News, Features and forthcoming Events
SAINSBURY'S LOCAL: Plans now submitted. Yesterday evening, Hebden Royd Town Council voted to reject the plans. More info about the process for commenting on the application, and to see docs associated with the plans. 30 Jan
10th anniversary of Car Club: Hour Car, is going from strength to strength with 65 members and 5 cars, including an electric vehicle. Read more. 29 Jan
Medical Records - concerns continue to be expressed on the HebWeb Forum about the privatisation of doctor-patient confidentiality.
Calderdale Plan: Land for development or protection over the next 15 years. You are invited to have your say at a series of public meetings. Read more
Above: outside Something Sweet, the sweetshop in Bridge Gate. The HebWeb has been informed that part owner Bob Leedham has been killed in a motoring accident while holidaying in Thailand. See his Facebook page. (27 Jan)
Hole in the Wall for sale again. Following the recent successful campaign against closing the cobbled route outside this former pub, the owners have put it on the market for £390,000 - see details
Message in a bottle - from Hebden Bridge. 23 years after Zoe Lemon, then 10 and living in Hebden Bridge, dropped a bottle with message into the sea, it has been found by a Dutch couple in Zealand. Read more (21 Jan)
Tour de France 100 day Cultural Festival: Local communities are encouraged to be part of the Festival. See this HebWeb news item for more info and follow our Tour de France feature page. (16 Jan)
Calderdale plans Council Tax freeze: The budget proposals for the next three financial years will be discussed at a public meeting at Hebden Bridge Town Hall in early February. Read more (15 Jan)
2014 Parade: This year's Handmade Parade will take place on 8 June with organisers hoping to build on the success of last year's record-breaking event. Read more. (14 Jan)
Eastwood Recycling Centre to reopen next week - After major refurbishment, Calderdale and SITA have announced that the Eastwood Recycling Centre will reopen on 20 January 2014.
The Book Case brings Alexander McCall Smith to Hebden Bridge: one of the world's most prolific authors, Alexander McCall Smith is probably best known for the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. Read more (13 Jan)
Searching for hedgehogs: student Betony Atkinson is conducting a survey on hedgehog distribution in Calderdale and needs your help in reporting sightings. Read more. (10 Jan)
Lives Remembered - Jake Gomilny, long-time Hebden Bridge resident known by many as 'The Mad Russian', has died aged 66. Read this obituary by his daughter, Jessie Levene (9 Jan)
Cobbles and Packhorse Route Saved as Hebden Royd Town Council voted unanimously this evening to reject plans to close the cobbled area outside the Hole in the Wall. HebWeb report (8 Jan)
Packhorse route closure: Open Spaces Society, Britain's oldest national conservation body, objects to closure of cobbled highway in Hebden Bridge. See news item and forum thread.
HebWeb Review of 2013 - a year when it was announced that the Tour de France will pass through our town, co-ops were formed to run the Fox and Goose and Valley Organics, the Bernard Ingham column in the local paper was ended by popular protest, Burlesque was banned, a swimming pool promised, the Arts excelled yet again and Hebden Bridge was still the "coolest place to live." Read more
Night of the Reckless Drunk - The Mail Online is reporting that a Calderdale ad aimed at deterring binge drinking has provoked anger among rape campaigners, who say it implies sex attack victims are to blame for their ordeal. (31 Dec)
Le Tour de France - Hebden Bridge residents have one last chance to sign up to volunteer at the Tour de France when it comes to England next July. Read more
Carols in the Square
Fox and Goose - Pub co-op buy-out deal gets green light. A purchase offer to buy the Fox and Goose pub for the benefit of the community has now been formally accepted. Read more
Packhorse route and Hole in the Wall - proposal to close part of the historic packhorse route. See Forum thread
Poltergeist gig at Trades cancelled. Read more (18 Dec)
Shaggy Dog Storytellers this Friday (20th). See What's On
Calderdale A&E Closure threat: Parliamentary adjournment debate initiated by Halifax MP Linda Riordan and joined by Calder Valley MP Craig Whittaker and Jane Ellison for the Government. (13 Dec)
Hebden Royd Town Council - minutes of meetings covering the past few months now online.
The supermarket debates - see HebWeb Forum
Bill Rofe's latest exhibition called 'Pennine Industrial landscapes and and local plants'. Read more
Valley Organics Workers Co-op Christmas Sale - See Small Ads
"Hebden Bridge: a hippie idyll scarred by heroin" - an article by local writer and journalist Ben Myers is being prominently flagged on the home page of the New Statesman today. Familiar themes which have been extensively discussed by HebWeb Forum correspondents over the years. (8 Dec)
Tesco's One Stop: Earlier shop sign revealed as the Spar prepares to become a Tesco's One Shop. See FaceBook group
The former Mytholm Works: Calderdale Planning Committee has approved plans for a supermarket and hotel. See Forum thread
The King's Troupe from Hebden Bridge to perform Troilus and Cressida as part of the RSC's Open Stages project. Read more (3 Dec)
Josh Fenton-Glynn talks with Andy Burnham, Shadow Health Secretary, about the future of Halifax A&E, the threat of £25 million being cut from Calderdale's NHS budget and a threat to emergency vehicles. Read more. (30 Nov)
Don't close A&E - Liberal Democrats add their voice to ensure continued, safe and appropriate access to 24-hour urgent and emergency care within Calderdale. Read more. (28 Nov)
Lamplighter Festival: a shining success - latest news with links to galleries and YouTube. Photo above: Ian Hodgson. A magical and mystical evening based around the myth of the Lamplighter took place Saturday (23rd) in Todmorden. More info and links
Labour to raise A&E closure in Council: a recent NHS report calling for a dramatic reduction in the number of A&E departments has sparked fears that Calderdale A&E could be one of those at risk. Read more (19 Nov)
Blackshaw Head community turbine starts bringing in the money. Apart from paying interest to 65 shareholders PCP expects to be able to give around £80,000 to community projects over the next 15-20 years. Read more (18 Nov)
Recycling: Calderdale No 1 in Yorkshire and in Top 10 for England. Calderdale Council has leapt to the top of the charts for household waste recycling for 2012/13. Read more (15 Nov)
The HebWeb was very sad to learn of the death of writer, poet and artist Ian Emberson aged 77. Ian was a great supporter of local artists, writers and musicians. (14 Nov)
Small Ads: "Ad posted Monday (11th Nov), lease to be signed Saturday and tenant moving in Sunday. Thanks HebWeb."
Martin Parr photos: this slideshow from the BBC features some of Martin Parr's iconic photos from the Hebden Bridge area, taken in the 1970s. This former HB resident, now a world famous photographer, also narrates.
Le Tour de France - new HebWeb section with links and latest information concerning next year's historic event. This page will be updated and developed as new info comes in. Update: public meeting in Wadsworth. Read more
Maxine Peake concert raised £760 for Calder Valley Morning Star Supporters' Group which meets at the Trades Club.
Hebden Bridge people make money do good. The community spirit, the recent raft of community share issues, local green credentials and the HebWeb are cited in a new report on ethical investment published this week. See HebWeb news item
Burlesque row leads to Picture House Bookings Policy. The new policy was developed by councillors not previously involved with the Picture House and members of the Friends of the Picture House Read more
Guardian Northerner: Martin Parr captured a simpler Hebden Bridge. "And he lived in my house". Rachel Pickering wonders what the great photographer would have made of the West Yorkshire town today, after discovering they were linked by her leaky kitchen tap. Read more.
Tale of a Tenner was produced to promote the 'Totally Locally' shop local campaign, showing that if you spend £10 in a shop in Hebden Bridge the amount of money that goes back into the local economy could be over £50!
The Miners' Strike: 30 Years On Public meeting with speakers at the Trades Club in March. For 12 months of 1984-1985, there were ferocious battles and billions of pounds were spent to crush the miners' militancy. The people of Hebden Bridge gave generously. Read more
CROWS - Fund Raising Benefit with Owter Zeds and Granny's Attic. Read more
Local History Talk: David Cant spoke about his many years studying 17th century fine houses of the Calder Valley and using documentary evidence to uncover stories of craftsmen who worked to design and construct them. Read more. (27 Jan)
Street Choirs Festival returns to Hebden Bridge. Hosted by Calder Valley Voices who are looking for people to host a singer or two for the two nights. Read more (23 Jan)
Joseph Rowntree research: Support, help and dependency in Hebden Bridge. This report is based on findings from the first phase of a two-year research project in Hebden Bridge. Read more (22 Jan)
Arts Festival Shorts: Budding playwrights are invited to submit their plays for the fourth season of the Hebden Bridge Shorts. Read more (19 Jan)
Todmorden Curve: delays to new services in spite of MP's assurances. Read more
Newly resurfaced cycle/walking track between Mytholmroyd Station and Brierley. No more ruts, pot holes or muddy puddles
Buses could be more expensive than taxies. See discussion on HebWeb Forum
Life is Beautiful: A special screening at the Picture House for Holocaust Memorial Day. Read more. (16 Jan)
Woman's Hour: Chris Green, director of the Mytholmroyd based White Ribbon Campaign discusses men and violence, and feminism, during the first few minutes of this R4 programme (14 Jan)
Living Wage: Hebden Royd Town Council has become a Living Wage Employer. Read more. (14 Jan)
Hebden Bridge Piano Festival Launch Party: The Piano Festival is holding its 2014 programme launch party at the Town Hall on Saturday January 25th. Read more. (13 Jan)
Old Gate: concern continues about the demolition of buildings on Old Gate, following a recent landslip. See discussion. And see photo
Save our Shops protest outside the Town Hall this evening. Hebden Royd Town Council are to urge Sainsburys to call a public meeting if they want to build a supermarket in Hebden Bridge. HebWeb report. (8 Jan)
Marie Curie Cancer Care is looking for local people to become Volunteer Box Collectors and help to gather in our collecting tins from the Hebden Bridge area. Read more (8 Jan)
Good news for walkers: Hebden Bridge Walkers Action has received funding from West Yorkshire Metro to promote the 901 bus to Huddersfield as a bus for walking. Read more
Morning Star Benefit at the Trades raises £800
Salem Mill Drop-in Centre will help unemployed and those on low income, and will open its doors in the New Year. Read more (3 Jan)
Much of the post-Christmas BBC drama, Death Comes to Pemberley was filmed in Hardcastle Crags. (See HebWeb report from August)
Alice in Wonderland Christmas show - see photos from the show, set in 19th century Calderdale with Alice as a millworker's daughter More info (20 Dec)
Capturing the fabric of our area: Residents and crafters from across the South Pennines have created a stunning piece of art which captures the fabric of the area, and is now on view at the Visitors' Centre. Read more (19 Dec)
Postcard from Palestine 13 - Another Day with Ta'ayush. Hebden Bridge's Ron Taylor, one of an international group of supporters. Read more about settlers' attempts to prevent Palestinians using their own land (17 Dec)
Sex offender on the run: Kirklees police are looking for Robert Hind (46) who used to live in Hebden Bridge. Update: Man charged with murder
Ultra runner Andy Mouncey dropped into Riverside Junior School to help pupils set new personal goals. (12 Dec)
Dog Walkers: Pick up or pay up - A Calderdale resident has been ordered by the Court to pay £1,050 for not cleaning up after his dog in one of the borough's parks. (11 Dec)
NUJ Greenpeace Public Meeting report - Steve Morgan and Paul Morozzo gave a talk on 'Reporting Environmental Protest' - Read more
Northlight Art Studios: Spring Term of Creative courses and new developments at Northlight Art Education. Read more (9 Dec)
Local MP criticises schools, blaming Labour - see the HebWeb Craig Whittaker feature
Walking the Moors - a new hand-drawn guide from Chris Goddard; a superb work with wonderfully drawn sketches, buildings, rocks and maps. Chris has been meticulous in his research and has spent six years preparing this remarkable book. Read more. (28 Nov)
Sowerby Bridge Arts Fesitval from 7-14th December; exhibitions, music, workshops, competitions, film, local history, theatre and spoken word. Read more
White Ribbon Day Monday 25 November – the international day for the elimination of violence against women. Calderdale gives its backing to this Mytholmroyd based campaign. Read more
Catering Supervisor(s) vacancy at Hebden Bridge Town Hall. More info, spec and application form. (21 Nov)
20 mph throughout Calderdale? Residents in Calderdale are being asked what they think about Council plans to introduce 20mph limits in residential areas across the borough. Read More (21 Nov)
Riverside parents flock to Chagall show. Each of the school's six classes produced original works based on Chagall's distinctive style, investigating different curriculum areas. Read more (14 Nov)
Riverside Junior School has a limited number of craft and produce stalls available at its annual Winter Fair on Saturday 30 November. See What's on for more info
Tour de France Education Pack for teachers, community leaders and parents of young people aged 7 to 14. Read more (14 Nov)
Vegetation Volunteers are being sought by Calderdale Council and the Environment Agency to help keep the River Calder at Mytholmroyd clear of vegetation. More info (11 Nov)
Holme Tunnel to close for 4 months. A bus service will replace trains between Hebden Bridge and Burnley. See BBC report. (9 Nov)
Craig Whittaker: as energy bills rise, the taxpayer contributes towards MPs' bills. Our MP received £705 towards his bill, on top of a salary of over £66k - see Telegraph article and more HebWeb coverage of Craig Whittaker
New Hebden Royd councillors: At the meeting of the full council of the Town Council on 23rd October, the council co-opted two local people on to the council. More info. (29 Oct)
Zero carbon green house blocked by Calderdale: the house is a well designed, sustainable house, completely covered in thick earth and vegetation making it almost invisible and blending into its surroundings. More info (28 Oct)
Lindsay Rimer murder: former Hebden Bridge methodist minister, Reverend Graham Kent, has called for an investigation into any possible links with Jimmy Saville who regularly stayed in Cragg Vale at the time of her murder in November 1994. See Mail Online article. Also HebWeb Forum and HebWeb feature (20 Oct)
Digital Radio coverage set to improve: Hebden Bridge and the Calder Valley are included as places set to benefit from new DAB transmitters to be created over the next 2 years. See Radio Today report
Hebden Bridge Police Station building: Stephen Curry of the HB Community Association has told the HebWeb that Calderdale have listed the Police Station as an "Asset of Community Value" - when the Police put the building back on the market there'll be a six week moratorium to allow community groups to make a bid.
Calderdale consider increasing taxes on empty houses. Proposals include full council tax plus 50% empty homes premium, incentives for owners bringing homes back into use and council tax relief for those who have to move out because of flooding. Read more. (1 Oct)
Eastwood Recycling Centre closure extends to five months. Calderdale and SITA apologise; no local alternative has been made available. Read more
Hebden Bridge: more plaudits - Last year's Valley of Lights won APSE's best community and neighbourhood initiative, and the Old Gate pub restaurant is Yorkshire Post's "Pub of the Week".
CYCLING UP THE BUTTRESS: the hardest and steepest 350 metre climb out of Hebden Bridge took place Saturday 7th September. More photos and News item. And now the YouTube video
Syria Vigil: Thurs. 29th Aug from 12 to 2.
Photo: HebWeb
Hebden Bridge Signal Box is one of 26 historic railway signal boxes across the country to get listed status. See Guardian report
Arts Festival Board thanks the HebWeb and Festival volunteers, and invites people to influence next year's festival by filling their questionnaire. More info (21 July)
Britain's favourite market town? Hebden Bridge has been shortlisted in the 'Britain's favourite market town' category in the BBC Countryfile Magazine Awards 2013. Read more (3 Sept)
Josh Fenton-Glynn was selected on Saturday 24 June to represent Labour and fight Craig Whittaker at the next General Election. About Josh and Josh's answer's to HebWeb questions.
Small ads: Received Sat 18th - "I've had an overwhelming response and the property is now let"
Hour Car - Community owned car club. Cars in Hebden, Mytholmroyd and Todmorden. Our fleet includes an electric car. See Listings
ABC Coaching & Counselling Services
Counselling from Dr Jim Byrne and coaching from Renata Taylor-Byrne. See Listings
HebWeb Listing a-z
Canal Narrowboat holidays - Shire Cruisers boating holiday. Explore the Pennine waterways, canals and rivers in a narrow boat. See Listings
HebWeb Listing a-z
Alison Grant Architects Ltd. Experienced local architect skilled in renovations, conversions and extensions, including work to traditional and Listed buildings. See Listings
MORE PHOTOS OF BIGGEST HANDMADE PARADE ever
Yorkshire Life: 10 reasons to love Hebden Bridge
"Unbelievable result Hebweb. So many enquiries in response to the small ad on your site and now have lovely new tenants. What a success - Thank you Hebweb." Message received 6 May.
Rachel Lucie Jewellery Designs - I'm a local jewellery designer-maker with several collections of silver, pearl and gemstone jewellery for all occasions. See Listings
HebWeb Listing a-z
Hebden Bridge Acupuncture Centre is a relaxing, quiet and safe therapeutic space offering Traditional Acupuncture which takes into account your unique situation and whole being. See Listings
Bernard Ingham column ended: campaigners have learned that Bernard Ingham has been told his longrunning column in the HB Times has ended. They had been calling on Ingham to apologise for what he said about Hillsborough. Read more
Small Ads - "I am very pleased to say the response was terrific and both properties are now let." (Less than a week)
Small Ads - "We placed a job ad on the Hebweb recently, intending to keep it there for 2 weeks, but we had to take it down after 3 days due to the huge response generated"
Five hundred words on Hebden Bridge - "Everything in the house was heated by the fire, all the old terraced houses used coal for heat and cooking back then, the valley had a serious smog problem." Read more from Dave Bridges' 500 words.
Jason Elliott's 500 Faces of Hebden Bridge
Small Ads - I just wanted to let you know that through my small ad on your site I found my ideal new home, meeting all my requirements. Thank you very much for such a great resource
Guardian Northerner: Hebden Bridge the UK's coolest place? The Yorkshire Paradise has won its fourth accolade in a decade. Born, brought up and living here, Rachel Pickering is loyal, but has one or two cautionary thoughts. (25 March)
HebWeb archive: quickly view HebWeb home pages of the past few years.
The Trades Club thanks the HebWeb: "The Trades has had a great year with more than 30 sell-out gigs and a huge part of that is the regular updates we get on Hebweb" Read more.
Small ads: "We've successfully rented our house. Thanks for an excellent service - I'll heartily recommend Hebweb, as our house was previously listed through an estate agent who didn't manage to get us a tenant in 3 months - through Hebweb we had 4 prospective tenants within a week." (4 Jan)
Hebden Bridge and its Co-op featured in this Radio Four programme - about 11 minutes in
TOUR DE FRANCE: on Sunday 6 July 2014, the eyes of the world will be on Hebden Bridge when the 200 competitors of the Tour de France cycles through our town, and Cragg Vale's famous five-and-a-half mile incline, the longest in England. Read more
More from Hebden Bridge Web
- Accommodation - from bed and breakfast to self catering, a range of places to stay in our area
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- Contact info
- Discussion Forum - hundreds of messages every year on matters of concern to those who live in Hebden Bridge and the surrounding hills, villages and valleys
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- Events: a selection of local events
- Features
- Five hundred words on Hebden Bridge - one of the 500 years of the Hebden pack horse bridge projects
- Green Pages
- Hebden Bridge info - some basic information about Hebden Bridge with links to some features which have been written about our town.
- Hebden Bridge 500 - celebrating 500 years of the bridge
- History pages - links to local history websites, together with a selection of articles remembering times past.
- Lives Remembered - thoughts and comments on the death of a selection of local people
- Mailing list
- Maps - several maps of the town and area, including Google maps.
- Neighbours/twins - links to websites of surrounding towns and our twin towns in France and Germany
- News: Dozens of news items are posted every month; many are unique to Hebden Bridge Web, coming from our growing number of correspondents. Others may also be covered elsewhere but can be found on HebWeb many days earlier.
- News Highlights of 2012
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- Planning Watch - details of controversial developments are posted here.
- Radio and video samples relating to our area
- Search HebWeb - search the thousands of news, features and discusssion on the entire Hebden Bridge Web in seconds.
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- Websites List - by category: listings of a large selection of Hebden Bridge websites
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