffic 

 

Training completed

·         Barnardo's Training – Module 6

·         Barnardo's Training - Module 5

·         Barnardo's Training- Module 4

·         Prevent E-learning

·         Barnardo's Training - Module 2

·         Barnardo's Training - Module 1

 

Work in thecommunity

 

 2021 has continued to be a different way of working with only the last few months seeing any sort of return to normality, with some council meetings reverting to the Civic Centre and other places rather than wholly online. This return is welcome, and I know this view is shared by my ward colleagues. Covid 19 continues to impact upon our daily lives, but we are not there yet, and myself and my ward colleagues will continue to support our brilliant community who battle on despite so many obstacles placed in our way due to restrictions in our daily lives, some of which will now be a ‘new normal’.

 

I said last year that the dynamics of being a ward Councillor have changed significantly for me, and my colleagues. We are presented with problems no-one has ever experienced before and have had to rise to the challenge. During the first lockdown a lot of my time was spent delivering prescriptions and food parcels to those people in need, their gratefulness in a stepped back conversation at the doorstep was heart-warming. We now need to develop upon this and ensure those who were in isolation come out into the fresh air, those struggling financially are looked after, and those in need of health care due to a restricted and overwhelmed NHS are treated and managed.

 

Despite restrictions, day to day council work stays unabated along with the new problems that on occasions have not been heard of before. I have kept in contact with residents by email, phone, social media, and Twitter as well as a greatly increased use of Microsoft Teams and Twitter as well as delivering questionnaires to residents who have then been able to respond with their concerns, that are always addressed and resolved if possible. I am now able to walk the ward door knocking again to meet residents, who overall are pleased to see us, and I am pleased to listen to, and where possible, address their concerns.

 

I am a member of the committees below where business as usual still needs to take place and I retain my 100% record for attendance at ordinary full council meetings. Additionally, as Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrat Opposition on Oldham Council, I hold the Shadow Finance and Low Carbon portfolio, and work with officers throughout the year.. 

 

·         Audit Committee 

·         Charitable Trust Committee (Substitute) 

·         Clayton Playing Fields 

·         Council 

·         Licensing Committee 

·         Licensing Driver Panel 

·         Petitioners' Panel 

·         Traffic Regulation Order Panel 

 

I am a school governor at Crompton House School and have been fully involved with the effects of Covid 19 on school life and have championed ensuring that pupils have had access to learning tools whilst needing to work from home.

 

I have joined the newly formed committee of Shaw and Crompton Royal British Legion after the branch closed last year.

 

·         I support residents with housing repairs, rehousing, neighbour disputes, healthcare complaints, council bins and rubbish removal, dog waste and new street litter or grit bins.

 

·         As the former Shaw and Crompton Police Inspector, I continue to work closely with our local Police, the District Partnership, Parish Council, residents, and businesses of Shaw to resolve the problem of anti-social behaviour and a perceived increase in crime, which GMP deny.. This work stays an on-going battle to ensure that residents have a safe place to live.

 

·         Along with my colleagues, I continue to challenge the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework, and its successor, working to achieve the best outcome possible for residents’ homes, jobs, and the environment by opposing the appalling loss of our green spaces. Brownfield First!

 

 

·         I have worked with residents to ensure that we keep adequate bus services in Shaw and Crompton to meet the needs of residents particularly in the current Covid 19 climate with many forms of transport restricted

·

·         I continue to be the lead Councillor in Shaw dealing with the aftermath of the St Paul’s Church roof collapse. This is an uphill battle complicated by a restrictive attitude of Historic England who are happy to obstruct demolition of this site but incapable of supplying anything other than words to remediate the problem that has so far cost hundreds of thousands of pounds to reduce to a pile of rubble. Covid 19 has not helped in letting this eyesore stagnate.

 

·         Along with my colleagues I formally object to planning applications if I believe they are inappropriate or not a benefit to residents, new council rules and proposed Tory Planning Law changes do not help.

 

·         I continue to drive the campaigns forward for a new Health Centre for Shaw and Crompton and from these campaigns I am hopeful that the promised new health centre by 2023 becomes a reality.

 

·         I constantly deal with issues surrounding speeding vehicles, Buckstones Road and Crompton Way are two examples, and I have had some success in getting the relevant authorities to look at education, engineering, and enforcement solutions to deal with this problem.

 

·          I work with the Highways Department to have the potholes, blocked grids and poor footpaths resurfaced or repaired.

 

·         I regularly pursue complaints of fly tipping around Shaw,

 

·         Along with my ward colleagues and in my role as Ward Councillor, I meet regularly with local groups, ensuring that our most asset, our countryside, stays well looked after and ecologically sustainable. I continue to ensure that this area is supported and safe to use by all. Most recently we have been instrumental in agreeing a new dog sign that will hopefully be introduced by the start of the nesting season.

 

·         I continue to work with residents and a variety of agencies for a resolution to on-going flooding problems, primarily in the areas of Dunwood Park, Grains Road, Beal Lane.

 

·          am pleased to report that we have now been able to resume Ward Surgeries face to face (see below).

 

CONTACT ME

E:chris.gloster@oldham.gov.uk

T: 01706 847709 

Twitter:@cllrchrisg 

 

SURGERIES

. (no appointment necessary)