State of Potterhouse Lane littering reported

I have reported the state of Potterhouse Lane from the roundabout past the Tip and beyond. The whole area is a complete littered mess and has been for weeks. Some of this is blown litter from the Tip but most is takeaway rubbish.

It is time the Council took this area seriously and installed some anti-litter signs and did some enforcement. I have asked before for a sign and it was removed as quickly as it went up.

Every few months I seem to have to ask for this area to be litter picked. I have asked Directors to take action when the evenings become light enough. Nearly all of the litter is car thrown.

Community Orchard Planted – Lib Dem councillors get hands on in snow and rain

orchard-closeup

Mamie, Amanda and I have helped to plant a new orchard between Newton Hall and Framwellgate Moor. This first local community orchard has fifty fruit trees will provide a wonderful display of blossom in the spring. It will also benefit wildlife throughout the year and provide fruit for local residents to pick in the autumn.

We came up with the idea after securing a big discount on the fruit trees from the local Pity Me Nurseries on the A167. Local residents including allotment holders helped us plant the orchard on a cold, rainy Friday last week.

It was freezing out there but the digging, carrying, wheel-barrowing and hammering soon warmed us up. The new orchard looks great and I am certain it will be a great community asset long into the future.

Pic of some of the residents who helped:

orchard-closeup-groupThe Council agreed to allow the land to be used for the orchard and provided stakes and straps to keep the new trees secure. The £300 funding for the 50 tree orchard came from left over local funding. The Council also provided waste chippings to spread around the trees to protect them and remove the need for weeding.

Comment from Amanda Hopgood: “A big thank you to all those residents who helped with the planting, especially the allotment holders who also provided spades and wheelbarrows. To get all that work done in just a couple of hours was fantastic.”

We are looking at other areas where orchards and trees could also be planted and would like to see more action across County Durham to promote home grown fruit and veg as well as more tree planting to help cut flood risk.

Comment from Mamie Simmons: “We want to promote locally grown food and recommend everyone tries to grow something in their garden, patio or home. It’s good for the environment and helps to promote healthy eating too.”

We also helped provide fruit trees at some of the local schools in the area and after securing the plants from the Woodland Trust we recently planted 400 hedgerow trees with the help of local school children.

A step closer to cutting the flood risk in Brasside

We are a step closer to getting a major improvement for residents on Beech Close in Brasside. The Ministry of Justice has now agreed to council proposals to procure the works which involve lining the drain running through the estate. They only agreed after we agreed to commit funding to the project towards the area they don’t own and the Council offered to manage the project. This has been a very long battle with years of lack of action from various sources, but its great to be able to say that our perseverance as local Lib Dem councillors is finally set to pay off.

Forms are being worked on and I hope we will see the work carried out by the summer.

Flood and drainage issues

I have been out for several hours today checking out various flood/drainage issues in the area.

Blue Coat School

The new field drainage at Blue Coat School has helped to ensure huge amounts of water did not get into properties. Some issues do remain and I have been out talking to residents today to work out what they and the council need to do and we will continue to work to ensure everything possible is done to keep properties free of flooding.

The work done in Brasside to cut the flood risk on Beech Close is working well at the moment. A full lining of the old drain is planned to be done to make sure the old drain doesn’t collapse and continued checks for maintenance will be required.

There was a lot of water coming off the surrounding land this afternoon and flowing into the drain. If work had not been done it is likely there would have been flooding.

Various roads around the area have minor flooding and a fair few street drains are likely to be blocked. If your spot one report it to help@durham.gov.uk. The Council has been inundated with requests for help today, so don’t expect an immediate response unless it is an emergency/urgent.

 

Horrendous path fixed on Farnham Road

When I was on a walkabout a few months back I was disgusted with the state of two of the paths on Farnham Road. Even by the poor standards in many streets, this was in an unacceptable condition.

Thankfully council officers agreed with me and rather than simply replacing dozens of broken paving slabs decided it was more sensible to redo the whole path. The result is excellent.

farnham paths

All Saint’s Church gets new windows with councillor help

We have helped with funding to make All Saint’s Church facilities even better. We provided £5000 from local budgets towards the cost of replacing windows and doors throughout the Church communal areas.

All Saint’s has been providing community facilities for over 40 years and needed double glazed windows as the old ones were in a bad state of repair.

By helping to get them replaced it will reduce energy bills for many years to come which will help to protect the long term sustainability of the centre so it can be kept warm throughout the winter.

In addition to the windows, the funding has helped to provide a new more energy efficient cooker in the kitchen which is helping the local luncheon club and other community groups.

Newton Hall Christmas Lights up and looking splendid

Newton Hall’s first Christmas decorations for years are going up at All Saint’s on Carr House Drive. Your Lib Dem councillors secured this working with the Church & Pity Me Nurseries.

We have used local funding to provide the tree lights and electric supply. The Church is providing the land and electricity.

A big thank you goes to Pity Me Nurseries (Next to the A167 Pity Me roundabout) for providing the tree completely free!

The nursery has 2500 Christmas trees for sale this year, with 3 new trees planted for each one sold. Next year your Lib Dem councillors hope to secure additional decorations in Newton Hall and would like to see new ones in other parts of the area too.

Pic of me helping up a tree with Amanda pretending to keep it steady. Steve the new minister did most of the tree climbing though whilst, I helped out with getting the lights around the fencing and fixing up the new Christmas tree.

christmaslightsnewtonhall

Relief as Lib Dems cut flood risk at Barrasford Road & Blue Coat School

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Residents on Barrasford Rd and everyone at Blue Coat School are happy after your Lib Dem councillors funded flood prevention measures.

This has been an issue for many years, making the playing field too wet to use and causing serious flooding for many households. I am really happy we have secured these improvements.

We were given a quote of £8500 by the council, so I contacted a NE company who have done the same work for less than half the price! Great news for residents.

barrasford road 2

Dryburn Hill Footpath works commenced

Work to replace flagstone footpaths on part of this estate have started. I have been pushing for this for a very very long time. An improved pavement at the entrance will also be installed for safety reasons following resident requests.

It’s great that after so long asking we can see part of the estate getting improvements. We did hope that more work would be done and offered some local funding to match it but the council has scrapped its policy of working with councillors to match fund highways projects. Something we would like to see changed so that more money can be allocated to such works.

 

Farnham Road parking area ready for use

For some time now  as your Lib Dem councillors we have been working to get parking improvements.

As a result a fully resurfaced parking area with proper access has been created on Farnham Road.

farnham parking

Councillor Mark Wilkes says “It took a while but we got it done at a good price. We also complained about the state of two footpaths on the street and they have been rebuilt.”

Cllr Mamie Simmons adds “By making sure every penny is spent properly and being proactive we are getting as much done as we possibly can across Newton Hall. We also expect parts of Canterbury and Bek Roads will be resurfaced next year.”