Street Name Plate Requests

Following requests from residents I’ve asked that street name plates are replaced or installed at a number of locations at the Scheme Houses in Blackhall Colliery. 

Some existing name plates have been damaged, some have been accidentally removed and others have never been in place and this has caused considerable confusion for visitors and delivery drivers alike.

The requests I’ve submitted are for the following locations (CRM references included):

• At Kipling Avenue odd numbers, two locations (FS 2336 49039 & FS 2336 51761) 
• At Milton Avenue, odd numbers (FS 2336 50092)
• At Tennyson Avenue, even numbers (FS 2336 50851)

Please note that street name plate requests can often take a considerable time to process so although they’ve been ordered on the system today it may be a quite few weeks before they’re installed.

Improvement works scheduled for the Haswell to Hart Walkway

I’ve received advance notification from Durham County Council’s Principal Parks and Countryside Manager that works to widen and resurface a section of the Haswell to Hart walkway between Monk Hesleden and Hesleden are scheduled to take place next week.

The notification received is reproduced below: 

From the week commencing Monday 3 August 2020 we are carrying out path surface maintenance works on the Hart to Haswell railway path from Monk Hesleden for 150m toward Hesleden. This is for essential widening and re-surfacing and there will be plant and machinery on site with associated signage advising the public.  Weather permitting, it is anticipated the work will take up to two days.

Fencing repairs confirmed for Welfare Crescent

Earlier this year, following concerns expressed by residents, I asked the council if they could repair or replace the damaged and unsightly fencing around the grassed area in the middle of Welfare Crescent.

Repair schemes such as this have been unavoidably delayed due to physical working restrictions imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic and this has led to a significant backlog of repair works throughout the county. This has been exacerbated by difficulties in procuring supplies due to disruption caused during the pandemic.

However it has been confirmed this morning by the council’s clean and green team that the fencing scheme at Welfare Crescent has been added to the current work programme with repairs scheduled to be carried out as soon as progress is made on the backlog and when replacement supplies have been secured.

**Please note** Similar fencing repair requests at East Street and at Thornton Terrace have also been delayed for the reasons outlined above. However, the service has confirmed that repairs will be carried out at these locations as soon as supplies have been secured.

Community Action Scheme Environmental Works due to start next week

The final online Community Action Team (CAT) public engagement session is scheduled to take place this coming Thursday 30 July from 1pm until 2pm. This brings to an end the preliminary stage of the Community Action Scheme with seven weeks of environmental works due to begin in the village next week (please see post dated Monday 13 July 2020 for full details of the scheme).

During the seven week programme of works there will be further public engagement sessions held each Tuesday from 10.30am to 11.30am. These sessions, running from 11 August until 15 September, will enable residents to review works carried out so far and also monitor the future direction of works in the village.

The link below will take you to the Community Action Scheme page which includes full details of the current CAT programme:

http://www.durham.gov.uk/cat

Scheduled Roadworks in the Blackhall area

I've received notification of the following road works scheduled to take place in the coming days and weeks. I've published full details below:

Road No.	Location	Description	Traffic Management	Start Date	End Date	Responsibility
A19	Sheraton Interchange	Carriageway surfacing and road markings	Northbound and southbound slip road closures (8:00pm - 6:00am)	3 August	14 August	Durham County Council
A1086	Coast Road, Blackhall Rocks	Drainage repairs	2 way lights (8:00am - 4:30pm)	27 July	7 August	Durham County Council
C81	Mickle Hill Road, High Hesleden	New telecom ducts	3 way lights (9:30am - 5:00pm)	22 July	28 July	British Telecom

Community Action Team Online Engagement Sessions

Please see below a press release issued by Durham County Council promoting its Community Action Scheme in Blackhall Colliery: 

Residents of Blackhall Colliery are being invited to a series of virtual engagement sessions to help identify and tackle housing and environmental issues in their community.

The Community Action project will see the team working alongside Durham Constabulary, County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service, our neighbourhood wardens and other partners to tackle anything from litter and dog fouling, to doorstep crime and noise nuisance. The team can also help to implement energy efficiency schemes and deal with empty properties and the problems they can cause. 

The project will begin with three weeks of public engagement sessions, which would normally have been held in community venues. However, in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, these sessions have been moved online. 

Letters have also been sent to households in the project area encouraging people to join in the sessions, fill in a survey or contact CAT by email or phone.

• Thursday 16 July, from 1.00pm to 2.00pm
• Tuesday 21 July, from 5.00pm to 6.00pm
•  Friday 24 July from 10.30am to 11.30am
•  Thursday 30 July from 1.00pm to 2.00pm

The public engagement period will be followed by seven weeks of action, with activities carried out in smaller groups to maintain social distancing and keep people safe. During this phase, further online community meetings will be held from 10.30am to 11.30am every Tuesday, from 11 August to 15 September. The meetings will be a chance for residents and partners to review progress and discuss any new issues that arise. Links to join the meetings will be available on the Community Action Scheme webpage. 

The final two weeks of the project will provide an opportunity to review the activities carried out and identify any further work that needs to be done. Feedback on the project will also be shared with the wider community.

Underground heating pipe repair works scheduled for Daffodil Close

A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by residents at Daffodil Close in Blackhall Colliery concerned about steaming hot water surfacing through an inspection hatch next to one of the homes leaving the grassed area around it discoloured.

I contacted Believe Housing who sent out an engineer to identify the problem, which turned out to have been caused by a fractured water pipe running underneath the road through the estate. Engineers then arranged to carry out initial works to assess the extent of the damage and the impact it might have on residents in the area, mainly at Daffodil Close and Primrose Court. 

I made enquires yesterday to check on progress and I have now received notification from engineers that extensive excavation and repair works are scheduled to commence this coming Thursday, 23 July. 

I’ve reproduced the correspondence below in full: 

Hello Councillor Crute, 

The asbestos survey of the heating pipes in the area of the leak revealed no asbestos. The risk assessments and method statements for the works have been submitted for checking by believe housing health and safety section. If these are ok then works are programmed in to start Thursday 23^rd July. A contingency plan will be put into place as the heating flow and return will be turned off for the communal heating. 

This will affect all external property’s associated with the external heating. The nature of the work involves excavating and repairing of the existing heating pipes, we must consider this will disrupt heating and hot water for a number of days. 

Given the extensive and potentially disruptive nature of the works to be carried out I’ve asked that all necessary mitigation measures be put in place prior to works commencing on Thursday.

Public transport arrangements during B1281 roadworks

Road works are scheduled to begin tomorrow on a 940m stretch of the B1281 between the Gray Avenue junction at Hesleden and The Village junction at Castle Eden (please see posts dated Wednesday 8 July and Friday 17 July 2020 for full details).

I made enquiries with the county council’s integrated passenger transport section to try to find out which public transport arrangements have been put in place by the bus companies during the three days of the road closure. I’ve reproduced the response below in full:: 

Apologies for the late reply but I’ve been trying to finalise details with Go North East. 

The service 55 will operate to/from Peterlee as follows: 

Peterlee – A19 – Castle Eden Turning Circle – Wingate – Station Town – Hutton Henry – A19 – Castle Eden Turning Circle – A19 – Peterlee. 

Horden, Blackhall Colliery/Rocks, High Hesleden, Hesleden will be omitted from the route as will the east end of Castle Eden. 

I appreciate that there will be some patronage from the above areas and we have therefore decided to run a shuttle during the affected times (09:30 – 15:30) between Hesleden and Peterlee. Contracted to GNE to keep things simple (connection/communication between buses being the main benefit). 

Maintains links from Hesleden/High Hesleden/Blackhall to Peterlee but also gives those areas an opportunity to connect with 55 at Peterlee for onward travel to Wingate/Station Town/Hutton Henry (and return via same arrangement of course). 

East end of Castle Eden – Passengers basically have to find their way to the turning circle at the west end of Castle Eden. 

Please direct all queries and comments to the Integrated Passenger Transport section via the DCC help desk on: 03000 260000.

Damaged chicane signs at High Hesleden

Residents in High Hesleden have contacted me over the weekend to report that the chevron signage on the chicane at the west side of the village has been damaged again. This is the third time the same chicane has been damaged since it was installed, with speeding vehicles and careless driving reportedly the causes for both previous collisions (please see post dated Wednesday 6 April 2016 for details of the most recent incident). 

I’ve contacted the county council’s highways section with a request that the signage be repaired or replaced as soon as possible, although from past experience this can take some time. In the meantime I’ve also asked for the hedges on the approach to the village to be cut back to make sure that the advisory sign is fully visible. Although the sign at this location is illuminated it appears to be partially obscured by overgrown branches.

The police have also been alerted and I’ll be making enquires to see if it’s possible to find out precisely when this latest incident occurred and what the road and weather conditions were like at the time. This information will be used to determine which measures, if any, might be taken to reduce the risk of a further incident at this location.

Roadworks next week on B1281 Hesleden to Castle Eden

Please note below a reminder of road works scheduled to begin next week on the B1281 between Hesleden and Castle Eden (see post dated Wednesday 8 July 2020 for full details):

Road No.	Location	Description	Traffic Management	Start Date	End Date	Responsibility
B1281	The Village, Castle Eden to Hesleden	Telecom fault investigation and repair	Road closure (9:30am - 3:30pm)	22 July	24 July	British Telecom

Control of Ragwort

I received a query recently relating to the growth and control of ragwort. It's not something I'm overly familiar with so I passed the query to the countryside and ecology sections for their attention.

This is the response I received:

This is something that crops up regularly this time of year when the plant is in flower, although there is often misidentification of plants that look similar, so it’s always important to check first.  Resource is the biggest issue here, so each case needs to be considered in isolation on a risk basis.  I understand that Natural England may have powers to enforce clearance, see guidance below:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/stop-ragwort-and-other-harmful-weeds-from-spreading#what-natural-england-will-do

Although the council does not have a policy on invasive weeds it will treat areas when notified about a problem presenting a particularly high risk on DCC-owned land. In such cases the council would need to be provided with specific locations so that an on-site assessment could be made.

Environmental and Housing Improvements in Blackhall Colliery - Resident Engagement Events

Previous posts on this site and elsewhere on social media refer to the council's Community Action Team (CAT) carrying out it's environmental improvement scheme in Blackhall Colliery. The preliminary stage, which began yesterday, includes a series of public engagement events designed to encourage residents to talk to the team about issues facing the village and to help shape the programme to their requirements.

Full details of the engagement events are shown in the council's press release reproduced below:

Residents are being invited to a series of virtual engagement sessions to help identify and tackle housing and environmental issues in their community.

This week, Durham County Council’s Community Action Team (CAT) launched a 12-week project to address priorities raised by residents in Blackhall Colliery.

The project will see the team working alongside Durham Constabulary, County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service, the council’s neighbourhood wardens and other partners to tackle anything from litter and dog fouling, to doorstep crime and noise nuisance. The team can also help to implement energy efficiency schemes and deal with empty properties and the problems they can cause.

The project will begin with three weeks of public engagement sessions, which would normally have been held in community venues. However, in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, these sessions have been moved online. Letters have also been sent to households in the project area encouraging people to join in the sessions, fill in a survey or contact CAT by email or phone.

The online sessions will take place on the following dates:

• Thursday 16 July, from 1pm to 2pm
• Tuesday 21 July, from 5pm to 6pm
•  Friday 24 July from 10.30am to 11.30am
•  Thursday 30 July from 1pm to 2pm 

Residents will be able to join the meetings simply by clicking on a link on the CAT webpage at www.durham.gov.uk/cat They can also choose to remain anonymous if they wish.

Paper surveys will be available at the Resource Centre in Blackhall Colliery and residents can request a phone call by contacting CAT on 03000 260 000 or communityactionteam@durham.gov.uk

The public engagement period will be followed by seven weeks of action, with activities carried out in smaller groups to maintain social distancing and keep people safe. During this phase, further online community meetings will be held from 10.30am to 11.30am every Tuesday, from 11 August to 15 September. The meetings will be a chance for residents and partners to review progress and discuss any new issues that arise. Links to join the meetings will be available at www.durham.gov.uk/cat

The final two weeks of the project will provide an opportunity to review the activities carried out and identify any further work that needs to be done. Feedback on the project will also be shared with the wider community.

Residents demand action on disruptive tenants

Residents got in touch with me last night to express their anger and frustration at the unacceptable behaviour of successive of tenants at a property in Blackhall. 

I've contacted the Private Sector Housing office at county hall this morning to ask them to contact the properties' managing organisation to make them aware of the feelings of local tenants and also to invite representatives from the organisation to the village to meet with me and residents to explain how they intend to address the persistent problems associated with their property.

I've reproduced my correspondence below in full:

I was contacted last night by a number of residents from Hepscott Avenue and Coronation Avenue in Blackhall alarmed at the behaviour of the latest tenant of the NACRO-managed property in Hepscott Avenue. From the reports I received it appears the tenant made a nuisance of himself at the Esso service station nearby, leaving staff terrified. In addition he is reported to have forced his way into the home of a neighbour who understandably remains shaken and afraid. I’m advised that the police were involved.

Residents in neighbouring properties have had to contend with a series of issues connected with successive tenants at this property and they have come to the point that they are now demanding something be done about the way NACRO manages its tenants. I agree with them. The people of Blackhall are welcoming, and are always willing to help new neighbours settle in to village life, but they are asking me why they should have to put up with the constant upheaval caused by the unacceptable behaviour of disruptive tenants. I’m sure everyone would accept there are challenges along the way when offenders are working towards resettlement but this cannot be allowed to continue at the expense of the settled community.

I would be grateful if you could arrange for someone to contact NACRO as a matter of urgency to ensure that the organisation is aware of this latest incident, and also to determine which measures they intend to use to address the ongoing problems their tenants bring to this neighbourhood. Given the series of incidents associated with this property I believe a representative from NACRO should be invited to come to the village to meet with me, residents and officers from the private sector housing team to talk through these matters in more detail, and to assure residents that the measures they propose to put in place to manage their property and their tenants are guaranteed to put an end to the seemingly endless misery suffered by neighbours at the hands of disruptive tenants.

**UPDATE** By way of an update I've been informed that the tenant has had his tenancy revoked and will not be returning the this address. My thanks go to PCSO Ian Goodwin for his invaluable assistance with this matter.

Community Action Team in Blackhall Colliery until October

Last month I published an article on these pages giving an update on the latest developments with the county council’s Community Action Team (CAT) scheme, which had been delayed from earlier this year because of restrictions imposed in response to the current Covid-19 lockdown (please see posts dated Friday 6 March 2020 and Wednesday 25 June 2020 for background details). Although the lockdown continues, the government has relaxed a number of social restrictions sufficiently to allow the CAT scheme to go ahead.

Late last week letters were circulated to residents in those streets in Blackhall Colliery that will be taking part in the scheme. I’ve listed these below, alongside brief details of what happens next and how residents will be able to shape the scheme by taking part in a series of online surgery sessions:

The Community Action Scheme's current project is in Blackhall Colliery. Beginning Monday 13 July, it will run until Sunday 4 October.

The streets we will be concentrating on are: Aged Miners Homes, Aspatria Avenue, Coast Road, Coronation Avenue, Corry Close, Dene Road, East Street, Eighth Street, Eleventh Street, Enid Gardens, Fifth Street, First Street, Fourth Street, Hardwick Court, Hepscott Avenue, Middle Street, Ninth Street, Park Avenue, School Avenue, Second Street, Seventh Street, Sixth Street, Tenth Street, The Bungalows, Third Street, Thornton Terrace, West Avenue, West Street Cottages and West Street.

We deal with a range of issues including:

• improving housing standards and the management of privately rented property
• dealing with empty properties
• ensuring that rubbish that has been dumped in gardens, on streets and on waste ground is removed
• assisting with improvements to buildings and abandoned land
• investigating noise issues
• challenging under-age sales of alcohol and tobacco
• implementing energy efficiency schemes
• advising on consumer rights and dealing with cold callers

Information from those involved with the community informs the main priorities chosen by residents during a residents' engagement event at the start of the CAT programme. We then focus on these during our seven weeks of action.

Due to Covid-19, we will be running Teams Online virtual meetings. They are a great way for us to hear your views. They are open to everyone but will be of most interest to those living and working in the Blackhall Colliery area.

They will take place on:

• Thursday 16 July, 1.00pm to 2.00pm
• Tuesday 21 July, 5.00pm to 6.00pm
• Friday 24 July, 10.30am to 11.30am
• Thursday 30 July, 1.00pm to 2.00pm

Full details of this current scheme and links to others carried out in recent years can be found at: http://www.durham.gov.uk/cat

Ongoing and Scheduled Roadworks at Castle Eden

Please note in the table below a list of road works currently underway and those scheduled to commence soon on the B1281 at Castle Eden:

B1281	Near Hudworth Tower, Castle Eden	Drainage repairs	2 way lights (8:00am - 4:30pm)	6 July	17 July	Durham County Council
B1281	The Village, Castle Eden to Hesleden	Telecom fault investigation and repair	Road closure (9:30am - 3:30pm)	22 July	24 July	British Telecom

Please see post dated Wednesday 8 July 2020 for additional information about the British Telecom works due to commence on 22 July.