Plans for Runcorn chip shop
ANOTHER takeaway could soon open in Runcorn after a planning application was submitted for a fish and chip shop.
Plans to turn a shop unit at Trident Retail Park into a chippy have been submitted to Halton Council.
The takeaway would be near Cineworld.
The application comes shortly after residents slammed the council for ‘degrading’ Runcorn by allowing a 19th takeaway to open in the Old Town back in May.
Halton Lea in Runcorn, where the proposed chip shop would lie, is also the centre of the NHS Healthy New Town project – an NHS initiative aimed at tackling pressing health issues such as obesity and depression through regeneration and development. ●
RATS can be found literally everywhere in the world, but some areas attract rodents far more than others – especially in Halton.
Data from a Freedom of Information request reveals that Halton council responded to 1,461 callouts for rat treatments at domestic properties across the borough, with some wards needing a visit from pest control far more than others.
The FOI data, split by ward, reveals the worst affected area had ten times more callouts for rat treatment than the least affected area.
The data includes when pest control was called out for rats in and outside domestic properties.
Using these statistics, we have been able to work out where the rat capital of Halton was for 2017.
So where in Runcorn and Widnes is the issue of rats most prevalent and which wards has the council had to visit most regularly to get rid of them?
Here are the results in reverse order. 19th – Norton South
Norton South in Runcorn comes in a favoured last place when it comes to rat callouts in 2017, with only 14 visits to homes from pest control throughout the year.
Its coveted last place may not quite stand the test of time – there’s already been 16 call outs for rat treatment this year alone. 18th – Windmill Hill
Windmill Hill, which lies just next to Norton South in Runcorn, doesn’t fare too badly either and only saw 21 rat treatments in 2017. Joint 17th – Hale and Halton Lea
The affluent village of Hale which borders Speke is the third least rat infested ward, facing a modest 27 rat treatments throughout the year.
The coveted position is shared by Halton Lea in Runcorn, where only 27 visits were made by pest control.
However that number has already been exceeded this year alone – with 30 call outs in 2018 to date. 16th – Beechwood
Runcorn continues to dominate the bottom end of the rat league table. Beechwood saw 29 call outs for rat treatments last year. 15th – Daresbury
Daresbury, known famously as the birthplace of Alice in Wonderland author Lewis Carroll, comes in a respectable 15th place with 35 rat treatments in the ward last year. 14th – Norton North
The data starts to jump up now with this Runcorn ward needing 45 rat treatments. Yet it’s still a relatively low number compared to those at the top of the chart. 13th – Grange
Grange, also in Runcorn, comes in next with 50 callouts in 2017.
However residents might be more worried to know that this number has almost been exceeded in the last six months alone, with 47 callouts made from January to June 2018. 12th – Heath
Heath saw 54 rat treatments at domestic properties last year, allowing Runcorn to remain in a favourable position compared to neighbouring Widnes. Joint 11th – Riverside and Halton Brook
Finally a break for Widnes as Riverside comes in 12th with 64 rat treatments in 2017.
Halton Brook, not far from Norton South which had 14 visits for rat treatment, comes in joint position with Riverside. 10th – Broadheath
Broadheath in Widnes comes in 10th with 70 calls to pest control, narrowly remaining in the bottom half of the rat league table. 9th – Halton Castle
Back in Runcorn Halton Castle comes in 11th place with 71 visits. 8th – Halton View
Halton View, in Widnes, doesn’t fall too far behind its Runcorn coun- terpart and had 72 rat treatments in 2017. 7th – Mersey
One of the few Runcorn wards within the top half of the rat league, this had 79 callouts last year. 6th – Birchfield
Quite a big jump as we head straight into the 90s. This Widnes ward had 92 treatments for rat infestations at domestic properties. 5th – Hough Green
Not far above Birchfield, Hough Green in Widnes had 94 visits from the council for rat problems. 4th – Appleton
By far the biggest jump yet as we head into the triple digits, Appleton, in Widnes, had 118 visits from pest control for rat infestations in 2018. 3rd – Kingsway
Kingsway, home to Halton’s rugby league stadium in Widnes, may not be so popular now that our FOI data reveals its in the top three most rat infested wards and had 122 call outs for rat treatment in 2017. 2nd – Ditton
Ditton, in the Halebank area of Widnes where residents have reported frequent fly-tipping problems, has been revealed as Halton’s second most rat-infested area.
During 2017, the council responded to a whopping 131 call outs for rat treatment in the ward. 1st – Farnworth
And finally, Farnworth, in Widnes, can be revealed as the rat capital of the borough, with a staggering 140 callouts for rat treatment in 2017 – more than ten times the number needed in Norton South, the least affected ward.
Luckily for Farnworth residents, Halton is one of the few local authorities that don’t charge residnets for rat treatment. ● Find out more about the council’s pest control policy at https://www3. halton. gov. uk/ Pages/ planning/ Pests.aspx