Wigan Council services at Christmas and New Year

This year, most council offices will be OPEN between Christmas and New Year on 27th, 28th and 31st December.

Details of all the services provided by Wigan Council and its partners Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust and Wigan and Leigh Housing are as follows:

Adult Social Services

If you need help over the holiday period, please contact:

• Central Duty Team – 01942 828777, 8.45am-5pm daily, except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day, and the weekend of 29th/30th December. Outside these hours, phone the Emergency Duty Service on 0161 834 2436.
• Community Meals Service – normal meals service will be provided throughout the holiday period including Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. During normal office hours, community meals staff can be contacted on 01942 827829. Outside office hours contact the Emergency Duty Team on 0161 834 2436.
• Home Care Service – normal service available throughout the holiday period. For enquiries, contact your individual service provider.
• Day Centres – all day centres (older people, learning disability, physical disability, mental health) will be closed on bank holidays and open as normal on other days, except:
  • Etherstone day centre will also be open Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
  • Hindley day centre will also be open Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
  • Heath Road day centre will also be open Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
  • Integrated Community Equipment Service (Martland Mill) – closes 24th December and re-opens on 27th, 28th and 31st December. Then closed until 2nd January.

Bins and Refuse Collection

This year, black wheelie bins will be emptied during the Christmas and New Year period on the following days.

Collections will return to normal from Monday 7th January 2008, but because of the weekly service, excess refuse will not be collected.

For refuse collection queries please call the helpline on 01942 404364.

Cemeteries

Cemeteries will be open daily throughout the holiday period, from 9am - 4.30pm. The Cemeteries and Cremation office will be closed on 25th and 26th December, and 1st January.

Haigh Hall

Stables Team Rooms

Christmas Eve: Open 10am – 3pm

Christmas Day & Boxing Day: Closed

27 – 31 December & New Year’s Day: Open 10am – 4pm

Information Centre

Open as usual except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and 27 – 28 December

Haigh Golf

Open as usual except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day

Heritage Services

History Shop

Closed Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Years Day, 2 January 2008:

Christmas Eve, 27 - 28 December & New Year’s Eve: Open 10.30am – 3pm.

29 December: Open 10am – 1pm

Wigan Pier

Wigan Pier will be closed to the public from Friday 21 December.

Housing

1. Customer Contact Centre Opening Hours

Christmas Eve, Thursday 27th and Friday 28th December and New Year’s Eve – open 8.00am - 6.00pm

Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day - Closed

Saturday 29th December - 8.00am - 12.30pm

Normal opening hours will resume from Wednesday 2nd January at 8.00am.

2. Housing Headquarters, All Area Housing Offices

and the Housing Options Advice Centre will close to the public at 3.00pm Christmas Eve and re-open on 2nd January 2008 at 9.00am.

3. Wigan and Leigh Property Shops Opening Hours

Saturday 22nd December - 10.00am - 4.00pm

Sunday 23rd December - 12.00 - 2.00pm

Christmas Eve 9.00am - 3.00pm

Christmas Day and Boxing Day - Closed

Thursday 27th and Friday 28th December 9.00am - 3.00pm

Saturday 29th December 10.00am - 12.30pm

Sunday 30th December, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day - Closed

Normal opening hours will resume from Wednesday 2nd January at 9.00am.

4. In Emergencies…

For out of hours emergency repairs, ring 01942 705040.

For Homelessness enquiries, ring:

Central Duty Team – 01942 828777, 8.45am-5pm daily, except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day, and the weekend of 29th/30th December. Outside these hours, phone the Emergency Duty Service on 0161 834 2436.

Libraries

Libraries will be open on Monday 24th and 31st December (please contact the library direct for opening times). Only Ashton Library will be open Sunday 23rd and 30th December, 9am–1pm. Otherwise, libraries are open as usual apart from Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

Platt Bridge Community Library will be open 8.30am – 12noon on 2 January 2008

Parks and country parks

All sites open as usual – rangers will be available every day except Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Recycling

All household waste recycling centres (tips) will be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

Real Christmas trees (minus the decorations!) can be put out next to your green wheelie bin in January. Alternatively, they can be taken to one of the borough’s household waste recycling centres (except Orrell), or to one of the following sites.

• Pennington Flash Country Park .
• Lilford Park , Elmridge, Leigh.
• Three Sisters Country Park, Bryn.
• Ashfield Park , Standish.

Clean brown corrugated cardboard can also go in your green bin.

Christmas cards can be recycled in the cardboard container at all household waste recycling centres (except Orrell). They can also be taken to Tesco supermarkets, M&S, WH Smiths and TK Maxx.

There are changes over Christmas to the fortnightly paper recycling and green waste collections – all households will receive a collection calendar with full details.

Excess paper for recycling is always acceptable in a plastic carrier bag placed alongside your usual paper sack (please do NOT use black bags for paper).

Don't forget to recycle all your festive bottles and cans at your local roadside recycling point – there are more than one hundred and fifty borough-wide, within a mile of most homes.

Register offices

The offices for registering births, marriages and deaths at Wigan will be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day, and at Leigh on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, Wednesday 27th December and New Year’s Day.

Sports and swimming facilities

Ashton Leisure Centre, Hindley Leisure Centre/ Pool, Robin Park Arena, Tyldesley Pool

• Christmas Eve to New Year’s Day: Closed
• 2 January 2008: Open as normal

Howe Bridge Sports Centre

• Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve & New Year’s Day: Closed.
• 27 and 28 December: Open 7.30am – 4pm
• 29 and 30 December & 2 January 2008: Open as normal

Robin Park Sports Centre

• Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve & New Year’s Day: Closed
• 27 – 28 December: Open 10am – 4pm;
• 29 - 30 December and 2 January 2008: Open as normal

Wigan International Pool

• Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, 28 December, New Year’s Eve & New Year’s Day:
• Closed
• 27 December: Open 10am – 2pm
• 29, 30 December & 2 January 2008: Open as normal

In genuine emergencies outside office hours you can contact 01942 404040. Social services emergencies should be reported on 0161 834 2436. Council tenants should call the contact centre on 01942 705040.