Update on issues raised at the Hesleden Chapel ward surgery

We held our regular monthly ward surgery at Hesleden Methodist Chapel yesterday morning and spoke to a number of residents about a range of issues affecting the village.

We had already reported some of the issues within the previous week but we have included them in the update list below:

• streetlight 826 at Gray Avenue, streetlight 582 on the B1281 at the eastern entrance to the village and the streetlight directly outside the former St John's church. We took a look around after dark and these were the only faulty streetlights we could find. If we missed any please let us know
• the deep ridge across the road running between Church Street and White Crescent, just up from the school bend. This was reported to be causing damage to vehicles and also considerable noise and disturbance for residents nearby
• the abandoned furniture at Hazel Drive

We understand that some of the incidents detailed above have already been dealt with. We will monitor the others and report on progress in due course.

In the meantime if you have any issues or concerns that you would like us to help with please contact us in the usual way.

Are you registered to vote in this year's local council elections?

Local elections to both the county council and parish council are scheduled to be held on Thursday 4 May 2017 and polling cards are currently being delivered to all eligible voters.

It is important to make sure that you are registered to vote.

We have reproduced below a press release issued by the county council containing more information about the registration process and about what you should do if you are not registered to vote or if you would like a postal vote:

Residents urged to make sure they are registered to vote

Title

Residents in County Durham are being reminded that they must be on the electoral register in order to vote in the upcoming elections.

County and Parish Council elections will be held on Thursday 4 May 2017.

Anyone who is not registered is encouraged to apply online via www.gov.uk/register-to-vote by Thursday 13 April.

Poll cards will be delivered to those who are already registered between Friday 31 March and Monday 3 April, and will contain information on where to vote.

Voters who are listed on the electoral register can request a postal or proxy vote.

The deadline for postal vote applications is 5pm on Tuesday 18 April and the deadline for proxy vote applications is 5pm on Tuesday 25 April.

To request a paper copy of either application form, contact electoral services by phone on 03000 261212 or via email electoralservices@durham.gov.uk

Resolution on Miners' Pension Scheme surpluses

As members of mining families and representatives of proud mining communities we are delighted to report that a resolution written by Rob on a fair deal on Miners' Pension Scheme surpluses was supported by Durham County Council earlier this week.

We have published the resolution below in full:

Cllr Rob Crute (Blackhall): Durham County Council, 22 March 2017:

Resolution re: Mineworkers Pension Scheme fund surpluses:

Durham County Council views with concern the arrangement whereby the Treasury receives 50% of surpluses from the Mineworkers Pension Scheme, accumulating since 1994 to an estimated £3.4 billion, a sum taken from people and communities that are least able to afford it and one that is out of any realistic proportion to the risk taken by the guarantors.

The first priority of Durham County Council is the regeneration of the county and this includes ensuring the prosperity of its people and communities. The effect of the arrangement between the government and the trustees of the MPS and BCSSS as detailed above has a directly negative impact on the prosperity of pensioners, deferred pensioners and their families across the county. In turn this acts as a barrier to economic growth and prosperity in our communities.

Durham County Council acknowledges and is grateful for the significant contribution successive generations of Durham miners and their families made to the economy of County Durham, and in recognition supports the UK Miners’ Pension Scheme Association in demanding justice and fairness on the issue of pension fund surpluses.

In compounding the unfairness of the current arrangement the government and British Coal failed to pay into the Mineworkers’ Pension Fund by means of a contributions holiday from 1987 to 1994 resulting in a £4.7bn shortfall to the MPS. In addition successive governments have benefited excessively from the scheme by exploiting the 1994 pre-privatisation pension arrangements that resulted in an additional £4.2bn being taken from the investment surpluses.

As a consequence it is estimated that the government will eventually receive in excess of £8bn from the current arrangement (figure taken from an Early Day Motion tabled in November 2016 by Alan Meale MP).

Consequently this council resolves:

·         to support the campaign of the UK Miners’ Pension Scheme Association (for Justice & Fair Play) 

·         to call on the Public Accounts Committee to carry out an investigation into the circumstances of the current agreement between the government and pension scheme trustees

·         to support the campaign to renegotiate the terms of the agreement between the government and trustees of the MPS to ensure a more realistic percentage share of surpluses which more accurately reflects the guarantors’ risk

·         to demand the return of all money owed to MPS members, deferred members and their families

·         to submit correspondence supportive of the campaign to relevant government departments and Members of Parliament

Cllr Rob Crute, March 2017

Update on issues raised at the Blackhall Library ward surgery

Last Friday morning we held one of our regular monthly ward surgeries at Blackhall library where residents separately raised a number of local issues. We can now report on progress with some of those matters:

• Works to widen the pathway across the top of Chicken's Green, between Corry Close and Dene Road, are scheduled by the parish council to be carried out in the spring/summer works programme
• The streetlight at the junction of Tenth Street and Middle Street in Blackhall Colliery is now in full working order. Repairs to this column have been particularly complicated and drawn-out, involving a number of outside agencies including Northern Power Grid.
• We have been informed that the stump of a damaged bollard nearby has also been made safe after we reported it for repair last week.
• Streetlights at the Welfare Crescent garage site have been reported for repair. Again repairs to these columns are proving to be more complex than initially thought and we have published below the latest information we've received:

This work is planned to be done by AK Lighting. As it is a tricky situation I had to seek permission to go into East Durham homes land as its not DCC.

I have to notify ******* as to when I am starting the works, he must then sign a waiver for the period of 2 weeks for me to complete the works. As my contractors are using a directional drilling company, I am just trying to get them on site to do the works.

I have emailed AK Lighting last week and also today requesting as a matter of urgency a day they will be on site and starting the works.

The delay has been with getting permission to do the works, not by street lighting or DCC.

We will continue to report on progress until all works are fully completed.

Winter Maintenance - Planned action for Tuesday & Wednesday

Please find below a summary of the attached winter maintenance planned action.  

Tuesday 21.03.17 PM

All High Pennines priority 1 routes	Pre salt 1900 hrs
All Low Pennines priority 1 routes	Pre salt 1900 hrs
All Central priority 1 routes	Pre salt 2000 hrs
All Coastal priority 1 routes	No planned action

Wednesday 22.03.17 AM

All High Pennines priority 1 routes	Stand by 0400 hrs
All Low Pennines priority 1 routes	Stand by 0400 hrs
All Central priority 1 routes	Stand by 0400 hrs
All Coastal priority 1 routes	No planned action

Today’s Forecast

Issued at 1200
1200-1200: RSTs below zero with ice and hoar frost

LUNCHTIME FORECAST ISSUED TUESDAY 21ST MARCH 2017: This afternoon will have spells of sunshine together with a few well-scattered showers, these locally with hail and hill snow mixed-in. Turning cloudier from the south-west through this evening with outbreaks of rain, sleet and hill snow expected later in the night with a slight risk of snow temporarily to low levels too. Wednesday will be mostly wet and chilly with persistent rain but with further snow at times over hills. Staying cloudy and wet into Wednesday evening with further rain and hill snow. A chilly night - RSTs dipping to zero where snow falls. Confidence is low on the details of snow. Snow summary: Tuesday 1200 - 1800: Wintry showers could give slight accumulations on the highest roads for a short time but accumulations are not expected otherwise. Tuesday 1800 - Wednesday 0800: Risk of seeing local dusting up to 1cm below 100m, 1-2cm between 100m-300m, 2-5cm between 300m-500m and 5-10cm above 500m. Wednesday 0800 - 1800: Through the morning the snow level will rise but some wet snow still possible, mainly above 300-400metres at times, 3-8cm is possible in the highest areas but less than this will accumulate on the roads. Some flurries are possible for a time lower than this but these will not lead to any significant accumulations.

Latest on broadband provision in Hesleden and Castle Eden

For some time we have been lobbying BT to upgrade broadband provision in our villages, particularly in Hesleden, High Hesleden, Castle Eden and parts of Blackhall Colliery (please see post dated Monday 13 February 2017 for our most recent update).

Unfortunately, despite our frequent requests, BT has refused to use its Openreach programme to upgrade Cabinet 9 at Wellfield which acts as the hub for broadband provision in our patch. 

As this is a commercial scheme we have no control over when and where BT chooses to upgrade its service so we have asked for advice from the Digital Durham team at county hall on an alternative method of broadband access for our area until BT get around to upgrading Cabinet 9.

We have reproduced Digital Durham's response to our query in full below (part of which has been published previously on this site):

We’re currently looking at a potential phase three for Digital Durham to address the remaining properties that are eligible to be subsidised under the programme. We’d anticipate for information to be available towards the end of 2017. Outside of this, and BT’s commercial roll-out, there are two schemes currently available – detailed below. We would appreciate it if you can push out this information to residents and businesses through any local channels you have at your disposal to increase awareness of these potential options.

Better Broadband Subsidy Scheme

Following the Government’s committment to provide access to a minimum of 2 megabits per second (Mbps) download speeds, a broadband subsidy scheme has been launched to help eligible residents.

The scheme allows residents to apply for up to £350 towards the hardware and installation costs to get connected to broadband using wireless technologies including satellite, 4G or Mastband. Eligible residents will still be required to pay any additional costs such as the monthly service charge which starts from £10 for a basic broadband service. The costs increase with the more data required.

The vouchers can also be clubbed together to offset the costs for BT’s Community Fibre Partnership programme (detailed below).  

The guides are attached. Further information and the application form is available at: http://www.digitaldurham.org/better-broadband/

BT Community Fibre Partnerships (CFP)

Residents could considering a self-funded fibre broadband installation through BT’s Community Fibre Partnership (CFP). BT subsidise 60% of the costs. BT recommend the community to raise the remainder through crowdfunding. The Better Broadband Subsidy Scheme vouchers can also be used to offset the costs. The most significant benefit to CFP is that it can expedite a solution.

Further information is available at: www.communityfibre.bt.com/

Sport England funding workshop to be held next month

We have received notification of a Sport England funding workshop to be held next month in Shotton Colliery.

The workshop will be hosted by Grahame Morris MP and is designed by Sport England to help local sports clubs apply for improvement or upgrade funding.

Please see below for full details and contact information:

Invitation to Sports Funding Workshop

Date: Thursday 6^th April

Time: 6pm – 7pm

Venue: Shotton Community Centre, Bridge Road, Shotton Colliery, DH6 2PQ

Do you know how to access funding so that you can improve or upgrade your club?

Grahame Morris MP will be hosting a Sport England workshop on Thursday 6 April with Sport England experts who will be answering any questions you may have.

Sport England is the Government Agency working with grassroots sport. Its investment and expertise has helped thousands of clubs, such as yours, get more people playing sport more often.

Sport England understands that many clubs need that little bit of help and support when they are applying for funding, whether it is being directed to the right funding stream or making sure they take the correct steps when applying. The workshop will explain the funding available, which fund would be most appropriate for your project, and how to apply.

If you would like to attend please email: lee.longstaff@parliament.uk

Drainage grid installed to prevent flooding at Blackhall Co-op

This time last year, following several unsuccessful attempts by the council to address the long term problem of flooding directly outside the entrance to the Co-op store in Middle Street in Blackhall Colliery, we asked highways and drainage engineers to come up with a scheme designed to help surface water to drain away (please see post dated Wednesday 13 January 2016 for details).

Blackhall Co-op in Middle Street this morning

Later in the year, as a result of our request, a grid was installed along the length of the gutter. Following a number of incidents of heavy rainfall over the winter months we are pleased to report that there have been no further incidents of standing water at this location.

The same location last winter

Request for CCTV to tackle fly-tipping at Blackhall Colliery

Once again we have the unpleasant task of reporting an incident of fly-tipping in our area, this time on land adjacent to the Hackworth Road industrial estate in Blackhall Colliery.

We have asked the council to to make all necessary arrangements to have the rubbish removed and we have also asked the neighbourhood wardens to investigate the circumstances around this particular incident and take whichever measures are required to bring the fly-tippers to account. The rubbish, which is reported to have been tipped sometime on Friday evening, has been subsequently set alight but there may still be sufficient evidence available to secure a prosecution.

It appears there is a pattern developing with fly-tipping in this particular location so we feel the time is right to install CCTV cameras either on site or in a suitable place nearby. 

We have written to the council today to formally request that CCTV cameras are used at or near to this location to help prevent a recurrence of recent incidents, and also to assist in apprehending offenders in future.

We will update on progress with our request in due course, but in the meantime if you are made aware of any incidents of fly-tipping in and around our villages please let us know or contact the council direct at: help@durham.gov.uk or on 03000 261 000.

For more information on how the council deals with fly-tipping please go to: 
http://www.durham.gov.uk/flytipping

Roadworks at Castle Eden and Hutton Henry

We have received advance notification of roadworks to take place later this month in Castle Eden and Hutton Henry.

Please see details below:

B1281	The Village, Castle Eden	New water supply	2 way lights	15 March	21 March	Northumbrian Water
C22	Front Street, Hutton Henry	New gas service	2 way lights	16 March	23 March	Northern Gas Networks

Judging poster entries at Hesleden Primary School

Last month we went along to visit the Pupil Voice group at Hesleden Primary School to talk to the children about a number of environmental issues. At the top of the agenda that day was the problem of dog fouling in some parts of the village so we asked the pupils if they would like to take part in a competition to design a poster aimed at encouraging dog walkers to clean up after their pets (please see post dated Friday 3 February 2017 for background information).

As arranged we called back into school today to help the teachers select the winning entry. Our task was made so difficult because of the huge range and very high quality of posters designed by the children but after much deliberation we finally managed to select three designs from unnamed entries which we thought would be most effective in terms of design and slogan (the names of the winning entrants can be found on the school Twitter account).

We bought books to present as prizes to the winning entrants and we gave all the other entrants as small gift to reward them for their efforts and to ensure that nobody went home empty handed.

After some discussion with the teachers we decided to ask the three winning entrants to composite their posters into one which we will then arrange to have made into a large banner to be placed on the school perimeter fence.

We are sure that once the banner is in place the message will be quite clear that dog fouling in our streets, play areas and open spaces is not acceptable, and we are all hopeful that the tiny minority of dog walkers responsible will begin to clean up after their pets. 

Once again our thanks go to the teachers and children of Hesleden Primary School for their enthusiasm in taking part in this competition and also for their signature warm welcome. We would also like to thank staff at Wellfield School for their kind offer to redesign the winning entries into a large banner for public display.

We look forward to going back to the school very soon to unveil the new artwork!