The first PACT meeting for Hesleden was held in Hesleden WMC on Friday 27 June and there was a great turnout from residents who came along to meet with the neighbourhood wardens, elected members of the parish council and county council and representatives from the Hesledens Residents' Association (HRA).
The police had been involved in a separate operation on Friday so unfortunately they weren't able to attend the PACT meeting, but we'll approach the police to suggest that another one is arranged soon to compensate.
There were a few issues reported about ongoing issues in the village - mainly related to anti-social behaviour which are now being dealt with by the police and neighbourhood wardens. There were also reports from residents about littering and other environmental issues in and around the village. These have now been raised with the appropriate agencies for their attention.
Separately I've contacted officers in the council's countryside team to raise concerns on behalf of residents about access to the Haswell to Hart walkway by off-road bikes. I've asked for target-hardening measures to be installed to prevent illegal access to bikes. I've also asked the team to clean up the ponds along the walkway at the bottom of both East Terrace and Station Road. I've offered to arrange a meeting on site with countryside officers and someone from the HRA and parish council if this would help.
At the end of the meeting I suggested that in future we could align PACT sessions with the Hesleden Residents' Association meetings. It was also suggested that a ward surgery could be incorporated so that residents could contact me direct if they have any specific issues they would like to discuss outside the main meeting. This was agreed, so along with the HRA we'll make the necessary arrangements with the police and other agencies involved.
