News from Calderdale
… as it affects Hebden Bridge and the surrounding area
Dogs owners: Bag It, Tie It, Bin It!
Calderdale Council’s Safer, Cleaner, Greener teams are cracking down on dog fouling "hot spots" across Calderdale. They are working with community groups and members of the public to target problem areas and install signs and post-mounted dog fouling bins. The Council is providing 50,000 ‘poop and scoop’ dog fouling bags to council workers. The bags will then be handed out to members of the public by council staff who are out and about on the streets or in parks and open spaces. As bagged dog waste can also be disposed of in any public general litter bin, there will also be 80 new general waste bins installed throughout Calderdale to help promote disposal of litter and dog waste in a responsible way.
For more information please contact Calderdale Parks or phone 0845 245 6000.
Have a say on library opening hours
Calderdale Council is asking people to have a say on their local library opening hours to help improve the service.
The Council will be reviewing the opening hours of libraries across Calderdale based on a survey of people’s priorities. A questionnaire will be available to fill in from 9 June until 5 July at libraries, Customer First offices, leisure centres and other venues. The form will also be available online. The times of opening will be looked at to suit people’s needs to make best use of the current resources available to run Calderdale’s 22 libraries and two mobile libraries.
Keighley Road disruption for a month
Tuesday, 25 May 2010
Works to resurface the carriageway at Keighley Road, Hebden Bridge is due to start on 21 June.
The works will take place from Bridgegate to just above Midghole Road from 9am – 3pm on a road closure.
The works will take place Monday – Friday and is expected to take four weeks to complete.
The Council are encouraging people to take an alternative route or be prepared for delays around this area. Any side roads may be delayed by up to 20 minutes at most times and delays of up to two hours when the surface course is laid across the junction. Access for emergency vehicles will be maintained at all times.
There will be some disruption to residents and business whilst these works are ongoing but every effort will be made to keep this to a minimum.
When work is taking place on site it would be appreciated if vehicles could be parked somewhere else so the resurfacing can be completed as soon as possible.
If you require any further information please call Jonathan Cole, Engineering services on 0845 245 7000.
Additional money for road maintenance
Thursday, 1 April 2010
Calderdale Council is set to get an additional £329,000 for road maintenance. The extreme weather conditions this winter, the coldest in over 30 years, have led to an increase in the number of potholes and damage to roads across the country.
The Government has announced special funding to help local authorities to repair the damage caused. Calderdale’s share will be £329,000, and the Council is now drawing up plans to make the best use of the additional money to supplement its plans for road maintenance in the coming year.
The severe winter weather led to a 15% increase in the number of potholes on our roads. Calderdale Council carried out additional inspections to identify potholes and deployed additional teams to carry out repair work.
Members of the public are encouraged to report potholes on 0845 245 7000, and they will be repaired as a matter of urgency by a rapid response unit, often within a few hours of receiving a report.
Calderdale, like other authorities was badly hit by the national salt shortage over the winter period. The additional salt supplies which were ordered well before stocks ran low were not delivered, and salt supplies nationally were controlled and rationed through the Governments ‘salt cell’, resulting in a much reduced winter service provision both in Calderdale and across the country.
Parking enforcement services privatised
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
After "much consultation and research" Calderdale Council have decided that parking enforcement could be improved by employing national organisation, VINCI Park, who specialise in providing this type of service. Tim Swift of the Labour Group has told the Hebden Bridge Web, "The decision by the Conservative Council leadership to push ahead with the privatisation of parking enforcement is a breach of a promise and an admission of failure. When the Council took over responsibility for parking enforcement, the then portfolio holder promised full Council that this would be an in-house service. Now we appear to be being told that there is no choice but to out-source the service because the Council is not capable of running it effectively ourselves."
Reducing Council Tax Bills
Calderdale Council today claims to be the only Metropolitan Council in the country to have reduced Council Tax bills this year.
New Government figures published today confirm that Calderdale residents’ Council Tax bills are now below the national average.
The Council Tax bill for a household living in a band D property and not qualifying for any rebate is now £1226.90 . . . £12.00 less than last year’s bill.
Calderdale Council’s Leader, Cllr Stephen Baines, says the new figures confirm the Council’s commitment to investing in priority services, while providing excellent value for money.
“Calderdale Council is leading the way as the only metropolitan authority in the country to have reduced its council tax bills this year.
“We have worked hard to identify savings, while at the same time increasing investment in important front line services, such as adult social care and children’s social services . . . areas where the money is most needed.
“Calderdale Council is transforming the way it works to give its residents high quality services, while providing excellent value,” he said.
Check your Council tax band for free
Tuesday, 9 March 2010
Calderdale Council says it costs nothing for people to find out whether their homes are in the wrong council tax band.
The advice follows a number of enquiries to the Council from residents who say they have been approached by one of several companies offering their services, at a fee to find out whether or not their homes are in the wrong band.
But Pete Smith, Calderdale’s Head of Finance, says there’s no reason why people can’t check on their valuation band for free.
"All people need to do is to look on the Valuation Office Agency website.
"The site has direct links to the Council Tax List and answers to many frequently asked questions about Council Tax and the role of the Agency.
"The local Valuation Office Agency can be contacted at 60 Crown Street, Halifax, HX1 1HY. Tel 01422 307000."
Further advice can also be obtained from the Council’s Council Tax Section at Princess Buildings, Halifax, telephone 0845 245 8000.
Empty homes issue to be addressed
Monday, 8 March 2010
Members of Calderdale Cabinet are to discuss how best to tackle the number of empty homes in the borough.
They will discuss the updating of the Council’s Empty Property Strategy to take into account changes in legislation, the economy and environment when they meet on Monday (March 15).
Empty homes affect all areas of Calderdale; at the end of 2009 there were 3310 homes empty for over 6 months.
The strategy has one key aim: to reduce the number of long term empty homes in Calderdale. The Council aims to prevent homes from becoming empty by encouraging landlords and owners to seek assistance from the Authority in a variety of ways.
Calderdale Council’s Portfolio Holder for Economy and the Environment, Amanda Byrne says housing is needed throughout Calderdale, particularly for families with children.
“We need to ensure that as much housing stock is available as possible. We can do this by working with our partners in other agencies and the private housing sector to try to prevent properties becoming empty but, where they do, acting quickly to ensure that new tenants are able to move in as quickly as possible.
“It’s important that the owners of empty properties are aware of the range of help available to bring their properties back into use.
“The Empty Homes Strategy will help agencies and landlords to work together to reduce the number of empty homes across the borough.”