Final farewell to Doddy

RESIDENTS and visitors are being encouraged to line the streets to pay their respects for 1 of Liverpool's most famous sons; Sir Ken Dodd.

The funeral of the legendary comedian, who was a:- 'Freeman of Liverpool,' will take place, on Wednesday, 28 March 2018, and his family and civic leaders are asking people to line the route the funeral cortege will take.

The route, which will start just after 11am, will be led by a horse drawn hearse in a nod to Sir Ken's father's job as a coal merchant.

The route will follow the following roads:-

► East Prescot Road (opposite Alder Hey Children's Hospital)

► Queens Drive (A5058) continue onto flyover

► Childwall Fiveways

► Queens Drive (A5058)

► Allerton Maze

► Allerton Road (B5180)

► Smithdown Road (A562)

► Ullet Road (A5089)

► Croxteth Road (B5175)

► Princes Road (B5175)

► Catherine Street

► Canning Street

► Upper Duke Street

► Cathedral  Gate

► Anglican Cathedral

The funeral will take place at Liverpool Cathedral , at 1pm, and as a mark of respect the flags at the Town Hall, St George's Hall, Cunard Building and Central Library will be lowered for the day.

Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Councillor Malcolm Kennedy, said:- "Ken was the ultimate showman, a truly unique performer and a wonderful ambassador for Liverpool. Although Wednesday will be a sombre occasion, it is an opportunity for us all to pay tribute to an unforgettable man and I can think of nothing more fitting than huge crowds lining the streets for his final act. The hundreds of messages in the Book of Condolence is a small indication of just how much Ken was loved and meant to the people of this City, and Anne and the family will be incredibly moved when they read them. There will never be another comedian like Ken, his passing marks the end of an era in British entertainment and I'm sure he'll be tickled that the City will be putting on such a show in his honour."

The Cathedral  service is open to the public to attend, but seats will only be reserved for those directly invited by the family. The rest of the seating, including the small area for disabled guests, will be allocated on a 1st come 1st served basis. The Cathedral  will open its doors at midday and it is recommended people arrive early if they wish to be inside the venue.

A large screen will enable mourners outside the Cathedral  to see the service, and BBC Radio Merseyside will broadcast the funeral live, from 1pm.

Following the service, the family will have a private interment, and they are asking people to respect their privacy at that time.

The Book of Condolence, at the Town Hall will close, at 5pm, on Friday, 23 March 2018. To date, nearly 1,000 messages have been written in the book which will be presented to Lady Anne, Sir Ken's widow, after the funeral. Anyone who can't make it to the Town Hall can email a tribute to:- Town.Hall@Liverpool.Gov.UK and it will be added to the book.

Please note, there will be no parking at the Cathedral  on the day of the funeral, and there won't be provision for disabled parking. Cathedral  staff will be on hand to help any disabled visitors who are being dropped off.

Government is to act on Councils who are:- "Failing to plan new homes"

THE UK's Housing Secretary Sajid Javid, on 23 March 2018, has written to 15 local authorities in England to inform them of decisions on intervention following their continued failure to produce a local plan, which are key to setting out how and where they expect to meet residents' needs for new homes, for more than a decade.

In November 2017, the Government confirmed it would commence the consideration of intervention in 15 Local Authorities where there has been a failure to produce a local plan. Local Plans are a key part of the Government's comprehensive programme of planning reform and targeted investment to ensure the homes local communities need are built.

The Councils had until 31 January 2018, to explain why they hadn't yet published a plan, providing any exceptional circumstances for why the Government shouldn't intervene.

Following their submission, the Government is now setting out next steps. Of the 15 local authorities:-

► In Castle Point, Thanet, and Wirral, the Government's Chief Planner and a team of experts will be sent in to assess if the Government needs to take over the process of producing the local plan.

► In Northumberland the Government has instructed the Council to produce their plan earlier and to make the timetable clearer.

► In Basildon, Bolsover, Brentwood, Calderdale, Eastleigh, Mansfield, St Albans, which have all committed to publishing draft Plans, before the end of September 2018, the Government has made clear it will monitor their progress and that any further significant delay to meet this timescale will lead to the case for intervention being reconsidered.

► 4 local authorities:- Liverpool, North East Derbyshire, Runnymede, York; have since published their plans. Housing Secretary Sajid Javid has written to them to welcome this progress, but has made clear that should there be any further significant delays to their timetable to submit the plan, the Government will not hesitate to act.

The Government has abolished top down regional planning. But a locally led planning system requires elected local representatives to take the lead, listen to local residents and business, and set out a clear framework to build new homes, provide key infrastructure, support the local economy and protect the environment

Most Councils have seized the opportunity that localism presents; however a small minority have not and do not have a local plan in place. This can mean uncertainty for local people, have a negative impact on neighbourhood planning groups, result in piecemeal speculative housing development and communities having no plans in place for crucial local infrastructure and services.

Housing Secretary Sajid Javid said:- "Whilst most Councils rightly recognise their responsibilities and most have worked hard to meet the housing challenge, some have failed. I expect those authorities we identified in November to continue to make progress. I'm also stepping it up with 3 Councils in particular, sending in a team of experts to make a direct assessment, ensuring they plan properly for the future or we'll have to do it for them."

The Department has also commenced preparations to take over plan production so that work can begin as soon as possible, subject to decisions taken after the Chief Planner and his experts report back. A procurement process is currently underway to secure planning consultants and specialists who will swiftly undertake the work on plan production should these Councils not comply in the time required.

The Department will also make contact with County Councils and combined authorities in the areas concerned about the possibility of inviting those authorities to write plans.

What are your views on this topic?  Please email them to our news room, via:- News24@SouthportReporter.com and let us know what you think.

Did you know?  Letters set to the relevant local authorities can be found online?

Also did you know that The Housing White Paper set out how the Government would prioritise intervention; where:-

► The least progress in plan making has been made.

► Policies in plans had not been kept up to date.

► There was higher housing pressure.

► Intervention would have the greatest impact in accelerating Local Plan production.

'Queenscourt Hospice Make a Will Month.'

SPRING has sprung and as March draws to an end we move into 'Queenscourt Hospice Make a Will Month.' We are told that Queenscourt Hospice have joined forces with local many of the local Solicitors who have kindly donating their time free of charge over April, in return for donations to Queenscourt Hospice. If you have not already made an appointment, there is still time and limited availability with some practices.

Queenscourt told us that:- "Making a Will ensures that your loved ones are provided for as you wish. Unless you make a Will, you cannot guarantee that your estate will be distributed as you desired. There is no obligation for you to include a gift to the Hospice in your will, however, any gift in your Will made to a UK registered charity such as Queenscourt Hospice will be tax free and may help reduce the amount of Inheritance Tax your estate would otherwise have to pay. Simply choose a participating Solicitor below and call them directly to arrange an appointment. The Solicitor will not charge you for their time, but instead will ask you to make a suggested donation to Queenscourt of ₤90 for a basic single Will, ₤135 for a joint Will, or ₤40 for a codicil to an existing Will. All donations to Queenscourt are invaluable in enabling us to continue providing the highest standard of end of life care for our patients and their families. Making a Will doesn't have to be daunting, the Solicitor will guide you through the process, ensuring your family is looked after. We would like to thank all the participating Solicitors for their fantastic support!"

All the following Solicitors are participating in:- 'Make A Will Month 2018' and raising funds for Queenscourt Hospice:- Autumn Years Law, Hodge Halsall Solicitors, Birchall Blackburn Law, Kirwans Solicitors, Mooney Everett Solicitors, Brighouse Wolff Solicitors, Napthens Solicitors, Maxwell Hodge Solicitors, Brighouses Solicitors, Steve Davies Solicitors, Cockshott Peck Lewis Solicitors, Whitfields Solicitors.