Swanley verges and Kent Highways

Many constituents from Swaney have contacted me since early summer about the state of grass verges in the town. There is widespread concern that the town looks messier than before, affecting pride in the area - think of Swanley in Bloom - and residents' amenity. Much (though not all) of this relates to highway verges, and so residents have come to Kent Highways and to me.

For quite some time, Swanley Town Council undertook grass cutting not only for its own spaces but (under contract) for KCC/ Kent Highways and Sevenoaks District Council as well. Back in the spring, the Town Council felt that it was unable to continue this and, for example, the work on highway verges came back to Kent Highways. There is no doubt that the Town Council undertook more cuts than are specified in the regular Kent Highways schedule; they also extended their cuts beyond Kent Highways verges. Add in the growing conditions of a wet spring and early summer, and this explains some of what has happened.

Last week I arranged to meet our local head of soft landscaping and a leading local resident to look around many of the areas of particular concern, especially in the High Firs estate and around Goldsel Road. The picture that we got from this was quite a mixed one. Some unmown verges (for example, between Goldsel Road and Lila Place) belong not to KCC but to the developers of the site. Some were private property; where shrubs obstruct a highway or footpath, Kent Highways will ask the owner to cut them back. We also identified some areas - such as a verge near the top of Pinks Hill, and an overgrown area of shrubs and trees in Station Road - that either are or appear to be in KCC ownership and will be added to the list to be cut back. Another area in Pinks Hill, which has recently been cut, is clearly under the Town Council's ownership.

Early last week also saw one of the eight scheduled 'urban cuts' for verges through the town. Some of those on the edges of town (in London Road, approaching the M25 junction) were not cut and the grass there is high. These, however, are on a different schedule, that for 'visibility splays', which are cut three times a year (and should be followed up this week).

All told, this was a useful visit and established the areas in which Kent Highways can and will take action, and those that are others' responsibility (though as local Member I am always happy to take these matters up with owners, even if it is not something that is KCC's direct responsibility). It is a situation that I will continue to monitor and residents are more than welcome to contact me if they have continuing concerns.

 

Kent's pothole blitz getting under way

As previously reported, Kent Highways' pothole campaign was launched in June, with £3 million in funding (including £1.4 million of government grant that was announced relatively recently) behind it. The aim has been to mobilise quickly and efficiently using local contractors.

The contract has now been in effect for 4 weeks. More than £500,000 in expenditure has been programmed, in addition to more than £358,000 that has been spent on already completed works. Of the latter, almost £50,000 has been in Sevenoaks District, while its share of programmed works exceeds £100,000. As before, do report a pothole via the KCC website - or, of course, to your County Councillor.

St. Paul's Swanley Village goes to Good

St Paul's Church of England Primary School in Swanley Village was inspected by Ofsted in May. The report has just been released, and the school's rating has been upgraded from Requires Improvement to Good.

In their report, the inspectors considered the school to be Good in all categories. They considered the quality of teaching and learning to be "much improved since the last inspection." They also complimented the role of the new head of school, Mrs Grasby, who "has acted swiftly to continue the improvements that had already been started."

The school, previously rated as Good, slipped into Requires Improvement in February 2014. It is great news for the school itself, the Swanley Village community and local families that it has delivered significant improvements and that these have been recognised. It is also good to be able to say that now all of the seven primary schools in the Darent Valley Division are rated Good.

Shoreham: The Mary Inniss Pavilion

Saturday saw the Shoreham Village Fete, and I was delighted to be asked to open the Mary Inniss Pavilion attached to Shoreham Village School.

The previous, more modest facilities suffered a fire some years ago. Mary Inniss, the long-serving Chair of Governors at the School (to whom I paid a tribute after her death in 2012), was committed to ensuring a new Pavilion for the use of both the school and community.

The project proved to be a long-running one but has now been delivered. A number of Heads and Governors at the School have given the project their support. Funding came from Corey Environmental Trust, a significant bequest from Mary's estate, from my Member Community Grant (as it then was) and other local KCC grants which I persuaded my colleagues to support. I also worked with KCC's legal team to ensure that all the necessary legal work was completed to deliver the project.

On Saturday I opened the Pavilion in the company of Richard, Mary's husband, and Gillian Lovatt-Young, who has driven such remarkable progress at the Village School. Given Mary's commitment to the School and to Shoreham, it is entirely appropriate that the Pavilion bears her name.

Pothole blitz to be launched in June

KCC will launch its annual pothole blitz in mid-June, it was announced yesterday. Some £3 million in funding, which includes £1.4 million received recently from central government, will be deployed. The work will be done on a District by District basis, and work will also be carried out on lines and verges.

This acceleration of our normal work in tackling potholes comes a little later in the year than usual - typically it starts in the spring - reflecting the later than usual release of government funding. However, it should now gather pace quickly, and residents are encouraged to report potholes via the Highways section of the KCC website. This should ensure the most timely response.

Street lining in Swanley Village

One issue that Swanley Village Residents' Association have raised with me has been the condition of much of the lining and road markings in the village. The centre line in Highlands Hill has been a particular concern. 

I secured with a payment from my Combined Member Grant the services of a lining team for a morning in the village. The team arrived promptly at 9 one day a couple of weeks ago, met the Residents' Association chairman (who had volunteered to oversee the work) and worked through until around noon. All the junctions on Swanley Village Road done - School Lane, Beechenlea Lane, Button Street and Wood Street - were painted, plus the centre line at the bottom of Highlands Hill and the two SLOW signs near Elizabethan Cottage. It looks a big improvement.

Action on A225 flooding

As I reported in an earlier post, Kent Highways officers have been working for some time to resolve the severe flooding by the railway bridge on the A225 between Shoreham and Eynsford, close to Preston Hill. Following various surveys, in late January and early February a number of drainage systems near the road (gullies, a catch pit and a soakaway) were identified, dug out and cleansed.

Since these works were carried out, there has been only one significant flooding incident, suggesting that this had at least some effect. However, further improvements are now being undertaken (hence the traffic lights that you may have seen on the road in the last few days). A new soakaway is being installed and the ditch immediately behind it is being cleared of debris. Further works may be investigated in the longer term, but this should in any case deliver improvements and greater safety on the road.