From 2022 to 2023

I am conscious that, for a time in October-November, I posted relatively little. This was not because there was little going on, but that there was so much happening that I fell behind on posting.

2022 has been a turbulent year for us in Kent, as it has nationally and worldwide - and the effects of many of those global factors, ranging from weather extremes to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, have been felt in the county. I have sought to reflect this, and to look forward, in a New Year message published today. 

Looking back twelve months, it is striking how much my (and many others’) hopes that we could move towards recovery and long-term planning in 2022 were confounded. The economic overhang of pandemic and lockdown, followed by the price shocks resulting from the Ukraine war, have seen to that. This has been felt in many ways; to take an example, the intense pressures on the bus network, which dominated the summer and caused so much anxiety to families across the county, reflected a combination of fuel (and other) price increases, driver shortages and a fall in usage that took place in the pandemic and has not been reversed. 

One result is that our budget pressures this year have been far more intense than in the past, and even with a big effort in the closing months of the financial year, we are likely to see a substantial overspend for 2022-23. That adds to our challenges in setting the budget for 2023-24 (which we will bring forward at the start of January). In the joint letter that the Leader of Hampshire County Council and I sent to ministers in October, we highlighted the long-term structural problems of local government finance, above all in relation to social care and children’s services; it is the combination of that with the year’s economic upheavals that made 2022 so difficult.

At KCC, we saw significant setbacks and shortfalls during the year, notably the failings in SEND transport in February and - also in the SEND area - a highly critical Ofsted/ CQC revisit in the autumn. Addressing these shortcomings remains a major focus for us. Yet there were also very positive developments. Ofsted rated our children’s services Outstanding; the innovative Reconnect programme, focused on opportunities for children and young people in the aftermath of the pandemic, came to a successful conclusion; people across the county responded magnificently to the plight of Ukrainian refugees, and KCC and its partners played a strong part in that; and we saw the beginnings of a positive partnership in health and care as the Integrated Care System for Kent and Medway got under way.

As we go into 2023, it will be through boldness and in breaking new ground, as through our joint work with the NHS and the opportunities of the government’s devolution programme, that we can seek solutions to the challenges we confront. 

With good wishes to everyone in Kent for 2023 as a year of recovery and renewal.

Footway works in Tudor Drive

Footways in Tudor Drive in Otford will be resurfaced with works starting next Tuesday, 3 January. The works are expected to last for around ten weeks and will be undertaken in daytime hours (between 7 am and 5 pm). 

Some concerns have been raised with me as to whether this would make the footway more slippery in winter conditions, and also whether these works should be a high priority at a time when money for highways works (and much else) is tight. 

On the first point, Kent Highways officers are categorical that the surface will not be more slippery than the current concrete slabs (if anything, the aggregate in the asphalt should give a better grip). 

Regarding the second concern, the works are linked to the Highways Asset Management Programme, which is a comprehensive assessment of the condition of highways assets (not just roads but bridges, structures, drainage etc.) across the county. Kent Highways is now spending a great deal more on asset (and in particular footway) preservation as opposed to the more expensive renewal; if works to preserve footways are undertaken at quite an early stage then the life of the asset can be extended, perhaps by decades, avoiding future deterioration and the need for it to be renewed at greater cost. It was with this in mind that Tudor Drive was put forward by the local highways team and validated by our pavement engineers. 

Hopefully disruption can be minimised in the course of these works (there should always be accessible footway on the other side of the road when a section is being worked on) and they will deliver a lasting benefit.

Wested Lane closure delayed again

The closure of Wested Lane for Network Rail works (already postponed once in the days leading up to the late Queen Elizabeth II's funeral), due to start this morning (14 December) has been postponed once more. This reflected the current rail strikes and the runup to the Christmas period (though presumably the former was the key factor). So far no new date has been given.

JTB approves Shoreham and Seal schemes

Tonight's Sevenoaks Joint Transportation Board (JTB), which brings together County and District Councillors, considered the proposal to reduce the speed limit on the A225 between Eynsford and Otford to 50mph in its more northerly section and to 40mph from just north of the junction with Station Road Shoreham.

The proposal, which has long been championed by Shoreham Parish Council and which I have supported, was consulted on between 16 September and 10 October. Of 113 responses, 82 were in favour of the proposal, 31 were objections (of which 6 were held to be valid objections on traffic management grounds). The issue was therefore considered at the JTB and the Board supported it. Both Brian Jeffery from Shoreham Parish Council and I spoke in favour.

The JTB also considered the proposed reduction in the speed limit on the A25 Seal Road entering Seal from the west. This was incorporated in a Traffic Regulation Order which related largely to 20mph proposals in Sevenoaks Town, but the JTB agreed to consider the A25 issue separately from a much longer debate on the Sevenoaks Town item. The Seal Road speed limit reduction was quickly approved, recognising the anomalous nature of the stretch of 40mph road between two 30mph zones.