Notes of a Staffordshire Police PACT (Partners and Communities Together) meeting
for Basford & Cliff Vale, Hartshill & Harpfields, Penkhull & Stoke
on 01 July 2013 at 6.45pm at North Staffordshire Medical Institute
There were 24 people present:
PCSO Yvonne Klebukowski and PCSO Adrian Hemmings, Staffordshire Police
Special Constables Emma Bowden and Mohammed Naheem, Staffordshire Police (from 8pm)
Malcolm Dawson, Strategic Manager for Roads and Highways, Stoke on Trent City Council
Brian Edwards, Manager for Safe and Sustainable Transport, Stoke on Trent City Council
Councillor Randy Conteh (Penkhull and Stoke Ward)
3 residents from Penkhull
Anne Carter, Secretary of Basford and Cliff Vale Residents’ Association
2 other residents from Basford
Graham Simm, Joint Acting Chair, Hartshill and Harpfields Residents’ Association
George Booth, Community Speedwatch Coordinator
8 other residents from Hartshill and Harpfields
Hannah Hulme, The Sentinel
1. The meeting was chaired by Hartshill resident Barbara Andrew who welcomed everyone and thanked them for coming.
2. There were apologies for absence from Mary Bradley, Peter Bradley, Adam Colclough, Andrew Holder, Richard Martin, Charles Pantin, Councillor Shaun Pender, Dave Ratcliffe, Jan Ratcliffe and Trevor Watkins.
3. Guest speakers: Malcolm Dawson, Strategic Manager for Roads and Highways, and Brian Edwards, Manager for Safe and Sustainable Transport, Stoke on Trent City Council
Mr Dawson and Mr Edwards introduced themselves and gave a brief overview of their respective roles and areas of responsibility before responding to questions and comments.
Residents from Basford and Cliff Vale said that speeding on Shelton New Road is a problem. Vehicles leaving the A500 do not slow down sufficiently and the fact that it is in part a dual carriageway creates the impression that 60mph is the permitted maximum. The white lane markings are thought to add to the problem, and also the crash barriers. There was recently a near-accident at the pedestrian crossing at the junction of Shelton New Road and Brickiln Lane where 2 adults were escorting 7 children on their way to school. Mr Dawson said he would arrange for the speed of vehicles travelling on Shelton New Road to be ascertained, and then report back on the findings and possible responses. If lanes were reduced this could create a blockage and tailback. Drivers must understand that having left the A500 they need to slow down. The key thing is to get the right measures at the right location.
Community Speedwatch (CS) Coordinator George Booth commented that this is known to be a fast road, and CS operations have been carried out on it previously, but more local volunteers are needed and he encouraged people to come forward. Mr Dawson said he would be interested to see the data gathered by CS. Councillor Conteh commented that he was a big fan of CS and Speed Indicator Devices (SIDs) as measures to improve community safety, and he emphasised the need for volunteers from Basford and Cliff Vale to help monitor traffic speed in their area. SIDs in various locations such as Princes Road by Stone Street have not been working as intended, the problem apparently being batteries which have run down. Mr Dawson said he would ensure this was corrected. PCSO Klebukowski commented on the effectiveness of SIDs in reducing traffic speed on Hartshill Road – when they are operating they do work!
Responding to a question from the Chair Mr Edwards commented on the report of rising accidents among cyclists, saying it was important to look at the trends over a 2-3 year period, at the underlying causes of accidents and to see what highway changes and other measures could improve road safety for cyclists. What used to be called the Cycling Proficiency Test is now called Bikeability. Designed to instill road safety into the next generation and provide them with good general road awareness, across the City 1800 pupils in their final year of primary school undertake around 6 hours of free Bikeability training over 2 days. A small number of cycle training sessions are also provided for older children and adults, and these need to be more widely promoted. Under the Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership (of Staffordshire Police, Local Authorities, Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service and others) primary school children who will shortly be moving to high school and becoming more independent receive a visit from the ‘crucial crew’ such as police officers and firefighters, and a theatre in education company raises children’s awareness of road safety issues using tailor-made comedy sketches.
Mr Dawson spoke of the City’s ever-increasing network of cycle paths and greenways, designed to separate cyclists and motorists. A lot of work has been put in to obtain funding and £10m was awarded for Cycle Stoke. Although considerable progress had been made there is still much to do, and it is acknowledged that some of the City’s roads and roundabouts remain hazardous for cyclists. A resident drew attention to disconnected cycle paths, where the designated pathway comes to an abrupt full stop. Mr Edwards asked that people notify him of any particularly bad examples of this, and also of any junctions, crossings or potholes which are thought to be hazardous to cyclists. Mr Dawson commented on the complexity of highway design and the need to incorporate the right infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists as well as motorists.
The Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership provides a speed awareness course for drivers who have been caught exceeding the speed limit. This highlights awareness of pedestrians and cyclists and educates drivers to better ‘read the road’. Mr Dawson and Mr Edwards said they would be glad to hear from the public of any ideas to improve road safety. These could be quite small-scale, and a small amount of money is available to put them into practice.
A resident asked about the legality of cycling on footpaths, commenting that cyclists can cause alarm and sometimes actual harm to pedestrians on pavements. Mr Edwards replied that footways are for pedestrian use only but where pavements are wide enough they may be divided to created shared use for pedestrians and cyclists, and signs will show this. In the absence of signs to this effect it is a traffic offence to ride a bicycle on the pavement and the matter could be referred to the police. He will raise this issue and the need for cyclists to use lights at night at the next Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership meeting, and also propose a high profile campaign to educate the public, which would involve the police.
A resident asked if sufficient money was available to provide reflective armbands for every child in the City and Mr Edwards said he would enquire about this, adding that whereas younger children might wear armbands older ones would be more likely to accept a reflective strip on their school bags.
Regarding potholes Mr Dawson said that across the country the last two summers had been unusually wet and the last two winters were both colder and wetter than normal, and this saturation of the ground plus repeated freezing and thawing meant that the road surface tended to break up, creating potholes. Central government had given some funds to Local Authorities specifically for pothole repairs but under the formula used to allocate it, Stoke on Trent received the lowest amount of any Local Authority in the West Midlands. The City Council has also allocated £340,000 this financial year for this specific purpose. Altogether there is a backlog of around 3,000 potholes in the City which are awaiting repair, a figure not dissimilar to that of other Local Authorities.
13 people are already engaged full-time on pothole repairs and another 12 are to be recruited shortly. The hope is that within 3-6 months the backlog of potholes will have been repaired and a ‘next day service’ will be in operation for any new ones. A resident commented on the pointlessness of temporary pothole repairs and Mr Dawson agreed that what is known as ‘throw and go’ is indeed unsatisfactory. In 2009 95% of potholes were dealt with in this temporary way, whereas in 2010 95% of repairs were permanent ones, and this is expected to continue.
Responding to the question “What progress has so far been made on the programme to improve unadopted alleyways across the City, which residents were told would begin this financial year?” Mr Dawson replied that there were indeed a large number of unadopted alleyways and it remained the City Council’s aspiration to first bring them up to an adoptable standard and then adopt them. At present, though, with current budgetary constraints, public roads have the priority over alleyways, which are private property.
A resident drew attention to the ongoing problem of parked vehicles on Newcastle Lane obscuring the view of drivers emerging from St Christopher’s Avenue. Councillor Conteh replied that following representations received from residents about this matter, double yellow lines are to be extended in the next batch of road-marking works – hopefully in August – on both sides of Newcastle Lane, from St Christopher’s Avenue to Marchwood Court.
With regard to road and parking problems around the hospital, a resident asked what contact existed between the City Council and the University Hospital Trust and what the relationship was like between them. Councillor Conteh explained that a number of meetings had been held between UHNS NHS Trust, the Highways Department, Ward Councillors and the Council’s Local Matters Team. The next one on 17 July will focus on parking issues and plans to retain and improve the bus services in Hartshill and Penkhull, and he will report back on this meeting. It is very much to be hoped that more Trust representation at PACT meetings will be forthcoming - they are also key partners in ‘Partners and Communities Together’. Mr Edwards and Mr Dawson responded that many meetings had been held with UHNS Trust and the role of the Council is to try to bring all parties together. As the Trust is the single biggest employer in the City with approximately 7,500 staff, the City General Hospital is one of a number of key employment sites for the development of safe and sustainable transport measures, such as providing secure cycle parking for staff, encouraging greater use of buses by staff, patients and visitors and better local traffic management.
It was emphasised by Mr Edwards that since deregulation bus companies are private companies – they do not have a contract with a Local Authority and cannot be compelled to provide a service if they believe it is not commercially viable. Anyone who fulfills certain criteria can run a bus service, or of course, withdraw it, as they please. To illustrate this point, Mr Booth reported that bus service number 58 has now been discontinued on Saturdays, and numbers 22 and 41 discontinued on Sundays. There are no buses serving the hospital after 8pm on any night of the week. Councillor Conteh said he could not stress enough the need for UHNS Trust to take responsibility for the traffic and transport issues generated by the hospital. A recent survey showed that 44% Trust employees live within 5 miles of the hospital, yet only 0.3% travel to work by bus and 2.2% cycle. While some will walk to work, the majority drive. PCSO Hemmings commented that the cycle racks at the hospital were always full and Mr Edwards mentioned again the importance of providing secure facilities so that staff could feel confident in bringing their bikes to work and leaving them safely.
The Chair thanked the speakers very much for providing helpful information on a wide range of subjects. Mr Dawson was able to remain for the rest of the meeting. Mr Edwards left at 7.45pm.
4. Notes of the previous meeting on 03 June 2013
These were to hand, and the following comments and updates were received:
4.1 Penalty charge notices
Street by street statistics relating to the issuing of penalty charge notices in the Hartshill and Harpfields Residents’ Association catchment area between 01 April 2012 and 31 March 2013 were kindly provided by Michael Clarke, Team Manager of Parking and Enforcement Services, Stoke on Trent City Council following his attendance at the June PACT meeting. It was noted that Staffordshire Police will also have issued tickets to drivers on these streets, so the figure of 1,019 in the 12 month period is almost certainly an understatement.
4.2 Resident permit parking on Hilton Road
Mr Booth reported that Mr Clarke has resolved the issue of extending this to include Sundays.
4.3 Derelict buildings at 6-8 Hartshill Road
Councillor Conteh reported on email correspondence between himself and Paul Moore, Team Manager for Development Management, Stoke on Trent City Council. These buildings have been under the Council’s scrutiny since 2004 and there now seems to be some definite and positive news about them. They were recently sold at auction and a site meeting was held on 19 June 2013 with the new owners. Work to renovate them has now started and a progress report is anticipated at the August PACT meeting.
4.4 Removal of planning notices after the expiry date
Barbara Andrew showed the meeting two bags of plastic ties cut from lamp-posts and railings in Hartshill and Harpfields by the Residents’ Association. The first, for the 12 months up to 30 June 2012, contained 341 ties. The second, for the 12 months up to 30 June 2013, contained 30-40. Mr Dawson took these for interest, together with a planning notice 6 months out of date retrieved from Hallahan Grove today.
4.5 Overgrown trees on St Christopher's Avenue
Councillor Conteh asked for his thanks to be recorded to Michelle Tinsley, Operations Manager, City Renewal, for getting these cut back. A resident commented that this was indeed an improvement but Leylandii trees belonging to a householder were also obstructing the pavement. Councillor Conteh said he would find out what further action the Council could take on this. Mr Dawson advised residents to contact the Council’s Highways Hotline 237061 to report any similar problems.
4.6 Community Events funding
Councillor Conteh reported that he is not currently a member of the panel allocating funding, but he understood that an application from Hartshill and Harpfields Occasions (HAHO) had been successful. The next round of funding will be in September, and the deadline will be confirmed nearer the time.
4.7 HAHO Community games event in Lodge Road Park on 08 June
Thanks were expressed to the City Council for ensuring that the Park was in very good condition on the day, with the grass cut neatly and no litter.
4.8 Vicarage Road car park
Barbara Andrew thanked the City Council’s Countryside Team Leader, Paul Shires, and the Friends of Hartshill Park for improving the appearance of this car park and siting upright sections of tree trunk to prevent parking on the far side.
4.9 Proposed park patrol service
Councillor Conteh reported that he had been in touch with the resident who had spoken about this at the June meeting and sent information about sources of funding.
A number of articles from The Sentinel connected with matters raised at the last PACT meeting were circulated for interest.
5. Neighbourhood policing report
5.1 On behalf of PC Terry Dunn PCSO Klebukowski gave the monthly crime figures for Hartshill, Basford and Cliff Vale, and PCSO Hemmings gave them for Penkhull and Stoke.
Hartshill/Basford & Cliff Vale Penkhull & Stoke
Burglary (dwellings) 1 0
Other burglary (eg sheds, garages) 2 1
Theft from motor vehicle 5 0
Theft of motor vehicle 0 2
Criminal damage 1 5
Criminal damage to a motor vehicle 0 5
Antisocial Behaviour 16 16
The generally downward crime figures reflected the fact that it had been a quiet month for the Neighbourhood Policing Teams. In Hartshill several ASB incidents related to children and young people climbing on fencing in the Rosemary Ednam Close and former Central Outpatients Department area. In Penkhull 2 individuals were suspected of being involved with business-related burglaries. 2 incidents of criminal damage to a motor vehicle related to a pot of paint being thrown at cars.
The PCSOs then reported on neighbourhood policing activities over the past 4 weeks:
5.2 At Thistley Hough High School there has been tension between 2 groups of pupils, culminating in an unpleasant incident at around 10pm on 24 June and involving a large group of youths with sticks, metal bars and an air rifle. One arrest was made and the air rifle was seized by the police and examined by a Scene of Crime Officer. The police urged members of the public to report any groups whose behaviour caused concern.
5.3 One or more people riding quadbikes have been causing a nuisance on Stone Street, Gresty Street, Honeywall and Lodge Road The police are trying to identify one individual in particular, known to ride a big and noisy quadbike. If appropriate a Section 59 notice may be served, whereby the bike can be seized by the police. The public are asked to report any sightings and try to get a vehicle registration number if they can.