By Sarah Atherton

MP for Wrexham

As many residents may be aware, the North Wales Fire and Rescue Authority (NWFRA) is consulting on the provision of fire service emergency cover for Wrexham. Two of their proposals would see Wrexham lose one of its fire engines and a reduction in firefighters. I have grave concerns over these proposals.

I have launched a petition to oppose these proposals on my website and have been pleased to see so many people sign and send a strong message that we do not want to see a reduction in Wrexham’s Fire Services. To sign the petition, please click ‘Fire Service Petition’ on my website homepage. I will present this petition as part of the consultation process.

Last week, I met with the Wrexham Council’s Chief Officer for Economy and Planning at Wrexham Council to discuss a range of topics including the Shared Prosperity Fund, the planning backlog and the Groves School.

As many residents will know, last year the UK Government gave Wrexham Council £22.7m in Shared Prosperity Funding to spend on projects to transform, level up and improve Wrexham for years to come. Many businesses and community groups in Wrexham applied for this financial support and I look forward to hearing more about the successful projects and visiting as many as possible.

It was also pleasing to discuss the progress being made on the Welsh Labour Government’s policy on phosphates, which has brought planning in Wales to a standstill and had major consequences for housing and business development. I have been working on this issue for over a year and it is pleasing to hear that after many discussions, revised Environmental Permits are being issued to the Five Fords Wastewater Treatment Works, as well as the works at Gresford. As a result, Wrexham Council can start determining planning applications in the areas served by these two treatment works. With 4,500 people on a waiting list for housing and businesses lining up to invest in our city, Wrexham cannot afford any further delays caused by policies cooked up in Cardiff by the Welsh Labour Government!

I also spoke to the Chief Officer about Groves School on Chester Road in Wrexham. The site has been unused for many years and plans for regeneration have consistently fallen through. So, it is exciting that it has been shortlisted as a potential site for a National Contemporary Art Gallery. I fully support this project which, if successful, would be a very welcome addition to Wrexham’s thriving cultural scene.

In other local news, I joined Inspector Luke Hughes on a walkabout in the City Centre where we spoke to residents to ask for their views on the centre and policing. After a consultation with businesses, residents, North Wales Police and Wrexham Council, I was extremely pleased to see that traffic limitation measures were put in place on the High Street in June. After a couple of months, it was great to hear such good feedback and that residents feel a lot safer in the evenings. During the walkabout, we spent time at the Bus Station, which I know has been the target of anti-social behaviour recently. Inspector Hughes and his team do a fantastic job and I remain committed to working with the Police and Wrexham Council to make Wrexham safer and tackle the anti-social behaviour, which is being carried out by a small number of young people.

Wrexham has secured a further £30,000 from the UK Government Safer Streets Fund to make our streets safer during the school holidays. It is pleasing to see these projects well underway and that they are providing young people with social and physical activities that otherwise would not have been on offer.

Lastly, it was great to meet the team at Your Space in Llay and see the vital support they are providing to young people on the autistic spectrum and their families. The team provide a variety of fun, engaging and social activities for the young people and are a true credit to our community.

If you are a Wrexham resident in the current Wrexham constituency boundary and need my help with any issue, please don’t hesitate to contact me by emailing sarah.atherton.mp@parliament.uk.