“Wigan is leading the way!”
That was the official ministerial verdict from a high-ranking cabinet member when he popped into a flagship Wigan school, children’s centre and community venue.
Communities Secretary John Denham expressed his delight with the groundbreaking Platt Bridge Community First centre, hailing it as: “Exactly the sort of innovative approach the government is trying to encourage across the country.”
The Rivington Avenue centre played host to not one but three of the government’s leading lights on Thursday (Nov 5) because Mr Denham was joined by Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liam Byrne and Local Government Minister Barbara Follett.
After a high-level meeting with council leaders Lord Peter Smith and Joyce Redfearn the visitors were treated to a tour of the new centre and all it has to offer.
Platt Bridge opened just over three years ago as one of a number of pilots for the government’s Total Place project.
The complex, which welcomed former PM Tony Blair in 2007, comprises a community school, SureStart Children’s Centre, Family Support Centre, Adult and children’s libraries, Community health centre, including GPs surgeries, pharmacy and a wide variety of health services and a Wigan and Leigh Housing area office. It represents an investment of £13M.
Following his tour of the centre Mr Denham said: “One of the great challenges facing the country is how, at a time of tight public expenditure restraint, we can still deliver high quality public services that work for the individual in a better way. Platt Bridge is already showing how local services can join together to reach out to communities.”
Platt Bridge headteacher and complex manager Sue Darbyshire says: “It’s great that Platt Bridge Community First continues to be recognised as a model of excellence.
“We regularly get visitors from all over the country wanting to take a look at how we do things here and take the information away with them.”
Sue adds: “But the real success for us continues to be how the community has taken the complex to its heart. The community has been on a journey of being uncertain about the level of change the new centre would entailed to a position where they feel it is an invaluable facility for everyone to use and enjoy.
“We know there is a lot of change going on in Wigan at the moment in terms of education and more new schools and we believe that Platt Bridge Community First stands as a really good example of how it can work.”
