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News from Stinchcombe Parish Council

News and Information from Stinchcombe Parish Council for Stinchcombe residents

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Pothole Cat 1

Kath looks into Stinchcombe Potholes

Sniper on Standle Lane?

Only if you’re using the terminology from the rather whimsical RAC Guide to the Great British Pothole and Other Road Surface Defects 🤣 Potholes, definitely aren’t a laughing matter though. The Parish Council agreed with residents that the state of the road surface on Standle Lane was unacceptable and reported the worst defects to Gloucestershire Highways. When Highways said that repairs would be carried out this month we obtained clarification on what they would comprise and answers to residents’ questions.

A happy ending for now on Standle Lane

On 7th February 2022, Highways’ contractors applied 40 mm inlay patching to the potholes and large areas of 50 mm overlay, totalling 1,236 m2. Ringway Supervisor Perry Holder estimated that these repairs would last 5-10 years under normal conditions.

When Parish Councillors Diana Davidson and Kath Hudson visited that morning the lane was a hive of activity with a large team and numerous vehicles getting stuck in. Photos can’t to justice to the amount of work going on because it was over such a wide area. We were taken with the Vögele road paver which is supposed to be especially compact and manoeuvrable, an asset on country lanes!

Vogele Paver
The Vogele Road Paver

The wider (and deeper) pothole issue

Over 43,000 potholes were reported in Gloucestershire in the first half of 2021. Small wonder that Highways is struggling to keep up, especially during the pandemic.

Rishi Sunak’s £2.5 billion pothole fund was announced in 2020 and in the current financial year Gloucestershire received nearly £10 million from it. On the downside, there was a 22% reduction in overall capital funding for local road maintenance in 2021/22.

The Asphalt Industry Alliance estimates that £10 billion would be needed to make England’s roads pothole-free. It criticises short-term boosts in funding that encourage wasteful patch and mend repairs rather than a more proactive and cost-effective approach. All right, they’ve got a vested interest but they should know a thing or two about road repairs.

Opposition councillors in Gloucestershire recently called for a ‘root and branch review’ of the way highways services are delivered. They describe the highways system as ‘broken’ with councillors being inundated with appeals from residents to fix potholes, mend signs and clear blocked drains.

As things stand at the moment we need to work with the existing system. It’s worth knowing about the policy on potholes, how to report them and how to claim compensation.

Gloucestershire Highways Policy

Gloucestershire Highways’ Safety Inspection Manual classes carriageway potholes as a safety defect if their maximum horizontal dimension is greater than 300mm and they are more than 40mm deep. They are divided into two categories:

  • CAT 2 40 – 75 mm deep or 1 1/2″ – 3″
  • CAT 1 >75 mm deep or more than 3″

On local access roads inspectors have some discretion as to what action they take. They can choose to repair CAT2 potholes within 28 days or within 3 months or, at worst, simply erect warning notices. In the case of CAT1 potholes the choice is between repairing or making safe within 1 working day or a more leisurely 28 days.

Reporting potholes

Potholes and other problems can be reported online to Gloucestershire Highways

CAT1 Potholes are classed as an immediate danger to public safety. They should instead be reported on their emergency number 08000 514 514.

Defects reported by the public are supposed to be inspected within 5 working days

We know that many residents already report potholes. Highways generally inspect promptly and carry out basic repairs if they consider the criteria have been met. Please continue to report them.
a) so they get repaired and
b) because anyone suffering damage or injury can claim compensation only if the defect was previously reported.

Claiming compensation

There is plenty of reliable advice on the internet about how to claim compensation if a pothole. Or other defect causes damage to your vehicle e.g.

It has to be said that Gloucestershire has a poor record for paying out. In fact, one of the worst in the country. According to thisismoney.co.uk out of 847 cases lodged in 2020, just 17 were awarded compensation.

If your claim is turned down, try the appeals process. As a last resort you could take it to the Small Claims Court. You may be liable for costs if you lose the case so it is sensible to seek legal advice first.

A few things to think about

  1. Is pursuing our individual right to compensation a good thing?
  2. Does it encourage local authorities to improve their road maintenance practices and fulfil their legal duty to maintain safe roads?
  3. Gloucestershire County Council has paid out around £80 million in compensation over the last 3 years. Would it have been better spent on road repairs?
  4. To what extent are the problems caused by inadequate and inconsistent funding from central government and to what extent by local shortcomings?

Your thoughts are welcome and will be shared with our District and County Councillors.

Kath (Parish Councillor)

20 Plenty

Time to reconsider 20’s plenty?

Valentine’s Day – time to reconsider 20’s Plenty?

Until a couple of months ago I thought 20’s Plenty was all wishful thinking and wheelie bin stickers.  Then the Parish Council got an email from Scott McNeill, campaign organiser for Gloucestershire. Scott urged us to pass a motion supporting 20 mph as the default speed limit on village and urban streets where people live, work, shop, play or learn.

A Persuasive Campaign

Following up on the links Scott sent us, I was amazed at the head of steam behind the campaign both nationally and locally. More than 1 in 3 of the UK population live in Local Authorities which already accept 20mph as the right speed limit where cars come into contact with people.  That includes our neighbours in Oxfordshire, Bath & North East Somerset and Bristol and the whole of Wales.  In all these areas and in many others the process of rolling out 20 mph limits has started.

Yes, but …

Like me, you’ve probably got questions and doubts about how 20 mph limits would work.  As a starting point, have a look at this short video by Rod King, founder of 20’s Plenty

Video is on the website or see the video here

20’s Plenty Gloucestershire

Here in Gloucestershire there is strong and growing support for wider use of 20 mph limits.  85% of the 121 town and parish councils responding to a county council survey last December were in favour.  The survey was rather a rushed affair in the run up to Christmas and we suspect that it was overlooked by a considerable number of councils.

At the most recent count, nearly 50 councils, including Stinchcombe PC, have confirmed their support for a 20 mph residential limit by passing a motion. Some of the District Councils are included and the Greens in Stroud District plan to bring a motion at the next full council meeting.

Gloucestershire Constabulary now strongly supports the use of 20 mph zones and encourages their greater use, especially in residential areas. (Based on letter from Chief Constable Rod Hansen to Eastington residents, quoted in GCC Environment Scrutiny Committee minutes of 12/1/22.)

Since I signed up as the 20’s Plenty campaigner for Stinchcombe I’ve been talking tactics with Scott and other campaigners around Gloucestershire.  I’ve also made contact with neighbouring councils, some in full support, others undecided or  unaware of recent developments.  At the national level, Rod King and Campaign Manager Anna Semlyen are approachable and full of knowledge and enthusiasm.

Public Consultation

GCC accepts that “20 mph limits are going to be a key instrument in delivering safer roads”.  It has included 20 mph limits in a wider review of its Road Safety Policy.  Full public consultation is expected to take place in April/May this year.

I’ll do my best to ensure that Stinchcombe residents are notified in good time and know how to participate if they wish. 

Let’s start talking now

We don’t need to wait for the consultation to begin considering this complex issue.  If you have thoughts or questions about introducing 20 mph limits in Stinchcombe you can contact me at Stinchcombe@20splentyforus.org.uk

  • Was the Parish Council right to pass a motion of support?
  • Where would you welcome a 20 mph residential limit in Stinchcombe?
  • Are there stretches of road you think should retain a higher limit?
  • Would you want a 20 mph limit by your home?
  • What benefits would 20 mph limits have for you and your family?
  • What doubts or concerns would you have?

I won’t have the answer to every question but if it’s possible to get one for you I will do so.

How would it fit in with our other planned traffic calming measures?

Our vehicle-activated sign (VAS), when we get it, could be used with 20 mph limits just as well as with 30 mph limits. It would provide useful data on how speeds changed with the introduction of a lower limit.   In case you’re wondering, the current position is that our VAS application is still with Highways, nearly 4 months since we first submitted it.  County Councillor Linda Cohen is helping us chase up a response.

Village gateways are compatible with 20 mph limits and are often used to reinforce them.  We have identified a preferred supplier for village gateways on Wick Lane, Echo Lane and Taits Hill.  There will be a meeting soon between representatives of the Parish Council and Stinchcombe Speed Watch and residents who have offered funding to come up with a detailed proposal.  The proposal will then be publicised so that others have chance to comment.

Kath Hudson 🦸‍♀️

Stinchcombe Planter

The New Planter

The new planter at the entrance to The Avenue has been installed under the auspices of the Parish Council but is a real team effort.  We are most grateful to:

  • John Pinch for the design, contacts and spadework
  • Will Heming for donating the brown oak sleepers
  • Leaf & Ground for donating the compost and a great selection of healthy plants
  • Stinchcombe Speed Watch for doing the planting and ongoing maintenance

John has made laser cut bamboo plaques acknowledging the contributions of Heming Landscapes and Leaf & Ground, which will be added shortly. As well as looking good the planter is intended to draw attention to the recently washed 30 mph sign.  Perhaps we could do the same on Taits Hill Road if we can find a sponsor?

Kath

Editor – Anybody like to come forward to help sponsor?

Stinchcombe Parish Council - A community with Spirit

Rugby Club Parking issues – Jan 2022

Rugby Club parking issues over the last few weekends

Cars on the Street
Extreme Parking

We had a constructive meeting on Friday 28th January between the ruby club, village hall committee and parish council to discuss the parking issue.

Firstly, Phil Sprague (the new Chair of the club) offered his apologies on behalf of the rugby club for the issues caused by cars parking in the grounds of the village hall, along the grass verges in the village and also down The Avenue, which led to difficulties and inconvenience for many residents over the last few weeks.

There were a number of last minute cancelations and changes to fixtures that had caused the rugby club some unforeseen problems. The rugby club does not charge for any parking (other than at the October minis festivals) and so those parking in the streets were doing so entirely because of the rugby clubs car parking capacity, not to avoid paying.

The rugby club is taking a number of steps to prevent a recurrence both in the short and medium term:

  1. The fixtures and playing schedule is being optimised to ensure that parking space is available.  Post Covid, the club has seen an increase in cars as people are less willing to share.
  2. Communication with visiting teams prior to the day is stressing that parking in the hall carpark or on the avenue/street is not an option.
  3. Parking stewards will be on hand to maximise the number of cars in the rugby club car park.
  4. Any late cancelations of away fixtures that would put an additional load on parking would be diverted to the Norman Hill grounds.
  5. The rugby club will communicate in advance with the residents through the PC website and eNews should there be weekends with potential overload.
  6. The rugby club is in negotiation with the village hall for use of village hall facilities.
  7. Creation of a temporary overspill carpark, should it be needed.  The track to the field behind the village hall will commence on the 7th February and should therefore make this temporary car park available from late February.

In the medium term:

  1. Planning parking for fixtures and in particular the October minis festival.
  2. Publishing out the fixture to the village residents (which can also be found at www.dursleyrfc.co.uk) .
  3. Further meeting between rugby club, village hall committee and parish council is planned before the October festivals.

If anyone has anything they wish to raise or discuss, feel free to give me a shout

Regards

Simon

Stinchcombe Parish Council - A community with Spirit

End of year update

Dear all

We had our last Parish Council meeting of the year on Monday night which was well attended and productive.  Thanks to Marian and Nola for providing the refreshments in the break.  I thought I would give you an update of the key points as I saw them. I hope this is useful

Speedwatch Update

We committed last year to the Speedwatch group and they have been diligently progressing a number of initiatives.  Progress on the automated sign (VAS) has been delayed because of a key absence at the council but his replacement is now dealing with the matter and there should be a decision after Christmas. We hope to be able to deploy the VAS next year.

There is a county wide campaign to introduce 20 mph limits in all residential areas and it was agreed to support this, along with over 10% of parish councils.  There is a long way to go before it becomes Gloucestershire County Council policy and there will no doubt be opportunities for residents to give their views.

The village gateway locations on Taits Hill, Echo Lane and Wick Lane have now been agreed with the council  and we are looking to finalise the design, colour, wording, and size in discussion with potential suppliers and Highways. Kath has circulated some mock ups for comments – anyone who would like to be involved, please contact Kath or myself. There will be a chance for the village to comment before a final decision is made.

Facilities Update

We also agreed to fund the feasibility study into an expanded playground and we were hoping for a Playground Group Update which didn’t happen last night.  Hopefully we can get that soon and let everyone know the latest thinking.

You may have seen the new bin and flagpole outside the church, with thanks to Craig Lawfull for installing it. Please let us know if you have the village flags – we don’t know who has them at the moment!!!  We are also looking into the possibility of a further bin at the end of the footpath across rugby club, by the bus shelter.  Hopefully we will also have a new notice board for Old Hill Lane shortly as well.

Footpaths update.

Firstly, I’d like to give the Parish Council’s thanks to Chris Snellock who has served as footpath warden for the last 6 years and has recently decided stand down.  Under his stewardship we have seen conscientious care, documenting, and reporting of our 60 odd footpaths – a heartfelt thanks for your efforts Chris!

John Thomas, from Wick Lane has agreed to take over the role, more details to follow.

There has been no real progress regarding the footpaths at Piers Court. I have recently met with a Police representative who stressed the need to record and report any incidents of harassment. A meeting is being arranged for early January with the PRoW office.

In the meant time, if you have any issues with the state of footpaths, (overgrown,  access issues, damaged stiles etc) please report them to me (or any parish council member) and the PRoW 

If you have any issues with people challenging, harassing or intimidating your legal use of a path, again please report them to me (or any parish council member) and the Police https://www.gloucestershire.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/report-threats-verbal-abuse-assault/

We had another incident reported last week where a walker went through a farmers closed gate and left it wide open allowing cattle to get into a field that he did not want them in. Fortunately the farmer noticed before they started damaging hedging that he was renovating. He has no issue with people walking through his fields but quite reasonably does expect that they leave gates as they find them. Please remember that while walking through fields, especially when not on public rights of way, gates MUST be left as they were found.

Other key points 

You may also see that the Millennium Oak tree has been trimmed and new protective fences put around it – many thanks to Ian and Sandy and Chris for doing the work.

The Council has registered to be part of the chain of beacons on 2nd June for the Queens Jubilee and we have been allocated two oak trees as part of the Queen’s Green Canopy.  Keep the date for next year, I am sure we will be celebrating with more than a beacon.

I took an action a while back to look at how we best use the Parish Council website, eNews and WhatsApp; I will do this over the Christmas period, and if anyone has any thoughts about how we can communicate better or what to communicate, please give me a shout.

On the finances side, we have had payments in of £7413 for this year and expect  £5936 for next year. General expenses for this year were £1928 and forecast for next year is £2284. One off costs this year were £622 with a further £1900 planned but not yet spent. We also holdover a allowance of £6000 for the VAS and village gateways and £500 for the playground for next year.

The next meetings will be:-

  1. Wed 26th Jan, 7.30pm
  2. Wed 9th March, 7.30pm
  3. Wed 4th May, 7.30. Parish Assembly
  4. Wed 18th May, 7.30. AGM

All at the village hall committee room unless covid re-intervenes  – just a reminder that all residents are welcome. If there are any topics you think we should be addressing, feel free to drop me an email simon.packer@stinchcombepc.co.uk or give me a call on 0797 363 8792

Wishing you all a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Simon

Stinchcombe Parish Council - A community with Spirit

From the Parish Council

From the Parish Council

Our County Councillor, Linda Cohen, has asked us to publicise two initiatives in the county over Christmas:-

Winter Holiday Activities and Food Programme

Registration for the winter HAF programme is now open for children eligible for benefits -related free school meals. The winter programme will run from 20 – 23 December 2021. Children who signed for the summer programme will be automatically registered.

Families can register at: www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/HAF

Strategy to tackle domestic abuse in Gloucestershire

This has been published by the Domestic Abuse Local Partnership Board to mark the beginning of 16 days of action against violence. Full details together with a list of support services can be found here:

www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/health-and-social-care/public-health/domestic-abuse-strategy/local-support-domestic-abuse/

Bins Snow

Christmas and New Year bin collections

Christmas and New Year bin collections – all you need to know

There are no changes to waste collection dates over Christmas and New Year, which means residents should present containers by 6am on their normal scheduled collection day.

  • This year for the first time, wrapping paper can be recycled as long as it doesn’t spring back to a flat shape after being scrunched up, and doesn’t contain foil, glitter or synthetic material. 
  • Wrapping paper must be contained within the green recycling box.  Recycling collection teams are unable to take recyclable wrapping paper presented in black bags or carrier bags. To check if wrapping paper is recyclable visit www.stroud.gov.uk
  • Polystyrene foam can’t currently be recycled, so that should be placed in general waste and not in recycling.
  • This is a time when many households will take deliveries wrapped in cardboard – please remember to flatten cardboard and put it in your recycling box. Extra cardboard should be reduced to approximately the size of a green box and placed neatly underneath or next to the recycling box on collection day.

Defra figures show that Stroud District Council is one of the top performing recycling councils in England. So once again please remember to minimise the amount of waste created and recycle as much Christmas waste as possible – glass, cans, plastic bottles and containers and cardboard packaging can all be recycled.

Food Waste

It is also important to reduce our food waste over the festive period, and if everyone can do their bit it will make a huge difference. For tips on reducing food waste this Christmas visit www.lovefoodhatewaste.com

Bad Weather

If bad weather strikes and snow or ice holds up collections, residents should leave their waste and recycling out for two days including Saturdays but not Sundays. If crews are unable to collect it within this period, it should be taken back in until the next scheduled collection. The safety of crews and the public is paramount in ice and snow conditions.

Collection Calendars 2022

Residents can download 2021/22 collection calendars via the My House section on the SDC website – www.stroud.gov.uk/my-house

Residents who do not have online access or who cannot download the calendar can call the council on 01453 766321 for a copy.

Christmas Trees

Registration for tree collection is open now until 3 January 2022. Real Christmas trees can be recycled at Household Recycling Centres – all visits must be pre-booked. To book a slot visit www.gloucestershirerecycles.com

You can also register your tree for collection to help Longfield Community Hospice

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