Reinventing Politics on a Local Level
About Us
Active For Westhoughton was established in March 2020 by local residents who came together, having become disillusioned with mainstream party politics at a local level.
Our core philosophy is simple - that mainstream party politics belongs in Westminster, and has no place in local Government. Our political model is one which is community led and encourages independent vision. Our aim is to 'reinvent politics on a local level'.
Active For Westhoughton will stand candidates in both local and Parish elections - that is, for Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council and Westhoughton Town Council.
Active For Westhoughton is neither of the left or the right of the political spectrum, with our policies being based on direct community feedback and a determination between what is right or wrong, without prejudice or favour.
Our members come from varied backgrounds and include local residents, local business owners and those who work within Westhoughton, all of whom have come together to see and to be a part of real change in the town. We welcome anyone, of any background, who share our passion for the town, who want to make a difference, and ultimately 'be the change'.
To find out more about Active For Westhoughton, to enquire about membership or to apply to become a candidate, please contact us.
Our core philosophy is simple - that mainstream party politics belongs in Westminster, and has no place in local Government. Our political model is one which is community led and encourages independent vision. Our aim is to 'reinvent politics on a local level'.
Active For Westhoughton will stand candidates in both local and Parish elections - that is, for Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council and Westhoughton Town Council.
Active For Westhoughton is neither of the left or the right of the political spectrum, with our policies being based on direct community feedback and a determination between what is right or wrong, without prejudice or favour.
Our members come from varied backgrounds and include local residents, local business owners and those who work within Westhoughton, all of whom have come together to see and to be a part of real change in the town. We welcome anyone, of any background, who share our passion for the town, who want to make a difference, and ultimately 'be the change'.
To find out more about Active For Westhoughton, to enquire about membership or to apply to become a candidate, please contact us.
Our Policies
TAKING BACK CONTROL - we believe that the role of Westhoughton Town Council should be increased in local Government. Additional powers should be devolved to the Town Council from Bolton MBC over matters which concern Westhoughton.
PUSHING FOR A FAIR DEAL - Westhoughton residents contribute approximately £20 million to Bolton MBC in Council Tax payments. We think Westhoughton deserves a fair share of this to be re-invested in the Town - at the moment we do not seem to be receiving a fair deal from our Tory-led coalition Council.
OPPOSING HOUSE BUILDING - we will oppose the building of new houses in Westhoughton. For too long now, planning application after planning application has been waved through by Bolton Council - often for homes which profess to be 'affordable' but turn out to be anything but. We believe that there are too many new homes being built in Westhoughton and that the town simply does not have the infrastructure in place to cope, let alone the places at Schools, Dentists and Doctors. There are also plenty of vacant properties currently for sale or to rent in Westhoughton, which will satisfy any demand for homes in the town.
PROTECTING OUR GREENBELT - we will strive to protect what is left of our valuable green belt land in Westhoughton. We believe that any development (if approved by Bolton Council) should be limited to brownfield, or 'previously developed' land. We should not be destroying our greenbelt.
INVESTING IN OUR INFRASTRUCTURE - we will push for investment in local infrastructure. Our roads and pavements are often left neglected and in a state of disrepair for months on end whilst waiting for a 'patch up' repair job; our road layout could be improved in various locations in the town to allow for better flow of traffic; and, where possible, pavements could be narrowed to allow room for buses to collect passengers without stopping the flow of traffic on main roads.
OPPOSING ANY RISE IN COUNCIL TAX GENERAL LEVY - we will oppose any attempt to increase the Council Tax General Levy in 2022/23. The General Levy is the amount that Bolton Council can raise Council Tax by in order to fund any council service. Residents saw year on year increases under the previous Labour administration (up to 2019/20), whilst under the current Tory-led coalition Council the General Levy was not increased for 2020/21. We do accept that the Adult Social Care Precept ought to be increased in order to support vital services to some of our most vulnerable members of the community. This is in part due to the ageing population placing extra demand on adult services.
INCREASING LEVELS OF RECYCLING - we will push for a move to a weekly collection of the green bin. A move which we believe will lead to increased levels of recycling not just in Westhoughton, but across the Borough. Food waste is put in to the green bin as well as garden waste, and so a move to weekly collections would help to ensure that the risk of overflowing bins, poor hygiene, risk of vermin and any increase in fly tipping is avoided.
HELPING YOUNG FAMILIES - we will push for young families to have the option to request an additional slim bin; we understand that additional space may be needed to throw away disposable nappies. Currently Bolton Council requires you to have three children in nappies to qualify for a large grey bin via a 'waste audit'. Our proposal would be for an additional slim bin to be provided (upon request) to young families with one or more children in nappies, until such time as the child reaches the age of 4. A small one-off payment would be proposed in order to assist with costs.
PROTECTING THE COMMUNITY - we believe that all public buildings in Westhoughton and the wider Bolton borough should have external, publicly accessible AED's aka Defibrillators. It should not fall solely on private individuals to offer such a facility and Bolton Council should lead the way. According to the Resuscitation Council (UK), only 3% of cardiac arrests happen within the recommended retrieval distance of a defibrillator - this needs to change.
Finally, we pride ourselves in having resident-led policies. If you wish to contribute to our local policies, please do get in contact with us.
PUSHING FOR A FAIR DEAL - Westhoughton residents contribute approximately £20 million to Bolton MBC in Council Tax payments. We think Westhoughton deserves a fair share of this to be re-invested in the Town - at the moment we do not seem to be receiving a fair deal from our Tory-led coalition Council.
OPPOSING HOUSE BUILDING - we will oppose the building of new houses in Westhoughton. For too long now, planning application after planning application has been waved through by Bolton Council - often for homes which profess to be 'affordable' but turn out to be anything but. We believe that there are too many new homes being built in Westhoughton and that the town simply does not have the infrastructure in place to cope, let alone the places at Schools, Dentists and Doctors. There are also plenty of vacant properties currently for sale or to rent in Westhoughton, which will satisfy any demand for homes in the town.
PROTECTING OUR GREENBELT - we will strive to protect what is left of our valuable green belt land in Westhoughton. We believe that any development (if approved by Bolton Council) should be limited to brownfield, or 'previously developed' land. We should not be destroying our greenbelt.
INVESTING IN OUR INFRASTRUCTURE - we will push for investment in local infrastructure. Our roads and pavements are often left neglected and in a state of disrepair for months on end whilst waiting for a 'patch up' repair job; our road layout could be improved in various locations in the town to allow for better flow of traffic; and, where possible, pavements could be narrowed to allow room for buses to collect passengers without stopping the flow of traffic on main roads.
OPPOSING ANY RISE IN COUNCIL TAX GENERAL LEVY - we will oppose any attempt to increase the Council Tax General Levy in 2022/23. The General Levy is the amount that Bolton Council can raise Council Tax by in order to fund any council service. Residents saw year on year increases under the previous Labour administration (up to 2019/20), whilst under the current Tory-led coalition Council the General Levy was not increased for 2020/21. We do accept that the Adult Social Care Precept ought to be increased in order to support vital services to some of our most vulnerable members of the community. This is in part due to the ageing population placing extra demand on adult services.
INCREASING LEVELS OF RECYCLING - we will push for a move to a weekly collection of the green bin. A move which we believe will lead to increased levels of recycling not just in Westhoughton, but across the Borough. Food waste is put in to the green bin as well as garden waste, and so a move to weekly collections would help to ensure that the risk of overflowing bins, poor hygiene, risk of vermin and any increase in fly tipping is avoided.
HELPING YOUNG FAMILIES - we will push for young families to have the option to request an additional slim bin; we understand that additional space may be needed to throw away disposable nappies. Currently Bolton Council requires you to have three children in nappies to qualify for a large grey bin via a 'waste audit'. Our proposal would be for an additional slim bin to be provided (upon request) to young families with one or more children in nappies, until such time as the child reaches the age of 4. A small one-off payment would be proposed in order to assist with costs.
PROTECTING THE COMMUNITY - we believe that all public buildings in Westhoughton and the wider Bolton borough should have external, publicly accessible AED's aka Defibrillators. It should not fall solely on private individuals to offer such a facility and Bolton Council should lead the way. According to the Resuscitation Council (UK), only 3% of cardiac arrests happen within the recommended retrieval distance of a defibrillator - this needs to change.
Finally, we pride ourselves in having resident-led policies. If you wish to contribute to our local policies, please do get in contact with us.
Local Government
Did you know, Westhoughton has a two-tier system of Local Government?
Bolton Council is the major authority and administers such things Highways, Social Services, Education, Planning, Licensing, Environment, Leisure Services, and Housing and Council Tax benefits.
Westhoughton Town Council is the second authority which comprises of eighteen Town Councillors.
The Town Councillors are elected from a number of 'wards', namely Central, White Horse, Daisy Hill, Hoskers and Hart Common, Wingates and Chequerbent. Seats are distributed through the wards based on the ward size - Central and White Horse wards being the largest, each having four seats on the Council.
Normally the whole Town Council is elected for a four year period, with elections last taking place in 2019.
The role of Town Councillor is voluntary. Town Councillors do not receive any payment or expenses for carrying out duties or attending Council meetings.
Westhoughton Town Council considers planning applications that affect Westhoughton and subsequently informs Bolton Council’s Planning Committee of the Town Council’s views and comments.
The Town Council is actively involved in major planning issues, such as new road proposals, new housing developments and the development of the town centre. The Town Council has funded the capital cost of several highway safety projects in Westhoughton.
We feel that increased powers should be devolved to Westhoughton Town Council from Bolton MBC in relation to matters relating to Westhoughton, particularly on issues such as Planning, Licensing and the Environment.
Active For Westhoughton intends to stand candidates in the next elections for Westhoughton Town Council, currently scheduled to be held in 2023.
If you are interested in standing as one of our candidates, please send us a message via the Contact Us page and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Bolton Council is the major authority and administers such things Highways, Social Services, Education, Planning, Licensing, Environment, Leisure Services, and Housing and Council Tax benefits.
Westhoughton Town Council is the second authority which comprises of eighteen Town Councillors.
The Town Councillors are elected from a number of 'wards', namely Central, White Horse, Daisy Hill, Hoskers and Hart Common, Wingates and Chequerbent. Seats are distributed through the wards based on the ward size - Central and White Horse wards being the largest, each having four seats on the Council.
Normally the whole Town Council is elected for a four year period, with elections last taking place in 2019.
The role of Town Councillor is voluntary. Town Councillors do not receive any payment or expenses for carrying out duties or attending Council meetings.
Westhoughton Town Council considers planning applications that affect Westhoughton and subsequently informs Bolton Council’s Planning Committee of the Town Council’s views and comments.
The Town Council is actively involved in major planning issues, such as new road proposals, new housing developments and the development of the town centre. The Town Council has funded the capital cost of several highway safety projects in Westhoughton.
We feel that increased powers should be devolved to Westhoughton Town Council from Bolton MBC in relation to matters relating to Westhoughton, particularly on issues such as Planning, Licensing and the Environment.
Active For Westhoughton intends to stand candidates in the next elections for Westhoughton Town Council, currently scheduled to be held in 2023.
If you are interested in standing as one of our candidates, please send us a message via the Contact Us page and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
