Harry Cohen
BIRCHWOOD CAT TEAM AND “ARTSMARK GOLD”
Over the past few months I have visited two different sections of the Birchwood community who are achieving success and leading the way in their activities.
In June I was pleased to be able to join Community Support Officer (CSO) Barry Flynn on his beat in the Oakwood area and on a visit to the shopping mall were we met security chief Bill Mercer. Barry and his colleagues are a welcome addition to the local police CAT team based at Risley. The team here in Birchwood has been, in many ways, the pioneers of this form of policing which has proved so successful in combating crime and anti-social behaviour. They have forged strong links with the Town Council and Birchwood Mall, which has contributed greatly to a reduction in shoplifting and has made the mall a more pleasant place to shop. Crime and the fear of crime and anti-social behaviour represent real concerns which is why the success of the CAT team and the CSO’s in Birchwood has lead me to call for these initiatives to be extended across the town and for the issue to be debated in full in Parliament.
Yet another, well deserved, success came to way of Birchwood High School when it was awarded an ‘Artsmark Gold’ award which is a national scheme recognising their commitment to the arts. Every school that receives an Artsmark award has been through a full audit of arts provision and every winner offers a broad range of arts opportunities for their students. When I visited the school to congratulate them on their success I was also able to tour the ‘building site’ which will be the school’s new art centre and I very much look forward to it opening its doors to students in the not to distant future.
