By Peter Smith, Leader, Wigan Council.
As the Summer holidays approach, community safety chiefs are once again warning parents and young people about the risks of unsupervised swimming in the borough's ponds, canals and lakes.
Two more of the borough's 23 conservation areas are in line for extra protection and enhancement following consultation with local residents and interest groups.
Local youngsters had 'art beats' racing at the borough's annual Youth Arts Challenge Showcase.
When it comes to a job well done, few can match Wigan Council's Supported Employment Service.
Wigan's biggest ever reading campaign is now on! This year is officially Natioanl Year of Reading and the council and Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust want everyone in the borough to bury their nose in a book.
It started out as a weekend musical get-together back in 1985. Almost a quarter of a century later, the Wigan International Jazz Festival is not only still going strong, but it's grown into one of the most successful and acclaimed events of its kind.
They've been dubbed the borough's hidden gem, and even the jewel in our crown. Thanks to a partnership between the council and Lancashire Wildlife Trust, Wigan Flashes are being transformed into one of the region's finest nature reserves, a haven for wildlife, rare plants and insects.
Freedom of information (FOI) has been in force for over three years, and in that time Wigan Council has given out reams of information to journalists, researchers and pressure groups. But less well known is the fact that any local citizen can also make an FOI request. For Borough Life readers, the council's data protection officer, Tim Turner, explains how...
Borrow £500, pay back £20,000. Doesn't sound like a very good deal, does it? But that's exactly what one unsuspecting person had to stump up after agreeing to take money from a loan shark. Now Wigan Council has joined forces with the other nine authorities in Greater Manchester to create a powerful task force to combat the scourge of loan sharks, or unlicensed moneylenders.
"We're putting people at the heart of everything we do." That's the message from Joyce Redfearn, the chief executive, who's leading Wigan Council through an ambitious programme of customer service improvements.
Zoe Rogers makes dreams come true. It could be a once in a lifetime holiday or a honeymoon from heaven, but whatever it is Zoe finds it, fixes it and sends people to paradise. And she does it all from her spare room!
"Fly tipping is a criminal offence, and the people who do it are criminals." Strong stuff - but the council's environmental crime team is in no mood to mince its words.
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