I am pleased to report that once again the Parish Council has had a very productive year. We attained Quality Parish Council Status which makes us one of the hallowed few in Wyre to have achieved such success, well done to the Clerk and those who contributed.

We undertook a review of the village survey which was recently completed and adopted by the Parish Council. The revised document will assist us in addressing concerns raised by residents and some elements will assist with the future development for the village I would like to thank all the residents who participated in the exercise.

The Multi Use Games Area has been the centre of some controversy during the past year and the Parish Council has worked hard in trying to address the problems. One piece of action taken was to obtain planning consent for nets to be erected at the Southern end. Unfortunately, due to the current financial climate, budgetary constraints have prevented the Parish Council progressing this matter further. The current position is that we have received very few complaints over the past few months. We will obviously continue to monitor the situation.

Franklaw Water Treatment Plant has been a continual source of complaint and the management continue to be some what evasive to the point of denial that anything is wrong. On behalf of the Parish Council I would like to assure residents who are affected that we will pursue this matter.

It now leaves me to thank Tim, Gillian and my fellow Councillors and the Police for their continued unstinting work for Catterall Parish Council and the Village.

Dave Sharples

Chairman, Catterall Parish Council

The Parish Council is responsible for proper accounting records, safeguarding the assets and taking steps to prevent fraud and other irregularities. There are accounting policies and procedures in place to mitigate exposure to major risk, which are reviewed annually. The Councillors believe they make reasonable and prudent judgements and estimates. The accounts are a matter of public information and

can be viewed at any time.

Balance to carry forward as at 31^st March, 2011 - £12,768.70

The Parish Council accounts are due to be audited in June, 2011.

There was a small balance to carry forward in this financial year as the Parish Council had invested in a reserve account, leaving a just workable amount. Catterall Playing Field has been well used by the Catforth and District League, through the Brockholes Arms AFC and Inter Marina AFC and Garstang Free Methodist Football Club.

The income from contracting out the Parish Lengthsman to Kirkland Parish Council has increased to accommodate extra hours due to further funding gained by Kirkland Parish Council during the year. The Parish Maintenance income reflects the contract work carried out during the year. Catterall Parish Council has undertaken grass cutting work for Lancashire County Council and the creation of an outdoor play area for Cock Robin Playgroup, funded through Lancashire County Council.

The bank interest this year represents the poor interest rates offered for deposit accounts during the present financial austerity. The income for the Parish Room is the partnership split that allows access by Pilling and Kirkland Parish Councils to use the phone, internet, stationary, postage etc.

The increase against the budget figure for Parish Maintenance represents the contract work undertaken during the year that we had not tendered for when the budget was submitted. The budget figure for offices expenses is what Catterall Parish Council expects to pay for the year; the actual figure includes costs that are shared with Pilling and Kirkland Parish Council.

There have been no requests for section 137 grants for the present year. Donations were made to St. Helens Church, Churchtown, Bowland Mountain Rescue, North West Air Ambulance and Lancaster Canal Trust.

The Multi Use Games Area has needed a number of replacement parts for the netting and the wooden boundary fence. The CCTV located at the Pickerings Hotel has had a number of problems with the control keypad and the monitor for the CCTV in the Village Hall has been replaced.

The Parish Council is waiting for the second invoice for the grass cutting on Catterall Playing Field, undertaken by Wyre Borough Council and is building up funds to pay for the future mole draining of the field. Contingencies show the purchase of capital equipment including the salt grit spreader for use on footpaths during the recent snow and freezing conditions, a strimmer and colour printer.

Gillian Benson

Responsible Financial Officer to the Parish Council

The results of the Parish survey would indicate that the majority of residents may not understand how the Parish Precept is calculated, so we thought we might try to explain it a little more. The Parish Precept is the amount of money which we receive from Wyre Council to pay for the services the Parish Council provides across our area and which is then recharged by Wyre as that part of your Council Tax relating directly to the Parish. In other words, they are collecting this on our behalf. The way we calculate the precept is as follows: Each year, just before Christmas, the Parish Council produces an estimate of our likely expenditure for the forthcoming year (eg Staff costs, Parish maintenance, office costs).This will also include the costs of any urgent projects that may be required in the Parish. We also estimate our likely income for the same period (eg The Rural Grant, contributions from Pilling and Kirkland Councils, with whom we share facilities, grass cutting contacts). The difference between these two figures forms the basis of our precept calculation, which we submit to Wyre Council. In 2010 /2011 our Precept was £34,500 or 83p per household per week.

The Parish Council employs a Parish Lengthsman to keep the Parish tidy and well maintained. Each week problems of fly-tipping, flooding, damage to public footpaths or litter bins needing emptying are reported. But whilst Timmy Hoyles, the Lengthsman finds most of the problems, should any Catterall resident find such problems these can be reported to Timmy as the first point of contact or the Clerk or any of the Parish Councillors listed on the back page.

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The Parish Council would like to remind parents that the Multi Use Games Area is limited to persons under 16, unless you are accompanying a child. The area is getting a lot of use, but the irresponsible use of the ball is impacting badly on those using the field and some of the neighbours. If you are playing on the Multi Use Games Area do not kick the ball against garden fencing or retrieve balls from the private gardens surrounding Catterall Playing Field.

This facility can be booked in advance for a small fee. For details please contact the Parish Clerk on 600689. A tennis or volley ball net can also be hired.

Please feel free to use this facility, but respect it.

Catterall residents should be aware that small teams of door to door salesmen are frequently in the Village during the day. It is believed that they are transported from some distance out of the area, by mini bus and are in fact acting as peddlers. They are often youths or young men, carrying a very large backpack of assorted goods. Their sales patter is usually much the same, designed to make you feel sorry for them, and thus buy from them. If you decline, they may just leave, but some have become aggressive on occasions and try to sell by intimidation. However, to the best of our knowledge, none of them have ever offered violence of any sort, and will leave your premises if you persist in refusing to buy. We acknowledge that some people do buy products from these callers sometimes and this news item is not in any way an attempt to deny your freedom to do so if you wish.

There have been an increasing number of complaints of dog fouling in Catterall. When you take the dog for a walk take the dog waste home with you. It is a disgusting, irresponsible and potentially dangerous practice to leave such mess on public paths or fields.

Catterall Parish Council has an office in the Village Hall, Garstang Road and this is open to residents, who are welcome to visit the Village Hall and look at planning applications in Catterall. You are equally welcome to raise any concerns or comments you have about your Village. The minutes of Parish Council meetings are available for inspection and on the website.