From the Canal to Sevenways

Category: Weekly Updates

  • Canvassing Kingsway Park

    Canvassing Kingsway Park

    Things I heard:

    Better maintenance of drains and general upkeep of streets wanted including weed control

    – I heard this from quite a few residents. It’s a difficult one but we shouldn’t dismiss it. There was one grid pointed out to me that actually looked as though it had been cleaned. I might be wrong but if we have residents who believe their streets are not being serviced, and it worries them, shouldn’t we be giving better data. They’re paying council tax but we’re giving back information that’s borderline facetious describing the leaf clearance in terms of its weight in elephants. If residents want to know when and how often their grids ought to be cleared and whether that has happened we should be telling them.

    I do think there’s a discussion to be had about street upkeep more generally. Cheap black tarmac patching on pavements highlight the fact that the pavements were originally laid to a standard that we’ll never match again. Whilst hopefully we can fund better than we do now, it’s probably unrealistic to think councils will ever realistically have sufficient funds to bring pavements and roads to a standard that people truly aspire to. How did that happen? Looking at it from a lay perspective, it looks to me that we’ve gone backwards even allowing for the increased workload we place on roads and pavements. Are we really using low tech and manual labour to standards lower than we used 100 years ago? Have councils and highway authorities demanded the sufficient improvements in technology and productivity that we’ve seen in almost every other field of work?

    We really do need to enforce encroachment of vegetation onto the pavement. We’re denying people the right to move about freely if they’re pushing a pram or using mobility aids. This was raised by a resident in connection with a near neighbour and she’s absolutely right to raise.

    I thought it interesting that one resident felt political parties ought to be more capable of working together. It’s polarised. I don’t know how we can change that.

    Doorstep conversations are always interesting and provocative. I always come back with more challenges to the way we do things.


  • Couple of pieces of Casework

    Couple of pieces of Casework

    This week has brought a couple of pieces of casework that have not resulted in complete resolution (though have managed to get a couple of potholes fixed) but still worth the work in pursuing further.

    Potholes in Lostock

    There’s a lot of potholes in Norwich Road at its junction with Moss Vale Road. They’re not deep, but they are plentiful and the road looks a mess. Because they’re not deep, the holes do reach the criteria to be repaired. I’m arguing that the criteria should be tweaked to bring in sections of road where like Norwich Road, there’s been a systemic failure in a small section of road.

    Barfoot Bridge

    A resident noticed that the Bridgewater Canal aqueduct over the River Mersey was displaying visual signs of decay. I raised it with officers of the Bridgewater Canal and they’ve been to inspect.

    The bridge seems to have weathered the recent storms and high water level in the river, but it’s worth giving consideration to the longer term. They’re hoping to bring forward the next more extensive inspection and have engaged a consultant of arched structures to look at the longer term. We want it to survive in perpetuity, so it’s worth following up on this.

  • Scrutiny under the microscope

    Scrutiny under the microscope

    Big Agenda for Last Executive Meeting before Election

    Scrutiny looking to improve its Outcomes

    When the Cabinet System was adopted by Trafford, there was a clear expectation that Scrutiny would be an influential and effective means of holding the Executive Members of Cabinet to account for the important decisions whilst allowing the routine day to day work to proceed without hindrance.

    It’s not worked. The Centre for Governance and Scrutiny were invited to put Scrutiny under the microscope and have produced a quite damning report. Though it’s interesting that the Executive Papers describe the report as highlighting that the “Scrutiny function at Trafford is effective and that proposed changes are around process and procedure, rather than fundamental changes”.

    It’s worrying that the Executive takes the above view. There is very little in the report from the The Centre for Governance and Scrutiny that should give them comfort. I think this is summed up in the report itself in describing how the Council views Scrutiny:

    “Overall, the general view is that Scrutiny does a good job. However when asked more specifically about Scrutiny’s output and impact most Members and Officers found it difficult to point to consistent work that has made a real difference, or tracking recommendations that have been accepted and implemented.”

    My personal view is that ‘Scrutiny’ should be a multi-faceted function, ranging from neighbourhood accountability through some sort of regular forum right through to oversight of the Greater Manchester provision of diverse activities whether they be Health, Police, Transport or Waste, etc. It’s sad that this scrutiny function across GM, but particularly in Trafford is in such a poor state. I don’t think it’s the fault of scrutiny members. Officers and to a degree, the senior politicians, have got such a firm grip on strategy, it’s very difficult to get into those firewalled areas.

    It would be wrong to say that there are not good suggestions in this report but the very fact that accountability has so broken down, I’ve been dragged to the regrettable conclusion that we should follow Sheffield and go back to the Committee system.

    Moving to a Modern Committee System of Governance – Sheffield City Council

    Other Items on the Agenda

    Leisure Strategy Review: Mainly Sale Leisure Centre which gets some investment. Stretford earmarked for a report in July. The thinking is that because the Urmston Leisure Centre improvements are considered to have gone well, that’s the model to pursue for the other centres. My worry is that Stretford and Sale are much older centres and whether it’s better to ‘improve’ or ‘replace’ is still a moot point for me.

    Stretford Mall: Trafford hold the freehold – the lease that the joint venture of Bruntwood and Trafford has expires in 96 years. This is considered short for borrowing purposes and the report is about refreshing that lease.

    GMCA Brownfield Grant – Sale Magistrates Court: Approval to enter into a grant agreement with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

    WGIS Lifting Bridge: Approval of Agreement that provides limited contribution to running it.

    FUTURE GOVERNANCE ARRANGEMENTS FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE : This is the replacement for Trafford CCG with additional focus on Social Care. It’s very much early days in terms of the relationship to Greater Manchester but the report sets out the details of governance arrangements for the Trafford system including: Locality Board (One System Board), Trafford Provider Collaborative Board, Trafford Clinical and Practitioner Senate and other relevant groups, forums and boards.

    Future Commissioning Arrangements For Health and Social Care: See above, but somewhat more pressing.

    Care Act – Urgent Measures Decisions Framework: Shows the parlous position we’re in with regard to Social Care. The report provides a summary of the current position across the social care system and based on the current pressures and needs across the sector, seeks approval to keep the contingency framework in situ to enable the Council to reach speedy decisions around the implementation of agreed urgent measures if the situation reaches a critical point.

    Contract Procedure Rules : A regular renewal of the contract rules which operate across authorities attached to STAR. It includes a change to increase the threshold trigger for a one quote exercise for both Supplies, Services and Concessions and Works and Public Works Concessions from £4,999 to £9,999 which will make it easier to let out small contracts.

    Report on Complaints Determined by the Local Government & Social Care
    Ombudsman 2020/21

    Budget Monitoring 2021/22 – Period 10 (April 2021 to January 2022) – There are never any shocks at period 10. The council calendar dictates that we panic in autumn and chill out in winter. Pretty much on budget. That said, if we could recruit the people we need in social care, we’d be in a different position.

    Corporate Plan 2022/23 – Good and bad – children under 5 improving obesity rates. Adults with depression very worrying trends in Trafford. This dashboard is interesting but the corporate plan sits in its own bubble. The extent to which the corporate plan talks to everyday lives lived in Trafford is a another moot point.

    Executive Meeting 21/3 Page

  • Addressing the broken housing market

    Addressing the broken housing market

    I chaired a good meeting last night looking at social housing within Trafford. It was a meeting I was quite keen to have. I think a lot of us had picked up on a perfect storm affecting people hoping to set up home in Trafford. Inflated house prices, a dysfunctional private rented sector and a social housing sector growing ever more distant from their tenants and the greater community of Trafford are creating real hardships. We’re all too aware of how difficult it is to get good quality accommodation with a landlord committed to ensuring their properties remain decent places to live. High rents mean it’s very difficult to save sufficient deposits. No-fault evictions mean tenants are forced to leave properties at the whim of their landlord in order to put up rents or to sell at inflated prices. The cost of moving at such short notice further erodes any chances to save. It is a broken housing market.

    I wanted the meeting to look at the extent the Council can intervene. Frustratingly, the obvious solution of delivering old-fashioned council houses seems bedevilled with insurmountable obstacles. In order to provide council houses, the Council would have to borrow with the expectation of generating income from rent or sale. Right-to-buy automatic discounts of up to £85,000 make it impossible to recoup the investment. Trafford currently is such a high demand area, we’d never be able to build up sufficient stock to make it viable.

    We know Thatcher aspired to a home-owning democracy. However, inflated house prices partly generated by the private rented sector those over-generous discounts have crushed that aspiration and we have got huge disparities between the ages. We have a problem with few tools at our disposal to alleviate the impact.

    I think there’s a sense in Trafford that nationally, Labour can’t ignore this problem any longer. Labour is the only party that can hope to reset the housing market and it’s blindingly obvious that council housing has to be part of the mix. We need to shout about it more than we are doing. Economically it has a hugely detrimental effect on our cities.

    Meanwhile, we need to call out Housing Associations. They need to deliver on those core values that provide their charitable status. Clearly, the Mayor’s focus to now has been on planning where development can take place. It’s now time to shift the focus onto tenure and tackling exploitative rents.

    A good little meeting (40 mins) but with a real focus on tackling the inequities of housing. We haven’t got all the tools we need but at least we’ve brought it back to the fore of thinking.

  • June Update (Planning) Surfing on its way

    June Update (Planning) Surfing on its way

    Cricket Ground – new Red Rose stand incorporating hotel

    The Red Rose development at Lancashire Cricket Club was allowed at planning committee. Essentially this is reduced size hotel compared to a previous application. I’m not exactly bowled over by the plan. I’m quite proud of Old Trafford cricket ground and this does not seem up to their usual standard. Doesn’t seem to have attracted opposition from the cricket club’s membership, but I think they could have done better.

    Warwick Road Development

    Warwick Road Development Refused by the planning committee

    The development on Warwick Road was refused at the May planning committee. The grounds for refusal are listed as primarily that its site coverage, height, scale and massing, would have a dominating and adverse impact on the streetscene, fail to integrate with and complement neighbouring development, fail to make the best of the
    opportunity to improve the character and quality of the area.

    Discussion at the planning committee centred on the development providing no parking whatsoever. This seems to be a growing phenomenon and we saw something similar in Sale town centre this week. The feeling expressed is that there should be ‘some’ parking even if it’s not a space per apartment. My view on that is that it’s better to provide none than ‘not enough’, otherwise you’re creating an inbuilt tension within the development and with existing residents. Having said that, I do think that the massing in particular was inappropriate to the street and support the refusal.

    New application Surfing Centre on Barton Dock Road

    Surfing Trafford

    The proposed redevelopment seeks to transform a previously developed industrial site, now vacant, into a new regionally significant leisure and sports facility focused on providing surfing, skate, climbing and other associated activities including food & beverage.

    The site has already been cleared of previous light-industrial employment buildings in 2014, leaving only concrete hard-standing. More recently the area has been used as storage for containers. The proposal will also utilise a 1.3 ha site on the east-side of Park Way (A5081) that is currently underused residual land from the former rail line through Trafford Park, linked to the main site via a tunnel under the road.

    The proposal, known as ‘Modern Surf Manchester’, is centred around a large outdoor shallow lake known as the ‘Cove’ which creates artificial waves designed for optimum surfing conditions via a central mechanical ‘Pier’. The system is powered by technology provided and managed by ‘Wavegarden’ (WG), whose systems are widely regarded
    as the most realistic artificial surf technology to have been developed globally to date.

    The Modern Surf facility at TraffordCity will form part of a wider network of Wavegarden surf coves around the world, with four open presently and a further 30 planned including at least three in the UK.

    I love this proposal and hope it progresses. The car parking is actually provided in Gorse Hill Ward using the container base sidings on our side of Parkway. I’ve been in touch with the developer to plea for them to look at the route through Lostock Park to improve the juncture with St Modwen’s Way as a planning gain. There seems on the face of it to be a good symbiosis with Lostock Park’s renowned skate board facilities and it would be beneficial to improve links.

    Planning Application (Surf Centre) Link

    New application: Newsagent to become a Takeaway

    Newsagents opposite Gorse Hill Park on Talbot Road

    There’s an application to convert the newsagents on Talbot Road to a Takeaway.

    Planning Application (Takeaway) link

    New Application Warwick Rd South

    Current Site

    This is an application for 126 apartments on the corner facing Old Trafford Metrolink spot. We’re waiting to see what they’re proposing with their contribution to affordable housing but as it stands it looks as though this is for private sale and rental.

    It’s hard to see that this won’t be a highly saleable site. It’s a location calling for development for a long time and I’m pleased to see things beginning to move. I’ve actually been trying for a long time to have the Ayres Road corridor included in the Civic Quarter Masterplan and it’s a shame that we aren’t in a better place to determine shaping the plans and supporting placemaking. That said, the outline application already submitted looked attractive and they seem to be sticking with those aspects.

    link to planning application
  • Spring is the air – Councillor update

    Spring is the air – Councillor update

    A focus on litter and having a natter

    Days are getting longer and there’s a more upbeat feel to everything. We’ve had a couple of dry weekends and it’s great that so many are taking the opportunity to get outside. I’ve been out delivering party leaflets the last couple of Saturdays and I’ve made a resolution this year that I’ll only leaflet in company. We’ve led such solitary lives during lock-down, I’m just not prepared to waste the opportunity to chat to someone outside my bubble whilst I walk the streets. It may be less efficient but some things are more important and it’s a resolution I’m sticking to. It makes leafleting fun and I’ve found it thoroughly enjoyable.

    Lots of litter picking going on in Stretford and other places in Trafford. Partington in particular has been especially noteworthy. But it’s Stretford that’s my focus, and isn’t it fabulous how the baton has been picked up by the Stretford Litter Pickers. Hannah and the team seem to have really caught the mood. If you’ve not yet joined their Facebook group, you really should.

    This Saturday they’ll be working from Hawthorn Road on that strip of green-space below the Bridgewater Canal.

    Casework Update

    Continuing to work on the Gorse Street/Chester Road Alley. It’s regularly being fly-tipped by a takeway. Empty bulk containers of chicken are being put out in the alley with impunity. Pressing the council to take action. We’re on a promise for having restoration of lights which seem to have been switched off. The alley is very dark at night and it would improve things to have the council’s lights switched back on. We’ve also had some incidents of human defecation (the working assumption is late night delivery workers) and clearly lights would deter.

    The good news is that the last of the abandoned commercial bins has gone and at the same time there’s greater engagement of residents on both sides of the alley.

    Sadly, the bid for integrated community funding was unsuccessful. Disappointing as the work on the alley is a classic case of integration arising from common cause. An issue that brings people together is often a better vehicle for funding than existing groups looking for an issue.

    HGVs getting lost in residential areas. Progress being made in reinforcing a message that HGVs should not use a route from M60 junction 7 (A56 Stretford/Sale). We really could do with some signage deterring this and I’m pursuing it.

    Curzon Road parking issues. This revolves around the increased popularity of Lostock Park, particularly the skateboard section. Not making as much progress with this as I’d like. What we need is a proper audit/survey of parking rather than a catalogue listing of ‘H’ bar prices and dropped kerbs.

    Meetings

    School Governors Meetings – I’ve had so many this March – headteacher appraisal, governors update meetings on return to school, Core Group meeting, SEN teacher appointments, Headteacher appointment approval, School Financial Value Standard meetings.

    Vaccine progress meeting – more on this in a separate post to follow

    Planning meetings – too many applications for one meeting – had to adjourn to a continuation meeting

    Children and Health Scrutiny – really recommend the latest Children’s meeting on school places. It’s available on youtube.

    Labour Party AGM, Labour Group meeting – AGMs are always a bit turgid and it’s better when there’s contest. Slightly subdued this year.

    Mayor’s Challenge Fund Tranche 2 preview meeting. One of the projects shown to us was the Talbot Road/Greatstone Road junction. I’m delighted to say that I’ve been shown a scheme that will withstand actually being implemented. Fingers crossed that this can be delivered without interference.