Wirral majorettes hope to drum up support to save club (From Wirral Globe)
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Wirral majorettes hope to drum up support to save club
9:47am Friday 27th April 2012 in News Exclusive By Craig Manning
5 year old Niamh Roberts from Bethany Starlights in Tranmere.
THE owners of a Wirral majorette club facing closure following a complaint about noise are appealing to Globe readers for help.
Bethany Starlight Majorettes opened 20 years ago and is situated in a church hall in Old Chester Road, Tranmere.
This week a representative from the council's noise abatement department paid a visit, informing current owners Neil and Donna Hesketh that a complaint had been received about noise from a nearby resident.
In order to stay open the couple have been told to fit double-glazed windows a to soundproof the venue. Unless the work is done by the end of May the club may have to close.
The news came as a blow for Neil and Donna, who took over the club’s running 13 years ago. In order to buy the windows, they need to raise £1,500. As all funds are used to pay for expenses, Neil is hoping Globe readers can help.
Traindriver Neil told the Globe: “I don’t understand how one person can get the place closed down and the situation has really wound me up. The council constantly goes on about ways of keeping kids off the streets.
“Here we are coming up with a great way to get kids off the street and being told that we will have to close if the work isn’t done.
“The parents are getting het-up, because many of them came to the club as children and bring their kids along too.
“We get people from as far as Liverpool coming to use it. Parents spend a lot of money bringing their children to the club. They care about the place and don’t want it to close.”
Appealing to our readers, Neil continued: “If there’s anyone out there who can help, either by donating windows or financially, we would love to hear from them.”
A council spokesperson said: “We respond to all complaints and when we investigated this case we found that the noise coming from the hall was at such a level as to constitute a statutory nuisance to people living nearby. As a result, we have a legal duty to act.
“We have given advice and guidance to the group on possible ways they could reduce the effects of the noise, but of course we also understand the difficulties they would have in meeting the costs involved with making any improvement.
“For that reason, we are also giving them advice on potential sources of funding.
“In this way we hope to find a solution that resolves the complaint while also allowing the excellent activities of the group to continue at the hall.”
If you would like to help, call Neil on 07507601560.
Comments(12)
Evan S Sense
says...
10:39am Fri 27 Apr 12
Doesn't sound like a criticism to me. In fact, it sounds like they're pulling out all the stops to come to a solution that keeps everyone happy, even suggesting to the Majorettes that they make an appeal for help through this esteemed organ of a newspaper.
If you're going to slag someone off for 'picking on' the group, then surely it's the resident making the complaint you should be aiming your fire at?
uncatom
says...
10:45am Fri 27 Apr 12
Wirralrob wrote:Come on its not quite as simple as that, I am one of the first to criticise WBC but in this case its dammed if they do dammed if they dont they have a duty to respond to complaints,its sad it involves activities for kids but you cant change rules to suit because kids are involved.
So many things the council are failing on, all their departments can do is criticise those who do some good for the area.
Disgusting. Plenty of places that department should be concentrating, and instead they pick on a bunch of 9-year-old girls.
Cowards.
woodyres
says...
1:44pm Fri 27 Apr 12
They would have to be involved in any work done to a church building surely.
Wirral CVS in Hamilton Square help groups to source funding, maybe someone should give them a call. Adam Woodcock has helped many voluntary organisations here in Woodchurch to get funding.
It would be a shame for something that encourages children to be active (when so many are not) has to close because of this situation.
Spiffy
says...
3:32pm Fri 27 Apr 12
...
Whether the noise is a genuine and legally in the right or not going so far as crying to the council to get the place shut down is plain mean-spirited. They should be ashamed of themselves.
...
The council have to act and I'm just glad to see they're actually trying to help. Good luck kids hope it all works out :)
the gingers
says...
4:33pm Fri 27 Apr 12
Evan S Sense
says...
4:46pm Fri 27 Apr 12
the gingers wrote:Good luck, I'm sure a community-spirited glazing company in the area would be happy to help - especially as there would be some good publicity in the Globe in it for them!
I have 2 daughters in this majorette troupe who have been dancing for many years, there has never been any complaints in all the years we have attended our training sessions, until the building in question was extending and now 1 resident can ruin this for my children, would you rather all these children be on the streets causing trouble (vandalism) getting drunk and causing a nuisance to people and residents in the area, without this majorettes my daughters would have nothing to do and no where to go or look forward to, please help to save our majorettes and keep our girls off the streets!
sunlighter
says...
7:39am Sun 29 Apr 12
ordinary personn
says...
7:02pm Sun 29 Apr 12
the gingers wrote:Hi the gingers - are you really saying that the children who go to the majorettes would be out getting drunk, causing a nuisance to residents and vandalising the area and that you would simply let your daughters roam the streets if they didn't go there dancing? You have made the majorettes sound like a club for a group of prospective criminals which I guess was not what you aimed to do. I'd have thought you would gain more mileage for your cause by focussing on all the positives of the group rather than suggesting simply it keeps possible trouble off the streets.
I have 2 daughters in this majorette troupe who have been dancing for many years, there has never been any complaints in all the years we have attended our training sessions, until the building in question was extending and now 1 resident can ruin this for my children, would you rather all these children be on the streets causing trouble (vandalism) getting drunk and causing a nuisance to people and residents in the area, without this majorettes my daughters would have nothing to do and no where to go or look forward to, please help to save our majorettes and keep our girls off the streets!
That said I have sympathy for what is happening to the group and some of the posters above have given good tips for funding. But now to make myself very unpopular - how many youngsters go to the group each week? Can't their parents club together and pay for the required double glazing? And the other thing I wonder is - is it not possible to simply turn the volume down on whatever music player is used until the double glazing is installed? Then the dancing can continue and the resident(s) is/are not disturbed.
Realistically speaking
says...
3:39pm Tue 1 May 12
Sunshine500
says...
7:35pm Tue 1 May 12
bethany starlights
says...
10:24pm Tue 1 May 12
Wirralrob says...
10:17am Fri 27 Apr 12
Disgusting. Plenty of places that department should be concentrating, and instead they pick on a bunch of 9-year-old girls.
Cowards.