25 June 2009, 09/127
Partners pledge to
work together to weather the recession
Key players will be looking
at ways to work together to weather the recession at West
Lancashire Local Strategic Partnership’s (WLLSP) annual
conference.
The WLLSP - a voluntary partnership involving more than 80
organisations and individuals who aim to improve the social,
economic and environmental wellbeing of West Lancashire - will be
using this annual event to brainstorm about how to minimise the
effects of the credit crunch!
At the gathering tomorrow (Friday 26 June) partners will
be discussing the state of the local economy and where they should
be channelling their efforts to deliver the best outcomes for the
people of West Lancashire.
They will look at re-prioritising the Partnership’s
priorities and where they can be most effective in order to ride
the storm.
Cllr Ian Grant, Chair of the WLLSP and Leader of West
Lancashire Borough Council, said: "When we drew up our Sustainable
Community Strategy three years ago we didn’t envisage that we would
have to deal with such a devastating and prolonged economic
downturn. So we have to think about how we can work together to
weather the recession and focus on what we can do, as a
Partnership, to deliver the best possible outcomes for the people
of West Lancashire. Realistically, our aims and objectives may not
be as relevant in the current financial climate. Therefore, we will
be using our annual conference to start the ball rolling about how
we can reform our priorities to ensure that they meet the needs of
our residents. It is crucial that we work together to maximise our
effectiveness and ride out this economic storm."
The event will also be used to launch the WLLSP’s annual
report, which highlights the successes of many LSP-led projects
over the last year and the exciting initiatives in store for
2009/10.
Cllr Grant added: "We have
made excellent progress with our key initiatives including the
Safer Stronger Communities Neighbourhood Management Project, the
Market Towns Initiative and the Inspire project. Schemes like these
are helping to increase community confidence, create jobs and boost
the economy, which is crucial in the current economic
climate.
"We are even bucking the
national trend in some areas of our work. For example at times of
recession it is expected that incidents of crime increase and this
impacts upon the fear of crime. Not so in West Lancashire as 81.7%
of residents feel that West Lancashire is a safe, secure place to
live. We are working on a number of projects to increase affordable
housing across the borough to make home ownership a viable option
for those who might otherwise be ‘priced-out’ of West Lancashire.
New developments are under construction as we speak. We are also
making a difference when it comes to issues such as global warming
through the educational work that partners have been carrying out
with schools and businesses.
"I hope that we can build
upon this success and work together to deliver the best outcomes
for the people of West Lancashire in such difficult economic
times."
During the event, there will also be presentations around
partnership working from agencies including Central Lancashire
Primary Care Trust, Lancashire County Council and Sefton Council,
as well as workshops.
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