Newcastle City Council

Contacts
What's happening in your ward
Local council services
Reporting problems
Your ward committee and getting involved
Further information

Contacts

• Councillors
• Find your MP and Parliamentary Constituency
• Westerhope Ward Surgeries
• Ward Co-ordinator: Christine Earl
  Phone: 277 7082
  E-mail: christine.earl@newcastle.gov.uk
• Neighbourhood Response Manager: Edward Bulloch
  Phone: 277 3991
  E-mail: edward.bulloch@newcastle.gov.uk

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What's happening in your ward

Westerhope Mature Action Group
Known locally as Westerhope MAGS, this is a forum for anyone over the age of 50 who has an interest in the Westerhope ward. The group meets on the second Wednesday in every month. Meetings are free, informal and welcoming and are held from 10.40am - 12noon in the hall of the Westerhope Community Association, and are preceded by a gentle exercise session (9.30am – 10.20am) and tea and biscuits (10.20am – 10.40am).
The aim of MAGS is to share information, discuss issues that affect older people, and make the views of older people heard as one voice. The group also offers friendship, support and fitness opportunities. 
Westerhope MAGS is part of the Westerhope Ward Committee which is committed to improving the quality of life of older people in Westerhope. For more information about the Ward Committee and/or Westerhope MAGS, please contact the Westerhope and Denton Ward Co-ordinator.
View the Westerhope MAGs Programme of Activities July – December 2010 (pdf, 43Kb)

Finding the credit crunch tough? We could help
If you feel you’re having to tighten your belt and money isn’t going as far as it used to, our new ‘Income Generator’ team might be able to help. We have joined up two parts of the council – the Benefits Section and Welfare Rights – to create recession-busting help for anyone in the city.
The team can help you by looking at what benefits you may not even realise you’re entitled to which could save you pounds on council tax, rent or other areas of your budget.
For more information please phone our specially trained advisors, Claire Toleman, Welfare Rights Officer on 07976 507 471 or Peter Scott, Revenues and Benefits Operational Support Officer on 07500 224 928 or email them on claire.toleman@newcastle.gov.uk or lisa.meadows@newcastle.gov.uk

Westerhope Ward Neighbourhood Charter Newsletter (pdf, 1Mb)

Health Trainers – making healthy choices easier
HealthWorks Newcastle have a team of Community Health Trainers who can help you to make better health choices. They can provide people with information about local services, community groups and projects. They can support people to stop smoking, reduce stress and anxiety, get fit and make friends and make healthy and safe relationship choices. Community Health Trainers work with individuals and groups. If you would like their support phone 273 8889.

Fusion is a two-year, City Council-led scheme that aims to increase participation in physical activity amongst children, young people and family groups across Newcastle. The scheme offers free activities at council managed leisure centres and pools and at partner organisations.

Surplus school sites in the Outer West - consultation feedback
In October 2008 we hand-delivered a short questionnaire to over 4,000 households in the Chapel House and Chapel Park areas in order to find out residents' views on the possible future use and development of three surplus school sites, comprising

1. Part of the former Chapel House Middle / Thomas Bewick Schools;
2. Former Chapel Park Middle School; and
3. Former Parkway Special School.

The questionnaire asked residents what they thought would be the best uses for these three sites. 1,638 responses were received. This represents an excellent rate of return and means that the results are a good representation of the views of the community as a whole. We would like to thank all those who took the time to fill in the questionnaire. Your comments will be very helpful in drawing up policies for these sites in the future. A newsletter has been distributed to inform residents of the main findings of the research and what we plan to do next.
View the newsletter (pdf, 188Kb).
Read the full consultation report (pdf, 3Mb).

The Heritage Wheel Project 
Members of the Westerhope Village Residents Association have worked with Councillors and Officers from Westerhope, Woolsington and Denton, to restore and reclaim a miners' wheel originally from Ellington Colliery in Northumberland. The wheel, inscribed with 'Westerhope' around it, has been installed on the roundabout at the junction of Stamfordham Road and West Denton Way, and was presented last August as part of the Our Heritage Festival  (pdf, 448Kb). Alongside the renovation of the wheel an arts heritage project is being developed that brings the three Westerhope Primary Schools and the Local History Society together with an artist to produce a modern day ‘Westerhope Miners Banner’. For more information contact your Ward Co-ordinator.

Sure Start Denton and Westerhope Children’s Centre
Across Newcastle all services for children under 5 are being brought together under the banner of ‘Sure Start Children’s Centres’. Sure Start Children’s Centres will offer additional services for pre birth to five years. Services will be planned in the area based upon:

• High quality integrated child care with full day care provision for children
• Qualified teacher input to lead the development of learning within the centre
• Childminder networks
• Information and advice available for parents
• Effective links with job centre plus
• Parenting support and outreach support
• Family Health services including anti-natal services

The Children’s Centre building behind West Denton Primary School, Hillhead Road, West Denton is now open.
The Children Centre has also funded refurbishment work at Westerhope Community Association. Activities are also run from this venue and from other satellite sites in the future. For more information please contact Rebecca Budden, Children’s Centre Manager
Phone: 0191 277 2033.
Email: rebecca.budden@newcastle.gov.uk
View the Sure Start Autumn Newsletter (pdf, 3.7Mb)
View the Weekly Activities Timetable September 2009 – July 2010 (pdf, 738Kb)

Outer West Pool
Anyone over the age of 16 can go to Impulse Fitness and, for those aged 13-15 years there is Impulse Evolution, a youth gym project which is fully operational at six sites across the city, including Outer West.
For more information contact the Outer West Impulse Suite.
Phone: 277 7980.

Holy Nativity Church, Chapel House
The 'Outside In' community project will upgrade and refurbish the church to make it a versatile, accessible, welcoming and sustainable community resource for the next 30–40 years. The building of additional meeting space, kitchen, office, drop-in and other facilities will ensure the community has new space for a range of social, spiritual, recreational, creative and educational activities. 'Outside In' has been granted Big lottery funding.
The Church is working alongside the Primary Care (NHS) Trust, the local GP Practices, Ashley House plc (developers), Dementia Care Partnership, and the Local Authority planning department to regenerate the central amenities site in Chapel House. A new medical centre and dementia care day unit will be built adjacent to the church-community buildings. Holy Nativity appreciates the enormous encouragement and support provided by Knoplaw and Milecastle Primary Schools, the local councillors and Ward Committees of  Denton and Westerhope, Westerhope Ward Partnership, and many other community groups and residents. Construction on site should begin by January 2010. 
Website: www.chapelhouseholynativity.org  
Latest Update (pdf, 46Kb)

View details of the Neighbourhood Policing Team for Denton and Westerhope (pdf, 33Kb)

Newcastle Warm Zone are working in your area and we encourage you to talk to our assessor who will call to your door. An assessment to see if you are eligible for free cavity wall and loft insulation only takes five minutes and we don't even need to enter your property. All of our staff carry ID and wear the Warm Zone uniform. If you have any queries about the Newcastle Warm Zone project please call us on 0191 277 7373.
Read more about Newcastle Warm Zone.

You may find other useful information on the Denton Ward webpage.

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Local council services

Neighbourhood Services, one of the council's departments, is responsible for dealing with the cleanliness, safety and improvement of the local environment. The manager for Westerhope ward is Edward Bulloch.

The managers are in charge of the Neighbourhood Response Teams, whose job it is to respond quickly to problems that soon make a place look untidy or make it feel unsafe. This team includes the Rapid Response staff who sweep the streets, pick up litter and empty litter bins; remove small scale graffiti; make minor repairs to the footpath or street furniture; and cut back shrubs. They also deal with problems such as dead animals, blocked street drains, potholes and fly-tipping.

The Neighbourhood Response Managers make sure these teams are doing the jobs that are a priority for the local community. They work with local councillors, ward co-ordinators, tenants' and residents' groups and local people to find out what their priorities are. The y work closely with other Neighbo ur hood Services teams in the area such as grounds maintenance, and road and pavement work.

If you want to contact your Neighbourhood Response Manager you can contact them di rectly, e-mail them or go along to a ward committee meeting.

Key monitoring documents

• Ward priority plan (pdf, 42Kb)
  - sets out the key environmental issues in the ward and what we are doing to tackle them
• Planned repairs and maintenance of roads and pavements (pdf, 25Kb)
• Service requests to Envirocall
  - shows the number of requests for our cleansing services

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Reporting problems

If you want to report environment al problems, such as overhanging trees or graffiti, or ask for a bulky rubbish collection, you should contact Envirocall. 

Our streetlights are maintained by a PFI (Private Finance Initiative) project.

We work with the police on removing abandoned vehicles.

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Your ward committee and getting involved

Ward Committees

Your Ward Committee is made up of the three local councillors. Its purpose is to identify and address local issues. The committee consults and works with local residents and businesses, agencies and voluntar y and community sector organisations.

The Ward Committees meet once every two months on the second Thursday of the month and are open to all members of the public.
Meetings are held at the Westerhope Community Association, Hillhead Road. 5.30pm drop-in, 6.30pm formal meeting.

2010
9 September

The  Ward Co-ordinator organises and publicises Ward Committee meetings and deals with issues raised both at the meetings and elsewhere in the ward. They can help you with transport to and from the meeting, childcare and information in a range of community languages. 

View the public papers for Westerhope Ward Committee meetings.

Grant Aid

The Ward Committee has a budget which community and voluntary sector groups can apply for by completing a grant aid application form. Further information about this budget and copies of the application form are available on the Ward Committee Funding webpage, or by contacting your Ward Co-ordinator.

Deadlines for the submission of application forms for Westerhope Ward Committee are 5pm on the following dates:

tba

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Community Groups

Chapel Park Residents’ Association
The CPRA was formed to be a voice for residents of Chapel Park Estate. Public meetings are held bi-monthly at St John's Church Hall. Notices are posted on the public notice boards. Any enquiries should be addressed to cprasec@blueyonder.co.uk

Westerhope Mature Action Group
Known locally as Westerhope MAGs, this is a forum for anyone over the age of 50 who has an interest in the Westerhope ward.
The group meets on the second Wednesday in every month. Meetings are free, informal and welcoming and are held from 10.30am - 12noon in the hall of the Westerhope Community Association, and are preceded by a gentle exercise session (9.30 – 10.15am) and tea and biscuits (10.15 – 10.30am).
The aim of MAGs is to share information, discuss issues that affect older people, and make the views of older people heard as one voice. The group also offers friendship, support and fitness opportunities. 
Westerhope MAGs is part of the Westerhope Ward Committee which is committed to improving the quality of life of older people in Westerhope. For more information about the Ward Committee and/or Westerhope MAGS, please contact the Westerhope and Denton Ward Co-ordinator.
View the Westerhope MAGs Programme of Activities August – December 2009 (pdf, 100Kb)

Westerhope Community Partnership
An umbrella group with representatives from most of the groups in the ward. Their aim is to improve the quality of life and wellbeing for those living and working in Westerhope. For more information please contact your Ward Co-rdinator.

Westerhope Local History Society
Westerhope Local History Society is a corporate member of the Association of Northumberland Local History Societies and meets in Westerhope Methodist Church, Stamfordham Road at 7pm on the third Monday of each month, between September and May. Annual subscription £5, visitors £1. For more information contact Tom Peacock, Chair - phone: 267 0937.
View the programme for 2009-2010 (pdf, 15Kb)

Westerhope Village Residents Association
This group celebrated its 21st anniversary in August 2009. The group aims to improve the appearance of Westerhope Village and was responsible for the installation of the millennium clock outside the Methodist Church on Stamfordham Road. The group has also worked hard to increase the floral displays in the ward. It was involved in the Westerhope Wheel project to mark the 20th anniversary. For more information about the Association, please contact your Ward Co-ordinator.

Westerhope Community Association
The management committee, workers and volunteers invest a lot of time in keeping this, the only community facility in the ward, available for use by local people. Currently the centre is enjoying a refurbishment funded by the Children's Centre and the Westerhope Ward Committee. For more information phone: 267 3757.

St. John’s (Whorlton) Graveyard Group
Another new group has formed to look at making improvements to the Graveyard. The group are looking for help to identify people who are buried in the cemetery. If you have any information please contact Reverend Andy Bowden through the Church Office. Phone: 271 2992.

Further Information

Residents Survey 2008
Each year the Council undertakes a survey of residents in the city to find out what you think about the Council’s performance, the services we provide to you and what you think about the area you live in.
View the results for Westerhope ward (pdf, 44Kb)

Find out what consultations the council is carrying out in your ward and submit your views online. You can also see the results of previous consultations.

Cityeye gives details of events in your ward. You can also find information about societies and clubs in Westerhope.

Use our online map to find your nearest libraries and schools. You can also find out where your nearest recycling site is and find leisure services, such as swimming pools, and heritage information, such as listed buildings and ancient monuments. 

See also the Related Pages panel at the right of the screen.