Welcome
Motherwell Community Forum is all about engaging with our community, encouraging them to participate in discussions about all matters relating to the provision, deliver, quality and design of public services in the Motherwell Area.
Our website is just one means to engage with our community. We hold monthly meetings for our members. We arrange community events on particular topics of interest, for example, alcohol consumption and our upcoming event on fuel poverty. We are represented on local decision making bodies.
Our website has been on the go for a wee while, we think it is time for a change, nothing too radical, just a few wee tweaks to the layout and design and most important of all posting much more information about the work of the Forum.
We hope the site remains relevant, user friendly and encourages you to get involved in your community or better yet join the Forum to work with us in our efforts to make the Motherwell Area a better place to be for everyone. Look out for the changes in 2012.
Money Matters – Fuel Poverty Event
Regular visitors to our site will know that Motherwell Community Forum has long called for change to the UK’s Energy Market. More recently, we have added our support for calls that will simplify tariffs, make the market transparent and competitive and most important of all puts customer need before corporate greed. Those new to the site can catch up on this subject on the posting on our
Health Page where you will also find details of our Fuel Poverty Event. Our event targeted at those hardest hit by the latest increases in fuel costs.
Sainsbury's - Formal Planning Application Submitted for Motherwell – 2 November 2011
Sainsbury's announced plans to build a new store in Motherwell back in March 2011. Sainsbury's submitted a formal planning application to the Council in early November 2011. The Forum has submitted our comments on the current plans; you can view the submission and read our comments here.
LAMH Recycle - Affordable PC Repairs/Refurbishment/New
Looking to upgrade your PC. Your PC needing repair. Thinking about buying a bespoke PC but the cost putting you off. Your problems solved - our chums at LAMH Recycle can help you out on all these areas and in addition they are offering a free PC health check - click here for more info
Our Events Page
Details of a number of local events organised by a myriad of local organisations and service providers are posted on our Events page. We would urge all visitors to the site to take a look-in on the Events page from time to time. Click here to read more.
Public Partnership Forum (PPF)
Click here to read our report on the work undertaken and the many initiatives that we have supported through the Public Partnership Forum.
Health Events
See our Health Events page for details of a number of excellent upcoming events and services being offered in our area all with a health theme and aimed at young and not so young. (A big thanks to our newest chum Ayeshah for sending us details of these events).
Living well with dementia cafe
A new café aimed at those with memory problems has opened its doors at Motherwell Football Club. Read more here.
Local Area Partnership – The Railway Bridges of Motherwell County - An update
Motherwell Community Forum is represented at the Local Area Partnership. Our membership of the LAP is one way we bring issues of local import or concern to the attention of decision makers and service providers. We are happy to report that, in the majority of instances, any issues raised are generally speaking resolved quickly and effectively. BUT on occasion and in spite of the efforts of all concerned, an issue that appears simple enough to deal with, for whatever the reasons just refuses to go away, one such example of this is our attempts to have those responsible for the Railway Bridges and footpaths that connect our communities at key points around the town brought to have these brought up to an acceptable state of repair, making them safe for pedestrians to use.
Read more...
Motherwell Youth Voice – Youth be Heard
Following on from the hugely successful Truth About Youth Awards, these awards
recognising the achievements and contributions of our young people in making a difference
in their community, news has reached us of another innovative event being organised by
Motherwell Youth Voice.
Read more...
Town Centre Strategy – Imagine Motherwell an update
Having given the matter a great deal of careful thought, the Council has decided that it is time to look again at the Strategy for its Town Centre’s. Whilst welcome news, the timing could have been better, even so; the Forum looks forward to working with the Council’s Planners to encourage the wider community to get involved in the creation of the Strategy, read more here
Read more...
Hard Choices – Big Decisions (2012 - New Year update)
The PM today signalled the Coalition's Governments determination to see through the package of austerity measures that is intended to resolve the UK Deficit issue, shore up market confidence in the UK and steer the country through these troubled financial times. The best that can be said about the year ahead is that at least we know what is ahead of us. The Forum is concerned that cuts in public spending, rising costs of household bills, changes in the benefits system (some would argue long overdue and wholly necessary) means the poorest are hardest hit in these times of austerity.
Hard Choices – Big Decisions is a standing item on the Forum Agenda and it seems given the predications for 2012 and way beyond is likely to remain on the agenda for some years to come.
So for 2012, the Forum hopes to do more to monitor the extent of the cuts in the public sector budget locally in an effort to establish where the axe is falling and what affect the resulting cuts are having on our community. We will keep you informed of any issues of note that arise.
Greenlink Halloween Health Walks
Motherwell Community Forum and NHS Lanarkshire are sponsoring what is fast becoming a must attend event on the calendar of the socialite class in these parts. Seriously though!
Read more...
Read the full report on the Halloween Walk here.
Greenlink - Allotments get go ahead
Good news. Our chums at Greenlink tell us that NL Council are to part fund the long talked about Allotments Project in Forgewood. We are sure these allotments will be a huge success and will be a great asset to our area.
Read more on the GreenLink site
Truth About Youth Awards
Motherwell Community Forum is a proud sponsor of these awards.
See more on the Events page.
Living Well with Dementia
Come to our free café to meet people with similar experiences.
Informal help and advice available:
Specialist Doctors — Memory Service Nurses — Advocacy
Welfare Benefits Officer — Occupational Therapist
Carers Together — Alzheimer Scotland – Locality Link Officer
For more information, contact: 01698 269649
First Friday of every month, 1pm – 4pm
Fir Park Stadium (Centenary Suite)
See the poster here
Mar 17 2011 - Sainsbury's announce plans to build a store in Motherwell
Sainsbury's (one of the Big Four Supermarket Giant's in the UK) have announced plans and indeed have begun the process of consulting with the local community on their plans to bring a Sainsbury's Supermarket to Motherwell.
Over 200 local people turned out to a recent event organised by Sainsbury's during which the supermarket giant set out their plan to locate in the Town. Sainsbury's says initial feedback from the community is supportive of their plan. However, we're talking about supermarket's here so the proposal is not universally popular.
The Forum, in common, with many local organisations that prefer to wait until the formal planning application is submitted before commenting on the proposals.
Meantime, we would like to hear your thoughts on the current plan. You can contact us through the usual method, by way of the comments page on this site or email.
Click here for more
Hard Choices – Big Decisions
The campaign against the UK Government's austerity measures continues unabated.
Those campaigning for adoption of the alternatives took to the streets on Saturday 31 April last, the March starting from the Duchess Park and finished at the GLO Centre Motherwell.
Meantime, the effects of changes to the Benefit System, increases in taxation and cuts in public spending are now making themselves felt in households across the UK and in particular areas of disadvantage of which sadly there are too many of, in North Lanarkshire.
The Forum is in the very early stages of organising an event that will bring service providers and public agencies working in the field of money advice together to help our most vulnerable maximise the benefits that are available to them and make the most of their money. We will keep you informed of developments.
Greenlink – Mountain Bike Skill Zone – 09 April 2011
Regular visitors to this site will know that the Forum is a long time supporter and admirer of the Greenlink project. We are pleased to bring you news (however belated) of yet another new and exciting project from the Greenlink team that is the opening of their Mountain Bike Skills Zone that opened for business back in April 2011. Details of this new service can be found here.
Staying with Greenlink, for those of us with a social responsibility and or just looking to get out get some fresh air and meet new friends why not join Greenlink on their scheduled clean up beginning at Braidhurst Street/Wood Crescent on Saturday the 14th of May, Everybody is meeting at The Old Mill Car Park at 12:30pm, tea and biccies are being provided to sustain the volunteers.
Men's Health – Details of exciting new health events aimed at and designed for men
North Lanarkshire has an unenviable record where Men's Health is concerned. Once famous as Steel Town, Motherwell has undergone many changes since the closure of the Ravenscraig Steel Works but the machismo culture that grew out of that industrial past endures. It is a sad truth that men in Lanarkshire too often neglect their health; thankfully though, even here things are changing.
News has reached us of a number of events designed around and specifically tailored towards improving men's health. Events of this type deserve your support we would urge you to help us promote these events in your area and bring them to the attention of your group, family and friends. Details of the events are posted in our Health Section, click here for more information.
Health
Motherwell Community Forum works closely with NHS Lanarkshire to look at ways to ensure that the delivery of health services in the area match the community's needs, more especially in hard-to-reach communities and groups.
With the aid of funding from NHS Lanarkshire, we've been involved in a number of projects and events targeted at communities and areas that traditionally have not been involved with either the forum or other services.
Getting on with Life
Healthy Eating in Craigneuk
Shaping the Future
Free Community Skip
Education - Lip Reading Course
Starts 26 February in the Pat Cullinan Community Centre. Your never too old to learn! And here's an exciting new learning opportunity click here for more info
