Hello fellow residents! I’m James Pratt, your local councillor for Crewe St Barnabas. I live right here in the heart of our St Barnabas community, in the West End of Crewe.
I’m proud to represent our area on both Cheshire East Council and Crewe Town Council, working to make sure your voice is heard and local priorities are delivered across Crewe & Nantwich.
From Minshull New Road, to Underwood Lane, West Street to Wheelman Road, Badger Avenue, Frank Webb, Rolls Avenue, Chassagne Square, Kettell to McNeill Avenue and all roads and communities in between – we are all Crewe St Barnabas.
I’m your local councillor – and a fellow resident of our community. I’m working hard to tackle the everyday issues that matter, including potholes, litter, fly-tipping, parking problems, street lighting and anti-social behaviour.
If there’s something you’d like me to look into, please get in touch – or you can report issues online.
Read my latest news updates or check my recent facebook posts to find out what I’m up to!
Please follow and share my Facebook and Instagram and TikTok accounts, or sign up for my Email Newsletter so I can keep you up to date on local issues.
You can also take a look at my video looking back at some of our achievements in 2024!
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I wrote to every household in the area and delivered residents surveys to to find what issues you’d like to see tackled in our community. You can still complete this survey online if you have not already. |
If you would like to contact me about any local issue please do get in touch.
Thank you for your support!
Here’s what I’ve been up to recently…
Councillor James Pratt - Crewe, St Barnabas
COMMUNITY SPIRIT IN ACTION - THANK YOU KELLY!
Huge thanks to one of our fellow St Barnabas residents, Kelly.
I was amazed when she contacted me to say she had collected a massive 7 bags of litter from around the Darlington Avenue area.
I know that litter picking is not an easy task, especially when you're lugging bags around in the heat.
Thanks so much Kelly, your efforts are truly appreciated.
If anyone would like to also get involved, please do let me know and we can get some litter picking equipment sorted for you, or even get together to do some!
Contact me here:
www.crewestbarnabas.org.uk/contact-form
Councillor James Pratt - Crewe, St Barnabas
A BUSY DAY IN ST BARNABAS! ☀️
People often ask me what a councillor actually does, so here's a snapshot of today!
This morning I visited Leighton Academy to announce the winners of our anti-litter sign design competition. The standard was incredible and choosing just five designs to be displayed in Leighton Brook Park was really difficult.
You can see all of the sign designs via the link in the comments below. Well done to everyone involved, you did brilliant!
I also enjoyed watching the performances in Leighton's Got Talent. There is so much talent and confidence in the school. Congratulations to all who took part - you were fantastic!
After that, I headed down to Leighton Brook Park for another litter pick and to empty the bins again. I'm still pushing the council to either empty them more often or provide more bins.
A big thank you to Nathan, who joined me today and has now become one of our volunteer litter pickers. It was great to drop off his litter picking kit. Thanks Nathan!
This afternoon I held my drop-in surgery on Timbrell Avenue with our local Crewe Police Community Support Team. Thanks to everyone who came along to raise issues or just have a chat. These conversations really do make a difference.
This evening I popped down to join Start Well at The Wishing Well for another Street Sports session at Leighton Brook Park, but due to the hot weather this weeks session didn't proceed.
Instead PC Beresford and myself spent some time having a quick kickabout and engaging with the young people in the park. They really enjoyed learning more about a role a police officer does, and of course exploring the police car!
Don't forget, Street Sports is FREE and back next Friday from 5pm to 6pm. We also have Crewe Alexandra in the community every Wednesday from 6pm with their FREE Premier Kicks football sessions.
Finally, has anyone lost a SikSilk T-shirt? I found one in the park today and have left it on the picnic bench in the playground in case it's yours.
A busy but enjoyable day, and a reminder that being a councillor is about being out and about in the community, listening to residents and getting things done. Thanks to everyone who was part of today! 😊
Councillor James Pratt - Crewe, St Barnabas is at Leighton Brook Park.
⚽️ STREET SPORTS ARE BACK AT LEIGHTON BROOK PARK!
🎉TONIGHT AT 5PM!
Looking for something fun and active for the kids to do on Friday evenings? Come along to our FREE Street Sports sessions at Leighton Brook Park!
📍 Location: Leighton Brook Park, Frank Webb Avenue, Crewe, CW1 3NE
🗓 When: Every Friday, 5.00pm to 6.00pm, until 30 October
👥 Who can attend? Open to all young people aged up to 16. Children aged 8 and over can attend independently.
⚽ What to expect: Enjoy a range of sports, team games and fun activities in the floodlit games area.
👟 What to bring: Wear comfortable clothing and suitable footwear, and don't forget a bottle of water.
💰 Cost: Completely FREE - no booking required, just turn up and join in!
These sessions are delivered by Start Well at The Wishing Well, in partnership with Crewe Town Council.
Please share with friends and family who might be interested!
Councillor James Pratt - Crewe, St Barnabas
TOTTY’S HALL WAY / MINSHULL NEW ROAD - ROUNDABOUT DAMAGE AND ONGOING LACK OF UPDATES
I’ve been chasing an update on the damage at the Totty’s Hall Way / Minshull New Road roundabout following the road traffic accident (RTC) on 14 June.
This includes the damaged illuminated chevron sign on the roundabout, which is still awaiting repair.
I’ve also asked whether the council has managed to obtain the driver and vehicle details so that an insurance claim can be made. If damage has been caused, we should be making sure the cost is recovered through insurance, not left for local taxpayers to cover.
I have not had a response to my most recent questions, so I will continue to chase this until we get a proper update and a clear timeline for the repairs.
Separately, I’ve also been pushing for action on street light “New 9” on Totty’s Hall Way, which was damaged during a separate RTC over the winter. This includes when it will be replaced and whether the route has now been included in the gritting schedule, given its importance as an access route to Leighton Hospital. Despite raising this on a number of occasions, I’m still not getting any positive response from Highways.
There does seem to be a pattern developing here, which is not good enough when these are basic safety and infrastructure issues!
Councillor James Pratt - Crewe, St Barnabas
🚛 WASTE & RECYCLING JOB OPPORTUNITIES 🚛
If you're looking for a new job, or know someone who is, I wanted to share these opportunities with Cheshire East Council's Waste and Recycling teams.
There's a Recruitment Open Day on Saturday where you can find out more about the roles on offer, meet the team and even apply on the day.
📍 Environmental Hub, Cledford Lane, Middlewich (CW10 0JR)
📅 Saturday 11 July
🕘 9am - 2pm
✅ No booking is needed - just turn up.
On the day you can:
🚛 Have a look around the collection vehicles
👋 Chat with members of the Waste and Recycling team
💬 Complete an application
✅ Even have an interview on the day
Current vacancies include:
• HGV Waste and Recycling Driver/Loader
• Waste and Recycling Loader
• Customer Services Advisor (Environmental Services)
• Business Support Officer (Environmental Services)
• Waste Team Leader
• Mechanic Fitter
• Waste Transfer Station Plant Operator
• Street Cleansing Operative - Compact Sweeper Driver
If any of these roles sound of interest, or you know someone who might be looking for a new opportunity, do pop along and find out more.
Councillor James Pratt - Crewe, St Barnabas
CREWE'S NEW YOUTH ZONE IS RECRUITING!
Last week I had the pleasure of catching up with some of the team behind The Dome, Crewe's new Youth Zone on Oak Street.
With the Dome Youth Zone opening later this year, they're already building an amazing team that will help give Crewe's young people the opportunities, support and safe place they deserve.
Have you got what it takes to make a difference?
There are a range of exciting vacancies available, including Youth Workers and a variety of other roles. If you're passionate about supporting young people and want to be part of something special from the very beginning, I'd encourage you to take a look.
Find out more about the available roles and apply here:
thedomeyouthzone.org/get-involved/vacancies/
Please share this post with anyone who may be interested in joining the team and helping to make a real difference for young people in Crewe.
Councillor James Pratt - Crewe, St Barnabas is with Start Well at The Wishing Well.
⚽️ STREET SPORTS ARE BACK AT LEIGHTON BROOK PARK! 🎉
Looking for something fun and active to do on Friday evenings? Come along to our FREE Street Sports sessions at Leighton Brook Park!
📍 Location: Leighton Brook Park, Frank Webb Avenue, Crewe, CW1 3NE
🗓 When: Every Friday, 5.00pm to 6.00pm, until 30 October
👥 Who can attend? Open to all young people aged up to 16. Children aged 8 and over can attend independently.
⚽ What to expect: Enjoy a range of sports, team games and fun activities in the floodlit games area.
👟 What to bring: Wear comfortable clothing and suitable footwear, and don't forget a bottle of water.
💰 Cost: Completely FREE - no booking required, just turn up and join in!
These sessions are delivered by Start Well at The Wishing Well, in partnership with Crewe Town Council.
Please share with friends and family who might be interested!
Councillor James Pratt - Crewe, St Barnabas
WORKING TOGETHER FOR ST BARNABAS
I've been out and about around the ward this morning and, amongst other things, came across this fly-tipping at the Minshull New Road roundabout. Charity collection bags had been dumped alongside rugs and other waste.
I've reported it so it can be cleared.
If you're using charity collection bags, please make sure you leave them at the edge of your own property, such as your front garden or driveway, ready for collection. Please don't leave them in public places, as they can end up being treated as fly-tipping and never make it to the good cause they were intended to support.
If you spot fly-tipping, please don't just walk past and ignore it. Report it so it can be dealt with. These incidents are often investigated for evidence that could help identify those responsible.
It only takes a couple of minutes to report an issue on your phone:
www.crewestbarnabas.org.uk/report-an-issue/
Let's all work together and keep our area clean, tidy and somewhere we can all be proud of.