Category: news

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Local Election – Check Photo Identification

Government urges the public to check their photo identification ahead of polls

The Government is encouraging people to check that they have accepted photo identification ahead of local elections and apply for a free voter authority certificate if needed.

With two weeks until local elections take place, the Government is encouraging people to check that they have accepted photo identification ready and apply for a free voter authority certificate if needed.

Anyone voting in person in local elections taking place in England on Thursday 4th May 2023 will need an accepted form of photo identification to cast their vote.

This brings the rest of the UK in line with Northern Ireland, which has had photo identification to vote in elections since 2003 and will ensure that elections are better protected from the potential for voter fraud.

While the vast majority of voters already own an accepted form of identification, which includes driving licences, blue badges, NUS Totum cards and Freedom passes, voters who do not have accepted photo identification can apply for a free local Voter Authority Certificate by post or online 24 hours a day, up until Tuesday 25 April at 5pm.

The Government is working with the Electoral Commission, local authorities and stakeholders to ensure voters are aware of the changes. The Commission has been running a public awareness campaign since January, running widely across all major channels.

Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove said:
“It’s vital you check now if you have the photo identification needed to vote in English local elections taking place in May.”
“While the vast majority of voters already own an accepted form of identification, anyone who needs to can apply for a free Voter Authority Certificate before 5 pm on Tuesday.”
“For more information please check your polling card and find more details online.”

Accepted forms of photo identification and further information are available on gov.uk and the Electoral Commission website.

Further information
Accepted forms of identification include:

  • Driving licence (including provisional licences)
  • Passport
  • PASS card (National Proof of Age Standards Scheme – this includes the NUS Totum card, the Post Office card, Young Scot card)
  • Blue Badge
  • Biometric residence permit
  • Defence Identity Card
  • National identity cards issued by the EU, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein
  • Northern Ireland Electoral Identity Card
  • Voter Authority Certificate
  • Anonymous Elector’s Document
  • Older person’s bus pass
  • Disabled person’s bus pass
  • Oyster 60+ card
  • Freedom Pass
  • Scottish National Entitlement Card
  • 60 and Over Welsh Concessionary Travel Card
  • Disabled Person’s Welsh Concessionary Travel Card
  • Northern Ireland concessionary travel pass
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Emergency Alerts GOV.UK

Emergency Alerts is a UK government service that will warn you if there’s a danger to life nearby.

This Sunday 23 April 2023 at 3pm your mobile phone or tablet will receive an alert with advice about how to stay safe in an emergency.
The alert will say:
This is a test of Emergency Alerts, a new UK government service that will warn you if there’s a life-threatening emergency nearby.
This is a test. You do not need to take any action.

In a real emergency, follow the instructions in the alert to keep yourself and others safe.
Visit gov.uk/alerts for more information.

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Leading Charity Warns Against the Risk of Unregistered Appliances

Householders who own unregistered appliances could be putting themselves and their loved ones at risk of serious injury and death, warns leading accident prevention charity, the Royal Society of Accident Prevention and the Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Appliances.

The alert comes during Register My Appliance Week which runs from the 23rd to the 27th of January. By registering a domestic appliance with the manufacturer, people can be informed of any recalls or safety issues as quickly as possible and reduce the risk of tragic incidents like fires and explosions.

To register your device, visit www.registermyappliance.org.uk.

Ashleigh Martin, Public Health Advisor at the Royal Society of the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA):

“With such busy lives, it’s only natural not to have domestic safety at the top of our to-do lists. But a simple action like registering your appliance as soon as you’ve purchased it can help prevent against unnecessary tragedies. By registering your appliances in a timely manner, you can be among the first to hear when there is a potentially life-saving product recall.”

AMDEA CEO Paul Hide, said: “We urge anyone with unregistered appliances – whether brand-new, a pre-used buy or installed a while ago – to register all their appliances so they can be contacted in case of any safety notifications, repairs or recalls. Most manufacturers accept registrations of machines up to 12 years old, and there’s no need for proof of purchase. It’s completely free and easy to do – it’s a win-win for keeping your home safe and possibly increasing the life span of your machine.”

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Tribute to Cllr. Anne Murphy

Cllr. Anne Murphy

It was with a deep sense of shock and real sorrow that we heard of the death of Cllr. Anne Murphy.

We are sure that these feelings are shared by all who knew and came into contact with Anne during her many years as Councillor for Crookes and Crosspool and as a previous Lord Mayor of Sheffield

Anne was a kind, caring and compassionate person, always ready to give her help and support to those in need.  She will be greatly missed.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Gavin and family at this very sad time.

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Bus Service Changes – Public Engagement Launches Monday 1st August

100 years of Sheffield motor buses
Sheffield motor buses

South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) is seeking views from members of the public to make sure they are best using the public money they have to support South Yorkshire’s bus network in a public survey, which launches on Monday 1 August.

Why are buses changing in South Yorkshire?
Buses are a lifeline, the backbone of our transport network, used to get people to work, school, – to visit places, family and friends. They help to cut car use, traffic and pollution and are a big part of helping us all tackle climate change.

As you are aware we are facing the biggest cuts to the network for a generation, with nearly a third of services at risk. This is because most of South Yorkshire’s bus network is run by private bus companies who choose where to run services and can make changes to reflect when and where people are traveling most.

The pandemic has had an impact on travel patterns and the income bus companies make from fares. The government has been paying bus companies throughout Covid-19 but when this funding ends in October, bus companies plan to cut routes or sections of routes.

What is SYMCA doing in response to the service cuts?
We are doing all we can with the limited powers and money we have to protect bus services and have already stepped in with emergency funding for school buses. This includes paying bus companies to run services through a contract where there isn’t a profitable route. But the scale of cuts being made by bus companies means our budget can only buy back around half the network at risk.

Between April 2022 and March 2023 our budget to support the bus network is £11.9 million. It would cost around £23 million to pay bus companies to replace all the services they plan to remove.

We, therefore, want to make sure we are making the best use of our budget – the council tax we all pay for public transport – to run bus contracts where people rely on them most. We want members of the public in our region to tell us what kinds of bus services are most important to them.

How can people take part in the survey?
The survey launches on Monday 1 August and will close on Sunday 21 August and is open to anyone over the age of 16. The easiest way to take part is online at https://travelsouthyorkshire.com/haveyoursay. Please note that the survey will not be live until Monday 1 August.

Information about how people can have their say will also be available in interchanges, via Traveline and publicised across social media, radio and the press.

Feedback will help us with our decision-making about buses and how we use public money to support bus services in South Yorkshire.

How can you help?
If asked about the public engagement, please advise people that the easiest way to take part in the survey, from 1 August, is online and direct them to www.travelsouthyorkshire.com/haveyoursay.

Alternatively, anyone without access to the internet can call our Traveline team on 01709 51 51 51 who will be happy to help them complete the survey over the phone or paper copies will be available at our interchanges.

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Crosspool Clarion Summer 2022

Crosspool Clarion Summer 2022

Volume 19 Issue 2 Summer 2022

The current issue of the Crosspool Clarion (Incorporating St Columba’s & Stephen Hill Church Newsletter), delivered to 3000 homes locally, is also available to download and read below.

Current issue: Volume 19 Issue 2 Summer 2022

Back issues of past editions of the Clarion are also available to download.

To read PDFs on your computer, you may need to download the free Adobe Acrobat Reader

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Wise Watcher

Wesley Kristopher Photography

“Crossey” the sleepy tawny owl, observing lockdown roosting in an ash tree on Lydgate Lane, has unwittingly become a tourist attraction and media star.

 Full report  and link to BBC’s spring watch in this Sheffield Star article