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

barrasford

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

First Snow settling

The weather is set to warm up by Monday so hopefully we will not have to cope with icy roads and pavements for too long. If it does stay around the council has a number of ways to contact it. You can email help@durham.gov.uk if for example a grit bin is empty, alternatively you can call 03000 261 000. Please check on your elderly neighbours if the weather continues to deteriorate.

The Met Office has the latest weather warnings at www.metoffice.gov.uk

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.”