VIEWPOINT - AUGUST 2014

I was delighted to be given a Cabinet position at the beginning of June, although somewhat trepidatious as I replace outgoing member Ciaran Wells, one of the best Councillors I have worked with. I have spent several weeks getting to know the people that fall within my portfolio but there are so many facets to the job that I feel I have barely scratched the surface. The position covers a wide range of responsibilities from parks and play facilities to sports pitches, public halls, tourism, allotments, art exhibitions and even cemeteries. It has certainly given me plenty to think about and I have spent a lot of time chatting to fellow ward Councillor, Clare Cleary (new portfolio holder for Housing), about our exciting first month in the Cabinet. With all the cuts facing the Council it is obviously going to be a challenge but this has simply given me renewed vigour at HBC and I am looking forward to a busy time ahead.

A recent spell of very wet followed by very hot weather has made grass cutting quite difficult for the work crews but all the green areas are now getting back to the condition they should be in for this time of year. Several members of the bowling community have also contacted me regarding the state of their greens and this too has addressed by the Parks department.

Unfamiliar Ground is a new art display on show at Accrington Library and runs until 29th July. The exhibition brings together the work of three exciting young artists, Chris Agnew, Rebecca King and Bronwen Sleigh, each of whom are challenging the boundaries of traditional printmaking, creating striking pictorial worlds that invite our imaginations to wander. I attended the opening night of the exhibition and was pleased to hear that this is the first in a series of installations coming to Hyndburn, with promising noises from the Arts Council of England for more investment in the area.

Hats off to all the members of the Oswaldtwistle carnival group for a very successful event recently. Over 3,000 people attended the Carnival, arguably the biggest crowd ever seen there, and thanks are due for all those volunteers who worked hard to ensure that Rhyddings Park was left spotless. Stone thieves damaged one of the low park walls just five days beforehand but I am pleased to say that the HBC work crew managed to repair it in time for the carnival.

We had another successful Rishton Festival on 5th July which had a ‘Pride of Britain’ theme. In addition to many varied stalls and wonderful costumes, the ale tent (which I introduced last year) raised £550 for Meningitis Now.

Finally, a word of warning: please do not go swimming in reservoirs and canals. Apart from the fact that the water can often be unsanitary, we have already seen a number of untimely deaths across England due to people getting into difficulty. Don’t risk yourself or your loved ones becoming a Hyndburn statistic.

Cllr Ken Moss
Cabinet member for Education, Leisure and the Arts