Agenda and minutes

Zoe Bremer

Councillor Brian Grocock – Other Council Business

David Hunt

Ken Marsden

Roger Sexton

Hillary Yates

Last meeting held on 18 October 2017

Subject to the following changes being made, the minutes of the last meeting held on 18 October 2017 were agreed as a correct record:

·  Liz Cordle was present at the meeting

·  Councillor Longford had given her apologies

Janine Tanner, Nottingham History Group – Honour our Heritage

Janine Tanner from Honour of Heritage, Nottingham History Group, gave a verbal overview of the history of Long Stairs and proposals to carry out a litter and weed removal, using volunteers from her Group:

(a)  Long Stairs, for those who are unfamiliar with it, is a disused ancient thoroughfare, running from Malin Hill, and descends down the cliff face towards what was Red Lion Street, in Narrow Marsh (now Cliff Road). More than 1000 years old, Long Stairs most probably started as a covered walkway, leading from the low marshes along the Leen to the summit of the cliff, 90 feet above it, upon which stood the primitive settlement that has developed into the city of Nottingham;

(b)  the rise of Long Stairs is right to left, so that an enemy ascending the steps would have been unable to use his shield to protect himself from the defenders stationed at the top of the cliff.  A similar covered passage is still

partly visible in the Castle cliff, and as its roof has broken down in one or two places, it is easy to see how Long Stairs gradually became open to the elements. The history of Long Stairs was not always a good one, mostly notorious for murders and crimes.  One of the more pleasant records for it was that in 1531, Edward Chamberlayne paid 2s 5d for a ‘little house and pinfold’ on Long Stairs, possibly including use as a pig sty;

(c)  about halfway up Long Stairs, there were half a dozen fig trees, which clung to the sour soil of the cliff side, and despite the deplorable atmosphere and conditions of the time, managed each year to bear leaves and fruit. The demolition of the slum housing in the marsh area in 1933, and subsequent planning of a residential housing estate by the corporation (which included houses being built in front of Long Stairs) led to the closure of this ancient walkway. It is inaccessible at the bottom and is gated at the top and almost completely hidden from view, due to vegetation. The path is just as old, if not older, than the rest of the historic Lace Market area;

(d)  a group of volunteers has been arranged, who will clear the vegetation and litter, which would  allow people to visit and visit the top Long Stairs. there are no plans to open it up as a through route due to condition of the steps and safety of users;

(e)  until its closure, it was most likely one of the oldest pedestrian routes in Nottingham. Part of the stairs / land is owned by Nottingham City Council and managed by Nottingham City Homes. The occupiers of the adjoining building, Kings Court, hold the keys to the gate on Malin Hill and will open the gate for the volunteers;

There followed questions and comments from the Forum, and further information from Janine:

(f)  local Councillors and Neighbourhood Development Officers have not yet been contacted, whilst the ownership  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

Presentation by the HS2 Stakeholder Engagement Team

Benita Wishart, Senior Engagement Advisor, Sol Pearch, Engagement Advisor, and Neil Coleman, Transport Assessment Manager, from High Speed Two, presented information on parts of the proposed high speed rail link which will cover Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire:

(a)  in July 2017, the preferred route for phase 2b was announced, with consultations taking place in 2013 and 2016;

(b)  during the next phase, affected parties will have the right to petition. Then the proposals will be subject to parliamentary approval and Royal Assent, and construction can start in 2023, ready for operation in 2033;

(c)  the work taking place from now until 2019 is 4 fold, and covers design and construction planning, environmental impact assessments, engagement and consultation, and surveys;

(d)  HS2 has been planned in 3 parts. Phase 1 is from London to Birmingham and already has parliamentary approval. Phase 2a is from Birmingham to Crewe, and is going to Select Committee imminently. The final phase is from Crew to Manchester and Birmingham to Leeds with a route through Sheffield;

(e)  the impact on highways is being assessed, including the impact on pedestrians, cyclists, horse riders etc. The survey was started on the August bank holiday to gather as many views from path users as possible. Suggestions for any other key routes to be surveyed are welcome, and further surveys will be conducted in the spring;

(f)  it is hoped that Royal Assent will be given in 2022, when it will become the Phase 2b Act. That will essentially give power to alter the rights of way network, including stopping up, diversions and creating new routes. A guidance note will be available setting out the impact on rights of way;

(g)  the East Midlands hub will be located in Toton. Planners are looking very closely at vehicle access, public transport and access on foot and cycle to the station. East Midlands’ councils are anticipating a lot of growth near the station;

(h)  there will be areas of this increased growth that HS2 is responsible for, and other areas that local councils will be responsible for. There are ongoing meetings, particularly with councils near to the Toton station, covering subjects such as car access into the station and a new junction to cater for the increased volume of traffic. HS2 is working closely with councils to see who provides what.

There were a number of questions and comments from the Forum, and further information was provided:

(i)  there had previously been a commitment to an HS2 cycleway, and a great deal of information was collected towards this aim. The commitment was dropped, but the information could well prove useful for plugging gaps in the existing cycle network. This was also raised at the Nottinghamshire Local Access Forum. The representatives from HS2 will look into who has that information;

(j)  any proposed divergences of existing paths will be discussed with forums to see if they can be improved;

(k)  each bridge over the proposed route will be assessed to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

Various updates were provided on the Walks Sub Group.

(a)  Margaret Knowles advised that the launch of the Clifton walk went well, with around 20-30 attendees. Posters on lampposts proved to be a good advertisement method, which have now been removed. A number of local people joined in, including the local Women’s Institute group. A note will be added to leaflets for future walks advising that those under 16 must be accompanied by an appropriate adult, as a small number of unaccompanied younger people joined the walk;

(b)  Katie France advised that if anyone else wishes to join the walks sub-group, they should contact her (katie.s.france@outlook.com) and that upcoming walks in Bestwood and Sherwood are nearing completion;

(c)  John Lee advised that the “Personal Travel Plan Active 10” programme is being launched this spring, with information packs going out to around 9,000 households, which will include information on the LAF walks and the Parks and Open Spaces walks. As part of the programmes, there is the possibility to have more LAF walk leaflets printed, free of charge. Budgets are still being agreed for next year’s Local Transport Plan settlement, so no promises can be made on a contribution to future leaflets from the Rights of Way budget, though the leaflets will still be available on the website;

(d)  Councillor Sally Longford advised that local Councillors can be approached regarding funding for leaflets for future walks if there is no budget available, as there are alternative funding streams available for small local projects such as these.

RESOLVED to note the update.

John Lee and Margaret Knowles provided an update on the Planning Sub Group:

(a)  a training session has been arranged for Monday 15 January, with 10 delegates. A colleague from the Highway Development Management team will be attending and will introduce a number of key documents to consider when responding to planning consultations and a summary of basic terms and definitions;

(b)  no further comments were provided by the sub group on the consultation for the Local Plan part 2, as there were no significant changes. The next steps involve an examination process. If it follows the standard format, this will be an open public examination and the sub group would have the opportunity to speak;

(c)  there have been over 1,000 responses to the proposed quarry at Barton in Fabis.

RESOLVED to note the update.

Nick Hynes and Chris Thompson provided an update on the Definitive Map sub group:

(a)   4 people attended the training in November, where a refreshers guide was given on the Definitive Map, its statutory purpose and a councils duty;

(b)   research will be focused to support an application to add Bridlesmith Walk to the Definitive Map;

(c)  a visit is planned to the Nottinghamshire Archives, which anyone is welcome to join, along with a trip to Bromley House library to view some of the maps there. If anyone is interested in joining, please contact Nick Hynes (ouraccount@phonecoop.coop) or  Chris Thompson (nottsrow15@outlook.com).

RESOLVED to note the update.

There isn’t currently a leader for the Local Neighbourhoods and Environment sub group. Various relevant updates were provided:

(a)  Ruth Thurgood suggested that an LAF litter pick might be a good opportunity not only to clean an area, but also to publicise the LAF and advertise why the Forum exists, type of work etc. Councillors and Forum members could get involved and help clear litter, and the Nottingham Post could be approached to cover the event;

(b)  John Lee suggested that Sneinton Greenway might be a good place for a litter pick, and advised that activities like this have proved popular before. John also offered to investigate whether any of the collected litter (such as plastics) could be separated for recycling;

(c)  it was also suggested that the litter from this activity could be itemised, which may add additional interest to the story;

(d)  the first weekend in March is the Keep Britain Tidy weekend, it was suggested that this activity could tie-in and possibly take place then;

(e)  it was agreed that “Living Streets” will be dropped from the sub group name, as this is a specific term and the sub group has a wider remit.

RESOLVED to note the update.

Members to indicate preferences

No discussion took place on this agenda item.

John Lee

John Lee provided an update on several improvements that have been made to public rights of way:

(a)  improvements to the bridleway surface and infrastructure between Wilford Village and Clifton Bridge (Fairham Brook). The road layout at the junction of Clifton Lane and Main Road is not ideal for cyclists so these improvements provide a welcome “bypass”;

(b)  comprehensive direction and destination signage has been installed from Wilford Village to Clifton and the boundary with Barton in Fabis;

(c)  the next phase for the Wilford section is to create a dedicated route running through the Car Park, between the ramp from Clifton Lane towards Clifton bridge. The Car Park is badly pot holed so a dedicated route will help focus resources to provide a safe, attractive link;

(d)  at Bird Cage Walk, off Lenton Lane, vegetation had been encroaching from neighbouring private land for some time, leaving the path quite dark with a tunnel effect. The vegetation has now been cut back, and the path is a lot brighter, safer and attractive to use;

(e)  resurfacing work with stone and a simple drainage channel into the adjoining lake has been completed on the bridleway below Colwick Hall;

(f)  access improvements have been completed on a footpath in Bulwell, making the timber steps more attractive and safer to use;

(g)  to give the forum an understanding on some other access issues, photographs showing a “steel crossover plate” which are used to cover damage to the surface caused by heavy plant and HGV’s during a development. Until addressed, the plate was not level on the ground and would have been a safety issue for path users;

(h)  access to the bridleway near the “Looking Good” building at Bell Lane Wilford has now been resurfaced, the entrance now looks much more attractive;

(i)  a section of bridleway which had become muddy and waterlogged has been scraped, drained and back filled with crushed stone. Users are very happy with the improvements;

(j)  a rain eroded crushed stone path (due to being on an incline) has been upgraded to tarmac;

(k)  a motorcycle “A- frame” barrier has been replaced with a set of timber chicane barriers on a well-used cycle route between Silverdale and Clifton. These still deter motorcyclists but are more wheelchair and mobility scooter friendly;

(l)  consultation has started on the proposal to remove a number of A-frames from a bridleway along the River Leen in Bulwell (the “Birds Estate”);

(m)  a Forum member queried the state of a cycle path on the pavement (part of the Big Track) running above the river, opposite B&Q. The route has some worn markings, and it is now difficult to tell which side should be used by cyclists and which by pedestrians. John Lee will raise this with the council’s highway maintenance team. 

RESOLVED to thank John Lee for the presentation, and note its contents.

Hugh McClintock and John Rhodes

Hugh McClintock and John Rhodes presented an update on the proposed foot and cycle bridge between Lady Bay and Trent Lane:

(a)  this is a long term project, and will take a lot of time;

(b)  a meeting took place in August 2017, which resulted in a letter of support (including linking to wider development plans for the area) from Councillor Jon Collins, leader of Nottingham City Council. The letter made clear that there would be no financial support from the Council, but will work closely to help the project secure funding from elsewhere;

(c)  until the location of the proposed bridge is finalised, full costings and a feasibility study cannot go ahead;

(d)  the government has announced a fund available to improve connectivity within cities. The project group has written to Chris Leslie and an encouraging response has been received, he wishes to meet on the proposed site, and then hopefully he will use his influence within parliament to help secure funding towards Nottingham. The difficulty is that Nottingham already has very good transport links, so it is often a struggle to get funding such as this.

RESOLVED to thank Hugh McClintock and John Rhodes for the update and note the contents.

The Health Team will be invited to the next meeting.

A meeting is taking place in the next few weeks regarding the emerging system of local cycling and walking infrastructure plans, with local stakeholders agreeing on improvements they want to see over the next 30 years. There will be an opportunity for the LAF to be involved.

John Lee will investigate whether anyone from D2N2 will come to a future meeting, as well as John Bann from the Councils Road Space Transformation Team.

The Forum extended a welcome to new member, Laura Marshall.

There are parking issues near to some tram car parks, thanks to its success. If Forum members spot any specific examples of these issues, they should forward to Community Protection (cpservicecentre@nottinghamcity.gov.uk), or direct to John Lee (john.lee@nottinghamcity.gov.uk). John reminded members about the presentation last year from Steve Stott (Anti-Social Behaviour Manager, Nottingham City Council) and the powers and limitations of the Community Protection Team when dealing with parking and obstruction issues.