This was included in December's Dilwynner, Magpie and Pyonear
The headline for this month’s report is a tale of two bridges. By the time this is printed, the footbridge between Dilwyn and Weobley (WX28 on Weobley side, DW20 on Dilwyn side), which has been out of action since summer 2021, will have reopened. It’s been a sterling effort by the footpath team in Weobley, designing a bridge that is fit for purpose, getting it made locally, and then installing it – all at an absolute fraction of the cost the council typically pays. It’s been a hard road getting it funded and approved, but I am already working with the cabinet member to find further sites around the county.
The second, less happy, bridge story is of course the works on the A4112 above Dilwyn. I was extremely frustrated with the lack of consultation and communication on this; and wrote a letter to the Council Leader expressing my disappointment. (You can find it on my website www.nickmason4weobley.org.uk ) As soon as it was clear that the decision had been made on safety grounds it wasn’t viable to delay it, whereupon the consequences of that lack of consultation became apparent, with chaos on school transport and unsafe usage of rat-runs destroying many back lanes – so much of which could have been avoided. After requesting it, signage was put up, but too late. To at least make the most a bad situation, we have ensured a lot of work has been done on the A4112 where it is closed – pothole repairs, road markings, hedges, ditches etc - by Balfour Beatty and private landowners. Further I have obtained undertakings that repairs will be made to the roads that have been affected, and also an acknowledgement that this could have been done better, and will be in the future, in particular on how we prepare for works like this. We will see.
Mid November brought storm Claudia. Unlike the storms last winter, the Weobley ward got off relatively lightly, despite many parts receiving 100mm (4 inches in old money) in 24hrs, with the south of the county taking the brunt. A number of the interventions that we have put in place – either directly or by working with landowners - over the last year were useful, and indeed across the ward I am not aware of a single house being flooded. But there is still a huge amount to do – and we continue to work on mitigating flood risks in Weobley and Weobley Marsh, Dilwyn and Canon Pyon amongst others.
To address flooding you need to be sure the drainage system runs. Although some cases (such as in Dilwyn) are complex, often it is simply clearing leaves from gully tops and making sure drains aren’t blocked; which is a task for the local “lengthsman” – the parish councils’ contractors. We aren’t there yet, but the communication this time around about what drains needed checking/cleaning was better than in previous years, and we will continue to work with the parish councils to get on top of it.
Communication and coordination are key areas in which Herefordshire council needs to improve if it can deal with the challenges ahead. The newly published parish charter should help the relationship between the council and the parishes, improving clarity and getting us away from the old habits of just blaming each other. And as we continue to ring the changes in staff in key roles, I was delighted with the appointment of a new Chief Technical and Data Officer who really understands that if the council is to be a success, it needs to be open and accessible to those who live here. I have heard enough complaints about emails/telephone calls not being answered or responded to. It must get better.
As always please do get in touch if there’s anything I can help with. My email (which had a typo in a previous edition) is [email protected] , and my mobile is 07884 268624. I continue to run surgeries on a weekly basis – see my website for details. Maybe I’ll see you around the patch – and if I don’t, I wish you a fabulous Christmas break.