Agenda and draft minutes

To note that at the meeting of the County Council on 23 February 2022, Councillor Derek Kennedy was appointed as Vice-Chair.

The Local Area Council noted that, at the meeting of the County Council on 23 February 2022, Councillor Derek Kennedy had been appointed Vice-Chair.

RESOLVED that the appointment of Councillor Derek Kennedy as Vice-Chair, be noted.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Horncastle and Hutchinson.

Minutes of the meeting of the Tynedale Local Area Council, held on 15 February 2022, as circulated, to be confirmed as a true record, and signed by the Chair.

Minute No. 83

Minutes – Minute No. 79 Local Area Council Work Programme

The following words ‘by the Chair’ be added at the end of the sentence:

‘It be minuted that a request for inclusion of an item on the work programme on the Borderlands development work in Hexham was declined by the Chair.’

Minute No. 91

The Democratic Services Officer reported that the reference to the next meeting should have read 15 March 2022.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of the Tynedale Local Area Council, as circulated, be confirmed as a true record and signed by the Chair, subject to the above amendments.

To request the committee to decide the planning applications attached to this report using the powers delegated to it.

Please note that printed letters of objection/support are no longer circulated with the agenda but are available on the Council’s website at http://www.northumberland.gov.uk/Planning.aspx

The committee was requested to decide the planning applications attached to the report using the powers delegated to it. Members were reminded of the principles which should govern their consideration of the applications, the procedure for handling representations, the requirement of conditions and the need for justifiable reasons for the granting of permission or refusal of planning applications.

RESOLVED that the information be noted.

Part-retrospective: Change of use from Public House with staff accommodation to mixed use including public house, bed and breakfast and podiatry. Internal and external works including various windows, french doors, shed and decking.

Crown Inn, Catton, Hexham, Northumberland, NE47 9QS

The Senior Planning Officer introduced the application with the aid of a powerpoint presentation and advised that there were no updates following publication of the report.

Mr. J. Gray, the applicant, spoke in support of the application.  He highlighted the following:-

·        The Crown public house had been bought in October 2020 in a poor condition, requiring modernisation which had driven some of the external alterations.  Part of the roof was near collapse which had forced them to make urgent decisions regarding installation of the velux window and moving dormer windows, for which he apologised.

·        There was no change to the footprint of the property although previous applications which had proposed changes to the footprint had been approved.

·        The business had been closed as much as it had been open throughout the last 25 years with 5 previous owners being unable to make the bar and food service financially viable.  In order to make the business successful, it was proposed that a bed and breakfast accommodation be offered which was common at many other public houses.

·        His partner was a podiatrist which was the reason for including a podiatry room and would only form a small part of the business.  They had not expected it to be controversial.

·        The application had received 65 objections.  A community meeting had been held which the owners had not been invited to.  A leaflet which had been circulated locally had contained inaccurate information.  They believed the objections had been made under false assumptions.  No-one had asked for clarification or checked facts with the owners.

·        The following statements within the leaflet were not true:

-       Conditions had been attached to the purchase.

-       A resident’s group had stepped aside to allow them to purchase.  (Funds had not been raised or an offer made).

-       Undertaking had been given when the property had been purchased.

-       The Crown was viable.

-       It was to be changed back to a house and the car park built on.

-       Planning did not take into account speculation about future intentions.

-       The owners were designing it to fail.  (They hoped to succeed, previous owners had failed.)

-       The bar was too small.

·        They had spoken extensively with the last owner regarding use of the bar and number of visitors previously.  They believed the proposed bar would be the right size with additional income predominantly coming from the B and B, which would make it a viable community asset.

·        He stressed that the premises would predominantly remain a public house and to that end had obtained a personal licence through Northumberland County Council, an expensive new bar had been built which had been featured in the photos, his premises licence had been approved and a new sign would be installed shortly.

Councillor Cessford relayed a message to any observers watching on the internet that he had checked with planning officers who had confirmed that the correct procedures and timescales had been followed to enable public speaking registration.  The deadline for public  ...  view the full minutes text for item 96.

For Members’ information to report the progress of planning appeals.  This is a monthly report and relates to appeals throughout all 5 Local Area Council Planning Committee areas and covers appeals of Strategic Planning Committee.

The report provided information on the progress of planning appeals.

Councillor Dale thanked officers for information provided after the last meeting on an enforcement matter.

RESOLVED that the information be noted.

On the conclusion of the development control business Councillor Scott vacated the Chair.  Councillor Cessford returned to the Chair for the remainder of the meeting.

The meeting adjourned at 4.45 p.m. until 4.50 p.m.

To reply to any questions received from members of the public which have been submitted in writing in advance of the meeting.  Questions can be asked about issues for which the Council has a responsibility.  (Public question times take place on a bimonthly basis at Local Area Council meetings: in January, March, May, July, September and November each year.)

As agreed by the County Council in February 2012, the management of local public question times is at the discretion of the Chair of the committee.

Please note however that a question may possibly be rejected if it requires the disclosure of any categories of confidential or exempt information, namely information:

1.       relating to any individual;

2.       which is likely to reveal the identity of an individual;

3.       relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person;

4.       relating to any labour relations matters/negotiations;

5.       restricted to legal proceedings;

6.       about enforcement/enacting legal orders;

7.       relating to the prevention, investigation of prosecution of crime.

And/or:

•         is defamatory, frivolous or offensive;

•         it is substantially the same as a question which has been put at a meeting of this or another County Council committee in the past six months;

•         the request repeats an identical or very similar question from the same person;

•         the cost of providing an answer is disproportionate;

•         it is being separately addressed through the Council's complaints process;

•         it is not about a matter for which the Council has a responsibility or which affects the county;

•         it relates to planning, licensing and/or other regulatory applications;

•         it is a question that town/parish councils would normally be expected to raise through other channels.

If the Chair is of the opinion that a question is one which, for whatever reason, cannot properly be asked in an area meeting, he/she will disallow it and inform the resident of his/her decision.

Copies of any written answers (without individuals' personal contact details) will be provided for members after the meeting and also be publicly available.

Democratic Services will confirm the status of the progress on any previously requested written answers and follow up any related actions requested by the Local Area Council.

There were no questions from members of the public.

This item is to:

a.     Receive any new petitions: The lead petitioner is entitled to briefly introduce their petition by providing a statement in writing, and a response to any petitions received will then be organised for a future meeting;

i)    Dangerous Road (Hexham) E-petition opened for signatures on 22.02.22

“The road across the front of Peth Head is supposed to be 20 mph.  It has no signage or speed bumps and is used as a shortcut for traffic trying to access the Corbridge Road.  Traffic drives at speed from morning till night and crossing the road is incredibly dangerous.  Many parents with young children attempting to cross in order to access schools, nurseries or the hospital are left standing in fear for their children.  There needs to be at the least signage, and possibly a safe place to cross as this is no longer a small little back road, but is actually being used as an alternative to the main Corbridge Road.”

b.     Consider reports on petitions previously received:

i)    Allendale Road, Hexham (attached)

c.     Receive any updates on petitions for which a report was previously considered: any updates will be verbally reported at the meeting.

This item was to:

a)      Receive any new petitions:

i)               Dangerous Road (Hexham)

It was noted that a new e-petition had been opened on the Council’s website on 22 February 2022.

b)     Consider reports on petitions previously received:

i)               Allendale Road, Hexham

Tara Wright, Lead Petitioner, thanked the Committee for accepting the petition.  She commented on the report as follows:

·        There had been a serious accident during the evening of 10 March 2022 at the location in the second photograph on page 55 of the report.  The accident was currently being investigated but was believed to have involved 3 vehicles with one vehicle driving in excess of the speed limit and had resulted in vehicles being written off.

·        The car had mounted the path and a section of the boundary wall had been demolished next to where the children were walking in the photograph.  If it had been a few hours earlier, there would have been children walking from school.  The path was normally used by dog walkers in an evening around the time of the accident.

·        Hexham Town Council had requested a blanket 20mph around the town to stop the confusion regarding changing speed limits between 20/30/40 mph.  Drivers not paying attention could easily do 40mph in a 20mph zone.  Children involved in an accident were likely to die if hit by a vehicle driven at 40mph but would survive if driven at 20mph.  It was life or death.

·        She was the parent of a child who had been hit by a car driving 19 mph in a 30 mph zone.  This had saved her child’s life although he had still required intensive care.  She did not wish those days on another parent.  However, reducing speed did save lives and she asked that the blanket 20mph be considered for the whole of Hexham or if not, at least for Allendale Road.

·        She did not think drivers paid any attention to the variable speed limit signs or flashing signs as the zones were too small.  If it was a longer distance, it would encourage people to slow down.  20 mph would save lives if an accident occurred.

·        She had been made aware of a few accidents on Allendale Road.  One in September at Whetstone Bridge/Allendale Road junction had not been reported to the police although the child had suffered minor injuries and had required a trip to hospital.  Many incidents where the pedestrian was seen as being at fault had not been reported to the police and were therefore not included within the statistics.

·        Some of the children walking along Allendale Road to Hexham Middle School were only 9 years old with limited road sense.

·        The feasibility of a lollipop person be investigated between Whetstone Bridge and Allendale Road.

·        She was concerned that only funds had only been set aside for preliminary design work and the recommendation that proposals be considered for inclusion in a future Local Transport Plan did not give her hope or confidence as it felt non-committal.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 99.

To receive a verbal update from the Area Managers from Technical Services and Neighbourhood Services in attendance about any key recent, ongoing and/or future planned Local Services work for the attention of members of the Local Area Council, who will also then have the opportunity to raise issues with the Area Managers.

The Area Managers have principal responsibility for highway services and environmental services, such as refuse collection, street cleansing and grounds maintenance, within the geographic boundaries of the Local Area Council.

Members received the following updates from the Area Managers from Neighbourhood Services and Technical Services:

Neighbourhood Services:

·        The winter had been mild since the LAC meeting in January which had enabled recovery of scheduled work following Storm Arwen.  Staff were currently working winter hours, which was 28 hours per week.  Members were requested to contact officers if any requested winter work had not been completed.

·        Final preparations were underway for grass cutting with servicing of equipment and recruitment to seasonal grounds maintenance positions.  Grass cutting could commence within the next week, if ground conditions were favourable.

·        Weed control would be undertaken in-house with blue dye being used again.

·        It was hoped that street cleansing activities would be able to return to normal levels with a reduction in footfall following staycations during the pandemic in previous years.

·        Elevated tonnages were still being collected for residual and recycling waste collections which was believed to be a result of people working from home and generating more waste there rather than at workplaces.  Due to housing growth, there would be 2 additional refuse collection vehicles and crews.  Routes were being reviewed to ensure they were deployed in the most efficient way possible.

·        The garden waste collections had commenced with rounds having been reviewed to accommodate an increase in take up and housing.

·        The glass recycling household collection trial had been extended for a further 12 months with presentation and yields remaining positive in most areas.  Planning was underway for a food waste collection trial which would require hiring an additional vehicle for the duration of the trial.  More information would be provided when plans were finalised.

Responses to issues raised by Councillors included:

·        Expansion of the glass recycling household collection trial awaited progress of the Environment Bill and associated government funding.  The trial enabled provision of information and gathering of robust evidence to support bids for funding for this to be rolled out countywide, otherwise there would be a significant additional cost.

·        Results of the non-glysophate methods of weed control trial was in the process of being finalised and would be included within a summer grounds maintenance report.  Some methods had not been very effective and had been discontinued.

·        Bird nesting season was from 1 March to 31 August and therefore only work required on safety grounds would be carried out during this period.  Prior to this, 10 additional teams of contractors had been employed following Storm Arwen in addition to the Council’s 3 teams.  High footfall areas had been made safe with reinstatement work and removal of stumps underway.

·        Roadside trees and hedges had been prioritised to ensure roads were safe and not causing damage to vehicles.

·        Carbon footprint impact assessments were being undertaken as part of the kerbside glass collection trial.

The following issues were also raised by Councillors

·        Councillor Stewart enquired if Prudhoe could be part of the food waste trial.

·        Gulley cleaning continued to be a priority.

Technical Services:

·        Highway inspections were being carried out in line with statutory  ...  view the full minutes text for item 100.

Sarah Rowell, Principal Transport Officer will give an update on the consultation on walking and cycling infrastructure plans.

Sarah Rowell, Principal Transport Officer gave an update on walking and cycling infrastructure plans.  The consultation exercise was being held to understand views on proposals to enhance the walking and cycling infrastructure in Northumberland.  It had opened on 7 March 2022 and was due to close on 15 April 2022.  (A copy of the power point presentation were enclosed with the signed minutes and would be circulated electronically after the meeting):

The presentation highlighted:

·        The policy background.

·        Benefits of residents choosing to and walk and cycle more often (health and wellbeing, congestion, air quality, economic).

·        Evidence led approach to identify infrastructure requirements and place the authority in a strong position if funding opportunities became available.

·        5 LCWIP Principles:

1 - Our walking and cycling vision

2 - Evidence based approach to walking and cycling network planning

3 - Geographical extent of LCWIPS

4 - Proposed improvements

5 - Priority corridors

·        Progress to date (identification of 3 cycling and 2 walking corridors in each of the 12 towns).

·        Strive to adhere to national design guidelines for proposed improvements (Department of Transport Cycle Infrastructure Design) to ensure networks and routes were coherent, direct, safe, comfortable and attractive.

·        Consultation objectives (raise awareness, gather baseline data, introduction of principles used to develop the LCWIPS, seeks views of on the proposed walking and cycling networks and priority corridors).

The consultation was on the Council’s website and Citizen Space Portal; comments, questions and queries could also be sent to: gearchange@northumberland.gov.uk.

Members made the following comments:

·        They supported the LCWIP process, particularly given the many benefits including tourism and that the Council needed to be ambitious and consider the position of gateways given the nature of the county.

·        Connectivity was needed between towns.

·        Cyclists had different levels of ability and confidence on different routes.  Routes needed to be safe to nurture more users.

·        Whilst £220,000 funding had been set aside by the Council, additional funding would be needed to progress schemes.

·        It was recommended that Members obtain a copy of Geared Up.

The following information was provided in response to questions:

·        The LCWIPS were focused on 12 main towns which included Hexham as they provided the best opportunity to increase people walking and cycling and reduce car usage.  However, the data had shown that the settlements of Acomb and Corbridge had been identified as being important to Hexham, so the Hexham cycling corridor extended towards Acomb and Corbridge.  The consultation sought views of what the extent of the LCWIP should be.

·        The consultation was about the high-level direction of travel, the next stage would require approval of a strategy prior to seeking external funding to deliver schemes and draw in external funding.

·        The proposed networks and priority corridors were included within the consultation but would be forwarded to members separately.  Alignment of routes would not be considered until later in the process as part of design work.  There would be further consultation at that stage.

·        Facilities were needed to enable residents to use cycles as part of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 101.

To make appointments to the outside body organisations within the Local Area Council’s remit.  The following individuals have volunteered where there are vacancies:

Haltwhistle Partnership Limited – A Sharp

Queens Hall Arts Trust – SH Fairless-Aitken

Members considered a list of vacancies for outside bodies in 2021/22.

RESOLVED that the following appointments be confirmed:

Haltwhistle Partnership Limited – A Sharp

Queens Hall Arts Trust – SH Fairless-Aitken

To note the latest version of agreed items for future Local Area Council meetings (any suggestions for new agenda items will require confirmation by the Business Chair after the meeting).

A list of agreed items for future Local Area Council meetings was circulated.  (A copy is enclosed with the minutes.)

Members were invited to email any requests to the Chair and / or Democratic Services Officer between meetings.

In answer to a query, it was confirmed that an item on Tyne Valley Users Group was to be programmed.

RESOLVED that the work programme be noted.

The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, 12 April 2022 at 4.00 p.m.

The next meeting would be held on Tuesday 12 April 2022 at 4.00 p.m.

The Chair reported that a site visit was being held later in the week with an officer from Health and Safety to assess the suitability of the Ceremony Room at Hexham House for LAC meetings in line with Covid-19 requirements.