Comments on proposals for land at Birney Hill Farm

Press Release

07 March 2013	For immediate release

Comments on proposals for land at Birney Hill Farm

Northumberland County Council’s development management team will be accepting all responses that it has received to the proposals for development on land at Birney Hill Farm near Ponteland – but will not be sending individual acknowledgements. Due to the large numbers of letters that have been received, the council isn’t able to send out individual replies but has confirmed that all points being raised in the correspondence will be taken into account when appraising the proposals. The application by Lugano Developments Ltd is for outline planning permission for the demolition of some existing buildings and the construction of up to 280 dwellings.  It also includes proposals for business space (up to 650 square metres of B1 floorspace), shops and restaurants (no greater than 250 square metres (gross) of A1/A3 retail floorspace) and community facilities (up to 500 square metres D1 floorspace).  A community farm and associated buildings, landscaping, open space, access and associated engineering works are also included in the plans. Details of the application can be viewed on the council’s website at www.northumberland.gov.uk/planning , where you should enter the reference number 13/00132/OUTES in the planning application search.

Ex-Cherry Trees on Thornhill Road

Last week, ending 8 February, two flowering cherry trees were felled on Thornhill Road, just beside the Blackbird car park.

These photos show how much colour and lift they added in the past to the street scene.

They were felled by Northumberland County Council without any consultation involving Ponteland.

The Senior Planning Officer, Mrs Kate Blyth, said ‘We do not consult members of the public for these applications’.  Nor it seems any other body either.  They were in the Ponteland Conservation Area.

She went on to say, ‘The trees were assessed (by whom?) prior to any work being undertaken and were not found to be worthy of further protection’.  So that’s it!  The axe man cometh!  Beware!

What about replacements Mrs Blyth?

Supplied via email

Row breaks out over Ponteland and Hexham green belt land

A POLITICAL row has broken out over the future of green belt land surrounding two of Northumberland's most desirable towns.

Conservative MP Guy Opperman sparked the war of words by warning that the county council will be accused of “selling off the family silver” if it goes ahead with plans to remove certain areas of the green belt around Ponteland and Hexham.

Hexham MP Mr Opperman – together with local Tory councillors – has been waging a campaign against proposals to build hundreds of homes in countryside next to the two towns.

He said this week that no one wants to see large swathes of green belt land being sold off to developers for “cash crop” housing estates, and insisted the council has a duty to protect what makes the area so special.

Now he has been accused by Liberal Democrat bosses at County Hall of trying to panic people for political purposes.

Mr Opperman is strongly opposing plans by two separate developers to build 800 houses in the green belt surrounding Ponteland and Darras Hall.

He has also spoken out against potential housing development at the Shaws Farm site at Hexham.

This week he warned the Lib Dem administration at County Hall that it will be open to accusations of selling off the family silver if it removes land from the green belt.

He said: “People are annoyed that, at the same time as possibly selling off our green belt, we see them [the county council] splashing out millions on vanity projects like a new £20m leisure centre for Ashington.”

Mr Opperman says Local Government Minister Eric Pickles pledged recently that the green belt would continue to be protected from development, so the only scope for making changes rests with the local authority. The council is examining existing green belt allocations as part of the development of its new Core Strategy.

Lib Dem leaders say they are “astonished” by Mr Opperman’s comments and any suggestion that they are to launch an attack on the green belt.

Executive member for regeneration, Tom Brechany, said: “It is inaccurate, not to mention completely unhelpful, of Guy Opperman to try to panic people in this way for political purposes. I have had assurances from council officers on this issue, who have confirmed there are no definite proposals to delete areas of the green belt in Northumberland. Indeed, the Core Strategy, at the issues and options stage, actually proposes an extension of the existing green belt around Morpeth.”

Hexham Lib Dem county councillor Derek Kennedy said: “I am committed to protecting the green belt and have held a number of meetings with residents and officers on the issue, with more to come.”

A council spokeswoman said it is awaiting further Government guidance on the green belt issue, and policies in the emerging Core Strategy will take account of this. “The council has no current proposals to delete areas of the green belt in Northumberland. Notwithstanding this, we have a duty to consider whether any green belt deletions may be necessary to meet future housing and employment land requirements as part of the statutory plan-making process.”

Source: Journal Live

Northumberland - Connecting Communities through Broadband

Update: February 2012

Welcome to this iNorthumberland update. The purpose of the newsletter is to keep everyone informed about the steps being taken to improve broadband services in Northumberland. Please share this information with your local residents and colleagues.

More details can be found on the iNorthumberland web site

www.iNorthumberland.org.uk

1. The Local Broadband Plan

Broadband and the internet have changed many aspects of our lives. As the speeds of broadband services increases so will the ways in which the internet is used by both the public and private sector.

Superfast broadband speeds have the potential to dramatically change the way in which we do business and deliver many of our public services. It is therefore essential that Northumberland invests in an affordable broadband delivery infrastructure that is capable of keeping pace with these changes in speed. At this time though this represents a enormous major capital investment in the exchanges, cabinets and cabling that currently delivers the broadband services available in Northumberland.

The Government has made some funding available to local authorities to help with broadband service improvements. £7 million has been ‘indicatively’ allocated to Northumberland. This funding will only be released when the Government has approved each authority’s Local Broadband Plan which has to contain a commitment to match the Governments allocation – so Northumberland County Council is proposing to commit £7 million as part of its budget recommendations to be considered later this month.

We have not yet been informed when the Plan will be approved and we are unable to publish it until it is formally approved by the Government.

The final amount we will have to start introducing the improvements Northumberland needs will only be determined when we complete the ‘procurement tendering’ process. This process will invite the providers of commercial broadband services to bid for the contract to deliver the first phase of improvements.

It is hoped that the winning bidder will also invest ‘match funding’ at a level equal to the amounts contributed by the Council and the Government i.e. £14 million. This would provide an initial budget of up to £28 million but it should be emphasised that the level of commercial investment will be determined primarily by their views on potential future revenue levels.

Although (up to) £28 million is an enormous amount of money it is anticipated that it will still not meet the current forecasted costs of providing the levels of improvement Northumberland needs now and in preparation for the future.

Our Local Broadband Plan therefore anticipates a short fall in the level of capital investment needed and calls for an inclusive ‘whole county approach’ to developing solutions to compensate for this shortfall. Consequently, we are planning to work collaboratively with partners and stakeholders across the county through our iNorthumberland programme team – see below – to start to plan these solutions and we will use our regular newsletter and web site to keep you informed of progress.

2. iNorthumberland Programme Team and Programme Board Delivering the improvements in broadband services will be a complex, long term process.

The recruitment of a Programme Team to develop and manage this process has now started. This team will incorporate responsibility for a wide range of tasks which will include the planning and procurement of future solutions, developing bids for additional funding as well as providing information and other support services.

The Programme Director will report to a Programme Board which will be structured to reflect the private, public and voluntary sector as well as the general community. The board will have an independent Chair.

3. How you and the community can help

Everyone can register their interest in improving broadband in Northumberland. They can currently either –

- use the on line registration process on www.iNorthumberland.org.uk

- complete the iNorthumberland registration cards available in all of our local libraries

This information will be collated and will provide clear evidence to potential broadband service providers of the demand in Northumberland for better broadband services.

The Programme Team (see above) will develop additional methods in the coming months.

We are aware of a number of communities in Northumberland who have developing their own solutions using wireless based broadband or satellite systems. We have case studies of initiatives in other parts of the country where communities are laying their own fibre optic cable to connect to a local exchange or to an independent wireless service.

Please let us know of anyone who is involved in local schemes OR who is interested in developing a local initiative themselves.

4. Rural Community Broadband Fund

The Rural Community Broadband Fund was launched by Defra in November 2012. The £20m Fund targets communities across the whole of the UK who are inside what has been defined as the ‘final 10%’ – i.e. the areas where it is extremely difficult to provide broadband. Northumberland County Council submitted two outline bids to the Fund in January 2012, one to connect the North Tyne (including Kielder) and another to connect Eshott Village and the surrounding parish. The outcome of the bids will be known by mid March 2012. 

For further details please contact Fay Cooper, Senior Project Officer at fay.cooper@northumberland.gov.uk

ACCESS TO DEMOCRACY IN NORTHUMBERLAND

ACCESS TO DEMOCRACY IN NORTHUMBERLAND:

HOW TO GET INVOLVED AND HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD

MARCH 2011

What are these meetings about?
- Are you interested in how you can have your voice heard in the democratic process in Northumberland?

- Would you like to find out how to speak to or contact the people who make decisions on a county level?

If so, you may be interested in attending.

Who might be interested in attending?

We aim to attract people who might not have experience with engaging with the process but who might be interested in doing so, for example residents' associations/groups, charities, parents groups and people wishing to lobby or campaign about particular issues.

When will the meetings take place?
The sessions will take place on:

1. Thursday 3 March 2011: 10am – 3pm (Council Chamber, Prospect House, Bank Head, Hexham NE46 3NH)

2. Wednesday 9 March 2011: 10am – 3pm (Alnwick Council Chamber, Clayport Street, Alnwick NE66 1LA)

3. Tuesday 22 March 2011: 10am – 3pm (Adamson Suite, Choppington Social

Welfare Centre, Colliery Road, Scotland Gate, Choppington NE62 5SR).What will the sessions cover?

The sessions will look at:

- What meetings you can attend

- Which meetings you can speak at and what issues can you speak on

- What reports and information held by the council can you see ('Access to Information')

- What information held by the council can you both informally and formally request ('Freedom of Information')

- Other ways to raise issues – speaking to county councillors, writing to the council, petitioning the council.

What will be the format of the sessions?
The sessions will be introduced by a county councillor, with workshops facilitated by officers. Lunch will be provided.

How can I find out more and/or register to attend?
If you are interested in attending or would like further information, please telephone

Mike Bird on 01670 533491 or email demserv.ar@northumberland.gov.uk . To register to attend, please let us know no later than seven days before the meeting you would like to attend.

You'll pay the price, rogue drivers warned

PEOPLE who fall foul of new measures to tackle congestion in a Ponteland street have been warned they will pay the penalty.

And a local councillor is hoping the police will back up their words with action to reduce the problems in Thornhill Road at the start and end of the school day.

Richard Coates Middle School and Ponteland First School are next to each other on the street.

Complaints about cars parking along the road and on pavements when taking pupils to and from school — which parents, local residents and councillors say reduces an already narrow road and puts children's safety at risk — have intensified since the first school moved there in 2007.

So in a bid to tackle the issue following discussions between the schools, Northumberland County Council and Northumbria Police, new double and single yellow lines were introduced at the start of the year.

Team Traffic Manager for Northumberland County Council Alan Bawn said the parking plate signs for the single yellow lines, prohibiting parking in key areas between 8.30am to 9.30am and 3pm to 4pm, Monday to Friday, have now been installed.

And Neighbourhood Inspector for East Tynedale Kevin Oates said: "Fixed Penalty Notices will be issued to drivers who park illegally in Thornhill Road.

"I would appeal to people who are attending the school to park legally in the area and avoid causing congestion. I appreciate this may involve a short walk from nearby car parking facilities."

There were traffic calming measures along the road already, including a 20mph speed limit and speed cushions. A zebra crossing and other road markings were put in place last year.

But many complaints have been made that indiscriminate parking on Thornhill Road is reducing the highway to single lane traffic and causing visibility problems for pedestrians.

Ponteland North county councillor Richard Dodd, who has been campaigning for new measures for a number of years, said: "I have still seen people parking on the yellow lines since they were put down so I hope the police and traffic wardens will regularly enforce the regulations like they have been doing outside County Hall."

Richard Coates Headteacher Paul Rusby said it has been working with other organisations to make the street as safe as possible for pupils as they go to and leave school and thanked parents for their support on the issue.

"I think the yellow lines will have a positive effect and help to address the congestion problem," he added.

Lynn Blain, Ponteland First School Headteacher, said: "We are committed to making sure access to and from the school is as safe as possible and the recent developments are a step in the right direction.

"It also requires education of the whole school community, including children and parents, about the importance of walking or parking in a village car park then walking the rest of the way whenever possible as well as effective enforcement of parking restrictions by the police." 

Source: Morpeth Herald

Residents urged to recycle Christmas waste

Waste bosses are urging Northumberland residents to think green this Christmas.
Northumberland County Council and SITA UK will recycle Christmas trees, cards, wrappings and drink containers.
Household waste recycling centres across the county will be open every day except Christmas Day and New Year's Day, and Christmas trees can be taken along at any time and recycled with other green waste.

There are also a number of other sites around the county where people can take their real Christmas trees for recycling at specific times, a list of which can be found on this page of the council website at www.northumberland.gov.uk

There are county council household waste centres at Allendale, Alnwick, Bebside, Berwick, Haltwhistle, Hexham, Seghill, Ponteland, Morpeth, Hexham, Prudhoe, Wooler and North Sunderland. They are open 8am-6pm, with the exception of the Seghill centre, which operates 8am-4pm.

Cards can be recycled in kerbside recycling bins, or at the centres along with usual paper waste, or can be taken to any WH Smith, TK Maxx or Marks & Spencer store in January.

Glass bottles and jars can also be taken to bottle banks in towns and villages across the county.

DRIVE TO RECYCLE ELECTRICAL GOODS

Meanwhile, a drive starts next month to persuade people in Northumberland to recycle more small electrical goods.

By taking a small old electrical appliance such as a toaster, radio, iron or electrical drill to their local recycling centre during January, residents will be given a scratch card offering a range of prizes.

The scheme, funded by the Recycling Electrical Producers Industry Consortium, is aimed at reducing the number of small domestic appliances which are put in bins and sent for disposal, by encouraging householders to take these items to their local recycling centre instead.

Large appliances, such as fridges, freezers, cookers and washing machines are not included in the promotion, but can still be taken to household waste recycling centres.

Richard Hinchcliffe, regional manager for Northumberland County Council's waste partner SITA UK, said: "While a great number of people are taking up the opportunity to recycle household waste, we are finding that too many small electrical items are being thrown away still.

"At a time when people are replacing small electrical items more frequently than ever, we would urge people to recycle as much as possible. Much of it can be recycled and reused, proving a valuable resource that would otherwise go to waste."

Source: Journal Live

Care Home Closure Decision is Postponed

Councillors have postponed making a decision on closing seven care homes across Northumberland - leaving the redundancy payments of care workers at risk.

Members of Northumberland County Council voted 27 to 23 to delay a decision to close authority-run care centres in Amble, Bedlington, Blyth, Ponteland, Hexham, Haltwhistle and Prudhoe until their next meeting on November 4.

But the delay could see the redundancy payments of workers halved, as new regulations coming into effect on October 1 will reduce the payouts giving to staff.

At least 25 out of the 51 remaining workers – who have expressed in interest in voluntary redundancy and are under retirement age – will see their entitlements halved by the delay, while the rest will see complex changes brought in before they can accept their payoffs.

Conservative and Labour councillors joined forces to defer making a decision on the issue, defeating a recommendation by the Liberal Democrat administration that the closures should be approved now as part of moves towards a more personalised system of adult care.

Councillors said they hope the delay will allow time for expressions of interest from potential alternative providers in taking over and keeping open the day centres in Amble, Bedlington and Blyth.

But Tory and Labour councillors were accused of a "political scuppering exercise" by Lib Dem leaders, and of prolonging the uncertainty for users of the seven centres.

An amendment supported by the Conservatives and Labour councillors said the council "notes" the recommendation to close the centres, but the decision should be deferred for Blyth, Bedlington and Amble.

The remaining centres will still face the axe on November 4.

Conservative leader Peter Jackson said: "The Council has to be clear with residents about the exact arrangements that it is proposing and we are sure that there is still a great deal of confusion with the public about what the current proposals will mean to them."

Executive member for adult care Coun Simon Reed said: "There is nothing to be gained from delaying this process, other than satisfying the egos of a few politicians.

"All this does is cause delay and further uncertainty for users, staff and the wider community."

Closing the centres is part of a move to 'personalised support', where older people would be given their own budgets to help them choose their social activities, which may include making use of day centres run by other private or voluntary organisations.

Labour Coun Deidre Campbell said: "We are not talking about older people winning the lottery when they receive these so-called 'personalised budgets'.

"It's £35 a week, and that will not stretch that far if it is used to pay to attend similar facilities."

Source: News Post Leader