A Christmas message to Blackpool

Dr Barbara Kneale, a campaigner we have worked with on a number of our reports in 2025, writes to you this Christmas Eve

Hello and welcome to The Blackpool Lead.

Today will be something different as I hand over to Dr Barbara Kneale, whose leadership at both Fylde Coast Against Sewage and Close Jameson Road Landfill has been crucial for those who need it this year.

But reporting is only as good as the people who speak with - so it’s also been crucial for us as we reported on major environmental stories in your area this year.

I hope you have a lovely fortnight. Our editions will continue as normal over Christmas but I’d not blame you for not checking your emails. Merry Christmas from me and everyone at The Lead.

Blackpool briefing

🚄The leader of Blackpool Council has sent an urgent letter calling for a rethink over cuts to the resort’s vital London rail link. Cllr Lynn Williams says the move will be detrimental not only to residents but also the town’s businesses which rely on the fuller service – and the town itself. Her message comes after train operator Avanti West Coast confirmed that it was having to reduce its four daily weekday services to and from Blackpool to just two a day, starting from last week. The move – part of new timetable changes across the UK – was blasted by commuters but Avanti said the decision lies with the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) an independent, non-ministerial government department aimed at protecting rail users and regulating Network Rail.

🍸A popular Fylde Coast bar and eatery has been given the green light to expand the use of its building. The owners of the Cube Bar Kitchen, on 2 Breck Road in Poulton, lodged an application with Wyre planners for a ‘change of use’ of part of the bar restaurant (second floor and part of the first floor) for three different times of usage. The applicants wanted those parts of the three-storey building to now fall under Class E (c) financial, professional and other services, and also Class E(e) medical services and Class E(G)(i) offices, whilst retaining the existing Bar Restaurant Use on the ground floor and first floor function room. Those plans have now been approved by the planning officer without needing to go before a planning committee.

🎨A former art and craft shop building in Blackpool town centre which has been part-empty for some time is to be renovated and turned into three new shop units. Blacks Haberdashery was a popular shop for many years, selling fabric, cotton and many other art and craft items and sewing aids until in closed in 2019 and fell into disrepair Part of the building has already been upgraded when two shops with flats above them were created on Edward Street. But now the rest of the building is to be renovated as part of the Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) project, involving a partnership between Blackpool Council and Historic England.

A Christmas message to Blackpool

Dr Barbara Kneale. Credit: The Blackpool Lead

By Dr Barbara Kneale, Fylde Coast Against Sewage & Close Jameson Road Landfill

As we approach Christmas, we reflect on our experiences of the previous year and remember those that may have left us. I believe it is a time for family and friends but also a time to consider what is happening in the wider world beyond our own lives.

My own experience of 2025 has been a rollercoaster of events with tragic family issues, ongoing environmental campaigns of Fylde Coast Against Sewage and Close Jameson Road Landfill, and events both at home and abroad which seem to be at odds with the human state.

Fylde Coast Against Sewage has raised awareness about the dumping of raw sewage by United Utilities into our beautiful coastline through citizen science projects of testing seawater for bacteria, lobbying local MPs, liaising with local councils and attending local events along the Fylde Coast.

In conjunction with similar groups around the country, we have lobbied the Government on introducing tougher penalties for water companies and increased surveillance of sewage dumping. While this is a work in progress, I believe that changes are coming and come the New Year we will continue our work.

Close Jameson Road Landfill has campaigned for the closure of the coastal landfill site in Fleetwood which has impacted adversely on the health and wellbeing of the local population through gaseous emissions.

As a group we are challenging the authorities who are tasked with the protection of communities but who appear to consider the right of a private business to take precedence over the rights of the local community to live in a clean and healthy environment.

The health impact on the local community is not being given the consideration it deserves by organisations (both centrally at the UKHSA and locally at Lancashire County Council) and by the local NHS medical services. According to local medical services, no increase in health issues have been reported in the area since the landfill re-opened despite over 13,000 complaints to the Environment Agency and 1,300 complaints to Wyre Borough Council. As a retired doctor, I will continue to challenge these health authorities but we need your help, please report your health issues to your local GP or clinic.

On a positive note, through persistent pressure put upon Wyre Council as the landowner, the lease to the site will not be extended after 2027 at which point the site should be restored. However this is still two years away and I would say that this is too long for us to endure. Unfortunately, Wyre Council are still reluctant to issue a statutory nuisance to close the site.

I know this all sounds a little depressing but progress is being made slowly! As an eternal optimist I believe that ultimately some good will come from these campaigns for both the short and long term. But the fight goes on and if you would like to join us find us our Facebook groups and pages. (Close Jameson Road Landfill - Fylde Coast Against Sewage)

Enough of environmental campaigns, Christmas is a time of joy and goodwill to all. A time to be thankful for our good fortune but also to think about those less fortunate than ourselves.

We are living in an increasingly unstable world in which human kindness and compassion is in short supply. My wish would be for a more peaceful and kinder 2026 for all the inhabitants of our fragile planet.

In the words of John Donne;

No man is an island,
Entire of itself,
Every man is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thy friend’s
Or of thine own were:
Any man’s death diminishes me,
Because I am involved in mankind,
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;
It tolls for thee.

Finally, I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope Santa brings you what you wish for and the New Year brings you wonderful opportunities.