HOW SHALL WE SPEND £20,000? Its In Your Hands

Poulton Neighbourhood Management is offering local residents the opportunity to take part in a participatory budgeting event.

What is Participatory Budgeting?
‘In Your Hands’ is an exciting new way of giving you, people living in the Poulton area, the chance to decide how public money is spent.
Local people and organisations will be asked to come up with their ideas on ways to spend money to benefit the community. These ideas will then be
presented to residents at the main voting event to be held on 16th February 2008 at the Platform. The most popular ideas will be decided by you, and they will receive funding.
This is a new method of working and we want to see how successful it is. If it works, there could be more events like this in other parts of the district in the future.

How much is there to spend?
Poulton Neighbourhood Management is offering £20,000 for residents’ to choose how to spend.
Local residents and organisations can bid for up to £2000 for each project which must help to create a stronger community. Projects could relate to crime and safer communities, the environment, health well-being and leisure, education, training and jobs or neighbourliness.

Why do it?
The people living in this community understand best what needs to be done to improve the area. ‘In Your Hands’ gives you the chance to make a real difference and make changes, either by coming up with an idea for a project or by coming to the event and voting for the ones you want.

How will it work?
Step 1 – decide what you want to do and how much it will cost.
Step 2 – Attend the drop in meeting at the Neighbourhood Management
office on Wednesday 16th January from 1pm – 7pm. to find out
more.
Step 3 – develop your ideas into a project and complete an application form
available from the Poulton Neighbourhood Management Office or
online at http://www.poultontimes.co.uk
Step 4 – Attend the voting day and put forward your project. Help decide who
should get the money.
Step 5 – The most popular projects will get funding and put into action.

Get Involved
There are two ways to get involved, you can put forward a project, or, come along on the day and decide who wins; either way it’s In Your Hands.
Bright idea for a project? Anyone with a bright idea can put forward a project. You don’t have to belong to an organisation; we can help you put your plan into action. You will have to present a 3 minute presentation at the voting event to members of the community. Staff at Neighbourhood Management are able to give advice on the presentation, if needed.
Decide who wins. Come to the event and listen to the various projects, then vote for the ones you want put into practice.

Find out more
For more information or to talk through your ideas contact a member of the Poulton Neighbourhood Management team on 01524 425200.

Ice Skate in Morecambe’s Winter Wonderland

The West End Gardens is to be transformed into a winter wonderland in time for Christmas with an open air ice rink.
Get your woolly hats, scarves and mittens on and glide around the (synthetic) ice pretending you are the next Torvill (or Dean?)
The ice rink will be open from Monday 17th December to Friday 21st December, daily from 1pm-9pm. Best of all – it is totally free to have a go!
Ice skates are available to hire, free of charge for children and adults.
The week long event will culminate with a firework finale on Friday 21st at 9pm.
During the week, whilst you are gliding around the rink, there will be a performance from Morecambe Brass Band, who will play Christmas carols to help you get into the festive spirit. There will be music played throughout the week whilst the ice rink is open. We can’t rely on the weather to bring us some snow, so there will be a snow machine ready to cover you with snowflakes as you skate.
Even if you lack confidence on the ice and you aren’t planning on entering yourself as the next figure skater in the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, come and have a go. There will be a professional skater on the rink offering tips and encouragement and Peter the Penguin, the rink mascot, will be joining in the fun.
The ice rink will be based at the plaza area on the newly redeveloped West End Gardens, on the promenade between Regent Road and the Battery.