Emergency Planning meeting – Saturday 26th April

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IMPORTANT – Silverdale Parish Council needs you to get involved in creating an Emergency Plan for the village. This is resulting from a central government request that all communities become resilient in the face of unexpected major events when the Emergency Services may not be able to respond immediately. The next meeting will be held at the Silverdale Village Institute, Springbank LA5 0TE on Saturday 26th April 2-4pm. Please attend if possible if you would like to help, either in one of the roles described, or as a ‘street warden’ to help deliver information and reassurance to your neighbours. At the meeting, Richard Gargini from Wennington Parish Council will tell us how they have created their plan and acquired emergency equipment without having to raise the parish precept.

Councillor Vacancy

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Currently we have a vacancy on the Parish Council.  This is an unpaid opportunity to have an  influence on how the village is cared for and to contribute to the work involved, according to one’s personal skills and attributes.  Training will be offered.

The post will be filled as quickly as possible, so it is important to express one’s interest to the Clerk soon, who will provide further information – Sarah McDaid: clerk@silverdale-pc-lancs.gov.uk

 

Silverdale Housing Needs Survey 2025

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Thank you to everyone who responded to the Housing Needs Survey that Silverdale Parish Council circulated in February, and to Stephanie Gorner and Joe Hannett at the Rural Housing Enabler Service for producing it and analysing the results.

In summary: Twenty-one households are in need of alternative accommodation within the next five years.  Nine houses, nine bungalows and seven flats are required, plus four adapted/ supported housing arrangements, with some respondents indicating more than one option. Eighty per cent of the respondents said they were not registered with the local Choice Based Letting Service (Housing Options Advice Service, run by Lancaster City Council) .

Some of the respondents’ comments about providing affordable housing in Silverdale include:

  • It would enable me to have secure accommodation in my old age.
  • I think Silverdale would be good for new housing to be built.
  • Silverdale is very short of first-time buyers’ small accommodation.
  • Small, small properties have gone to Air BNBs – could be rented to local people instead.
  • We both work and volunteer in the village; however, we cannot afford to live here.
  • Dedicated low-cost housing is needed.
  • My son needs to live independently.

The next step for Silverdale Parish Council is to contact Housing Trusts who may be interested in working with the Parish Council in forming a viable, long-term plan to meet these housing needs. For the full survey go to: https://silverdale-pc-lancs.gov.uk/the-parish-council/surveys-reports

NOTICE OF CASUAL VACANCY

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NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that ONE casual vacancy exists on the
SILVERDALE PARISH COUNCIL.
On receipt of a Notice signed by ten Electors of the Parish, requesting that the
vacancy be filled by an Election, the Returning Officer will fix a date on which
an Election will be held.
Any such Notice(s) shall be served on the Returning Officer, Town Hall,
Lancaster, on any day following the publication of this Notice, but not later
than 9th April 2025.
The office of the Returning Officer is open 9am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday,
or alternatively, please serve notice by email to elections@lancaster.gov.uk.
If an Election is not requested, the Parish Council shall fill the vacancy by co
option.

SILVERDALE TO KENDAL BUS – STARTS 31 MARCH

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A Monday to Saturday return bus service from Silverdale to Kendal  via Arnside is starting on the 31st March. The timetable shows that this will be an extended service for bus 552. Lancashire County Council will be incorporating the 552 service into its timetable booklet for the 51, which will include a slight revision to the bus service 51 before summer – the last journey from Silverdale (20:08 from Holgates) will run via Silverdale village rather than direct along Park Road.

2025 SILVERDALE PARISH ASSEMBLY – 20th MARCH, GASKELL HALL

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This year’s Annual Parish Assembly is at 7.15 pm on the 20th March at The Gaskell Hall. It’s your opportunity to find out from your County, City and Parish councillors how they have been supporting Silverdale over the last 12 months – and for you to ask questions and highlight what is important to you!

Also, this year we will be welcoming guest speaker Nick Isherwood, Vice-chair of the Lancashire Resilience Forum’s Community Resilience Group. Nick will explain the work of the Group and how it supports communities prepare for unexpected emergencies. Doors open at 7pm for light refreshments.

Contact: Silverdale Parish Clerk Denise Challenor clerk@silverdale-pc-lancs.gov.uk or Liz Unsworth liz.unsworth@silverdale-pc-lancs.gov.uk

Welcome to our new Clerk and Deputy Clerk

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Following the retirement of our wonderful clerk Denise Challenor after 17 years of service, Silverdale Parish Council is delighted to announce we have appointed a new clerk, Sarah McDaid, as well as a new deputy clerk, Antonia Allum. We hope residents will join us in welcoming Sarah and Antonia to their new roles. 

Silverdale joins Lancashire’s Emergency Radio Area Link Network

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Silverdale’s community emergency group has become one of the first in our area of the county to join a special radio network that can operate when normal communications are down or disrupted (including mobile networks). Silverdale Emergency Resilience Group (SERG), set up by the Parish Council to build our readiness for situations when the emergency services cannot reach Silverdale, is now part of Lancashire’s Emergency Radio Area Link (ERAL) Network. With a handset provided by the Lancashire Resilience Forum, on 27 February, Silverdale participated in its first ERAL network test when we communicated with other authorised users: Lancashire-based borough councils, utilities providers, universities, community emergency groups, and the emergency services.

Villagers who are interested in joining SERG can find out more at the upcoming Annual Parish Assembly on 20 March at the Gaskell Hall, and SERG’s next meeting on 26 April at 2pm at the Silverdale Village Institute. For more details please contact jenny.webster@silverdale-pc-lancs.gov.uk.

STRUGGLING TO FIND A SUITABLE, AFFORDABLE HOME IN SILVERDALE?

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If so, please complete The Silverdale Housing Needs Survey 2025. The survey is being run by Silverdale Parish Council and the Lancashire Rural Housing Enabler Service. Your response could result in a small number of affordable homes being built for people with a local connection.

The survey will take around 5-10 minutes to complete. Paper copies have been delivered with the February edition of St John’s Parish Magazine, and extra copies are available from the Co-op, the Pharmacy and the Post Office. Completed surveys should be returned to Silverdale Post Office or the Silverdale Co-op. The deadline for responses is the 28th February.

You can also complete the survey online at: communityfutures.org.uk/index.php/rhe/ and clicking on the link to Silverdale Housing Needs Survey.

If you know of any other person in need of an affordable home who has a local connection, please contact Joe, your Rural Housing Enabler at: joeh@communityfutures.org.uk

 

URGENT NOTICE: VILLAGE PUBLIC TOILETS CLOSED FROM SATURDAY 1ST FEBRUARY

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The Public Toilets in Silverdale Village will be closed from Saturday the 1st February for about eight weeks. This is to allow a total refurbishment and update of facilities to provide access for those with disabilities and be safer for people to use. The Parish Council is carrying out these improvements with funding from the Government’s Rural England Prosperity Fund and apologises for the short notice, but this has been due to legal complications with the landowner.