Birkenhead resident, Mark Roberts, is delighted to have been recruited as a baker in the new Asda store which opened recently in the town. Mark follows in the footsteps of his father who was also a baker in Birkenhead over thirty years ago. Mark is pictured left with local Labour Councillor, Jean Stapleton, and local MP, Frank Field. Cllr Stapleton, who played a pivotal role in persuading Asda to invest £30 million in a new store in Birkenhead town centre, commented: “I am absolutelty delighted that Mark has secured a job in the bakery department of the new store. It is fantastic that Mark is following in the footsteps of his father who was also worked as a baker in Birkenhead several years ago. Mark is one of hundreds of local people, many of whom have been out of work for some time, who have been given the opportunity of a good job with high quality training. I applaud Asda for this tremendous development.”

The new Asda Birkenhead on Grange Road opened its doors on Tuesday the 1st November with the help of a local hero and a Wirral school.  84 year old Ken McDermott was asked to open the store in recognition for his volunteering work in Birkenhead, including the establishment of the Wirral Older People’s Parliament in 2007 and the Wirral Carers’ Association in 2010. Ken, described by friends and colleagues as ‘unassuming, courteous and a key figure in the community’, was joined by pupils from Oxton St Saviour’s School who were the first school ever to design a radio advert for the new store.

Local Labour Councillor, Jean Stapleton, who played a key role in bringing the store to Birkenhead, was present together with the Mayor, Frank Field MP and other Labour Councillors. Commenting on the opening of the new store, Cllr Stapleton said: “The opening of this brand new Asda store in the heart of Birkenhead represents a huge step forward for the town as a shopping destination.  The regeneration and economic benefits are significant, the store represents an investment of £30million, and will enhance the town’s shopping offer as well as creating several hundred new jobs for local people. As Councillor for Birkenhead and Tranmere I am particularly pleased to see this development come to fruition and feel it is just reward for the Council’s persistence and the community’s patience, businesses and residents, throughout the development process.  I hope they will all reap the benefit of having a new 90,000sq ft superstore on their doorstep in the run up to Christmas and beyond.”

The new store features two levels of parking, including direct access to the shop floor from the top deck.  It also includes a customer café, pharmacy, George clothing department and everything needed for a full weekly shop. Customers can also use the Asda Price Guarantee (APG). This will allow shoppers in Birkenhead the chance to compare the price of their shop with competitor supermarkets and if Asda isn’t 10% cheaper, it will refund the difference.

See below other photos of this memorable day.  

Birkenhead has the second highest concentration of fastest-growing companies in the UK according to research published in The Sunday Telegraph. A report undertaken by the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts, tracked the number and type of companies that had increased in employment over the past three years. Each company had to achieve 20% employment growth for three consecutive years to qualify.

Second only to Aberdeen, Birkenhead was found to have a higher concentration of fast growing companies than large cities including London, Cardiff and Edinburgh. The research showed that 12% of Birkenhead companies had reached the minimum 20% growth in each of the last three years. The Contact Company, founded by Asif Hamid, was highlighted as one of the most prominent, with its sales forecasts and workforce set to double this year. Also credited was the £4.5 billion Wirral Waters scheme, for which local construction companies are preparing.

Phil Davies, Councillor for Birkenhead & Tranmere and Wirral Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Planning Strategy, (pictured above) said: “This research is great news and shows that our efforts to boost the local economy are paying off. It is a challenging time for businesses and people looking for work, but to have such a high concentration of fast-growing companies in the borough can only be good news.The fact that these companies have seen sustained growth over a three year period is excellent news and testament to the support we offer our businesses through Invest Wirral. From day one, we have said that Wirral Waters had the potential to transform Wirral’s economy and it is extremely positive to hear that it is already helping local companies before work at the site has even started. We are determined to create an environment where the private sector can grow and invest in new jobs and we will continue to support business as well as investing in programmes like The Wirral Apprentice and the Intermediate Labour Market (ILM) so that companies can train new employees to take advantage of the new opportunities that will come as the economy improves.”

 Asif Hamid, who owns The Contact Company call centre in Birkenhead, added: “I am delighted to have read such positive research results published in the Sunday Telegraph, especially following what has been a very difficult time for the UK economy generally. It is testament to everyone supporting the Wirral economy that we have so many companies who have generated sustained growth over the last 3 years and longer. It is especially satisfying that the hard work, professionalism and dedication of the people working in my organisation is recognised; everyone who works at The Contact Company and all those in the Wirral who have supported the ongoing success of our business should be proud to be involved in the active re-generation of this area of the UK. We look forward to continuing to grow and offer sustainable, long term employment on the Wirral and attract the type of talent that will secure the economic future of the region.”

Birkenhead & Tranmere Labour Councillor, Phil Davies and his wife Sheena, have this summer completed an immense 504 mile cycle around the Isle of Skye and the North West Highlands to raise money for local charity, The Reader Organisation.

Phil and Sheena’s epic 504 mile journey retraced the path taken by writer Dr Samuel Johnson when he toured around Scotland in 1773. After twelve days of effort and endurance, they raised £1,147 to support the charity’s weekly Get Into Reading sessions with looked-after children in Wirral. Phil & Sheena presented a cheque to the Get into Reading Team at The Lauries Centre in Birkenhead.

Councillor Phil Davies, says: “I’ve been a supporter of Get Into Reading for many years and I wanted to undertake this journey to raise funds to help them in their valuable work here in Wirral.”

Kate McDonnell, Get Into Reading Wirral Project Manager, says: “We’re so grateful to Phil and Sheena for their hard work and generosity. We’re going to spend the money on books for our looked-after children projects in Wirral, enabling us to continue to inspire a love of reading, and build confidence and self-esteem, with these young people.”

Your three Labour Councillors have been working with Keep Britain Tidy and other Council partners, to tackle dog fouling issues across Birkenhead & Tranmere. As part of a Wirral wide campaign, Cllrs. Phil Davies and Brian Kenny (pictured left) attended an event held on Wednesday 31^st August, at Bentinck Street field, Birkenhead. 

We were very pleased to promote the campaign. This was a fun event, but at the same time, we wanted to ensure that we got the message across that this is a serious issue that residents feel strongly about. 

Birkenhead & Tranmere Labour Cllr. Brian Kenny, who is also Cabinet Member for the Environment, commented: “Dog fouling remains one of the issues that residents feel most strongly about. Thankfully, nowadays, most owners do clean up after their pets and it’s just a minority of people who leave mess littered on our streets and Parks.

 “It is those people who we need to educate – the message ‘bag it and bin it’ really is as simple as it sounds; it doesn’t have to be in a special bag and it doesn’t have to go in a special ‘dog dirt’ bin. Unfortunately, some dog owners act irresponsibly and allow their dogs to foul. Where this takes place and we have the evidence we will prosecute and there have been a number of successful prosecutions inBirkenhead and Tranmere over the past twelve months.”