Author: Rachael Anstey

If you’re feeling the pressures of the cost of living, there is help and support available.

National and local links to services are below:

Cost of Living – Cost of Living (costoflivingwarwickshire.co.uk)

Closure of the Warwick Road
The closure of the Warwick Road northbound for 6 months will result in a diversion for
traffic travelling to the A46. It will effectively take all northbound traffic which travels over
Clopton Bridge up the Birmingham Road and past the Maybird. It has the potential to cause
considerable congestion in the area. Representations have been made to Warwickshire
County Council.

Binton Bridge (Welford on Avon) repair works and road closure
A revised schedule sent by Warwickshire County Council with changes the planned management for (re)opening and closing the bridge in the next few months. Due to flood and cold weather delays the bridge is scheduled to be fully reopen on 24/05/2024, 3 weeks later than previously planned. This schedule is subject to further changes.

Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service (WFRS) which carries out fire and
rescue functions on behalf of the Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Authority, Warwickshire
County Council (WCC), is consulting on a proposed change to its service delivery model as
part of its Resourcing to Risk approach. It is a radical change to current operations. They are
proposing to close Bidford, Fenny Compton, Henley, Shipston, Polesworth, Kenilworth,
Wellesbourne and Gaydon as on-call fire stations into surge stations.  There are concerns
about the change from an on-call station system to a surge team model which has not been
tried before in a comparable rural county.  As well as, the lack of night fire cover in our area. Residents are urged to engage with the consultation, click on the link below. Deadline for your views is 10 March.

Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service – Consultation on proposed service delivery model – Warwickshire County Council – Citizen Space

The next public meeting is: 5 March at The Townsend Hall, Sheep Street, Shipton on Stour, CV36 4AE .

If you have any queries or need any help or advice about the consultation, please email wfrsr2r@warwickshire.gov.uk or telephone WCC’s Customer Service Centre on 01926 410410.

The 1700 miles of public rights of way across Warwickshire are important for enjoying and exploring our countryside and urban areas as well as for travelling to work or school and for our health & wellbeing. They are part of what makes Warwickshire a special place to live, work and enjoy.

• If you use public rights of way, we’d like to know about your experience and how important they are to you.
• If you don’t use them, we’d like to know why and what, if anything, we can do to help.

Visit: ask.warwickshire.gov.uk

Take part in our online survey to tell us your ideas.

Survey closes 7 April 2024

Parish and Partners is an electronic newsletter which is sent to Parish Councils and partners who work alongside the District Council, view via link:

SDC Parish and Partners 46 DEC23 Low Res 002 .pdf (stratford.gov.uk)

If your property was flooded during Storm Henk (2-5 January), it’s important that you report it to Warwickshire County Council and to your insurance company.

Reporting flooding to the County Council may help secure Government funding to help you recover from the effects of the flood, and will help local authorities plan future flood prevention measures.

 Warwickshire has not yet reached the required threshold of 50 properties confirmed as flooded, to be eligible for this Government funding, so it’s crucial that you report flooding to help us secure this support for you.

You can report flooding in your home at https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/flooding

Could I please ask that if you are aware of any residents and properties in your parish which were impacted, could you please bring this message to their attention and ask them to report it using the link above. If we did have 50 properties affected across Warwickshire then it is only right that our residents should have access to the support.

The speed of traffic is a huge problem in villages and along country lanes, and is set to get worse as traffic levels continue to rise. CPRE (Campaign for the Protection of Rural England) has long campaigned to tackle the problem by designating “Quiet Lanes”. After consultation with CPRE Quiet Lanes are unfortunately only appropriate for minor rural roads, C or unclassified routes, which are single-carriageway and ideally connected to a network of the same.

In 2017, Luddington Parish Council instigated the installation of village gateways, coloured tarmac and dragons teeth to complement the 20mph speed limit. Speed reductions can be achieved with this type of installation but often cannot be sustained over any distance, and nationally speeds within villages have at most been reduced by 1 or 2 mph if there are no additional measures in place. For maximum benefit, gateways need to be used in conjunction with other measures within the community, so that drivers are made aware that lower speeds are required throughout.

LPC have lobbied County Councillor Mike Brain several times who reported that he had received a response from WCC Highways concerning his request for a reduction in the speed limit on the B439 near Dodwell Park. The section of the B439 within the vicinity of Dodwell Park is currently governed by a 50mph speed limit, has red tarmac and also a flashing sign. A pedestrian refuge would not be a safe provision for pedestrians due to the lack of street lighting. It is also felt that there is insufficient carriageway width to accommodate such a feature. The request for a reduction in the Luddington Road speed limit would not be entertained by either WCC or the Police. This is  due to lack of reported incidents (thankfully) and lack of funds. This, is despite the anomaly between the main Evesham Road being limited to 30mph, whilst the relatively rural larger stretches of Luddington Road have a 40mph limit.

It is a fact that Luddington Road acts as a short-cut for eastbound traffic heading into Stratford Upon Avon in the rush hour periods to avoid long delays on Evesham Road and Bordon Hill. Unfortunately this is likely to get worse due to new housing developments and planned changes to the highway network , especially with the already approved Bordon Hill roundabout and threat of the SWRR. The area also sees a major increase in traffic on race days and other events held at the Racecourse.

2017 saw the setting up of the Community Speedwatch group, an inter-parish agreement was set up to borrow use of a speed gun, signs etc and local resident volunteers attended training sessions run by the police. Unfortunately this scheme faded away due in part to abuse of volunteers by motorists.

What are the options?

Firstly, the impact on the local street environment including noise, vibration, visual impact, community perception and emissions must be taken into account  which will affect local attitudes to any  traffic calming scheme.  The impact on pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, buses and emergency services and agricultural vehicles are also paramount.

Build-Outs, Speed Humps, Chicanes etc 

Department of Transport figures indicate that physical barriers are effective in relation to the size of scheme, ie. whether a single or double build-out is in place. There is evidence to suggest however that barriers of this nature are seen as an inconvenience to be negotiated by the vehicle and once past, the driver will forget the reason for the barrier being there in the first place.

There is no doubt that research suggests that physical barriers help with speed issues, but where these types of barriers come into their own and are in place there is a dramatic Traffic Flow reduction. DoT surveys have recorded between a 7% and 15% reduction in the volume of traffic where chicanes have been installed. Would residents pay the price of changing the street scene for this ?

Luddington and Luddington Road are designated in the village design statement as being “dark”, meaning that there is no street lighting. This is a characteristic of the area that is taken into consideration as street lighting would be required during the hours of darkness for any type of physical barrier, along with extra road markings and signage. This would undoubtedly “urbanise” the area.

Vehicle activated signs (VAS)

LED or fibre optic signs have been used to address the problem of inappropriate speed where conventional signing has not been effective. They are usually blank until triggered by an approaching vehicle travelling at a speed above a pre-set limit and can be as simple as a ‘SLOW DOWN’ message or a message in flashing lights. The signs have the advantage of being blank when not activated, limiting their visual intrusion, which is particularly relevant in rural areas.  A variety of methods e.g. battery, solar panel and wind generator can be used to power these signs in rural locations.

The cost of purchase and installation of vehicle activated signs can range between £8,000 and £15,000.

A recent full-scale evaluation by DoT  found that the Vehicle activated signs along with speed limit repeater signs (ie; “Had You Forgotten?) reduced mean speeds of traffic as a whole by an average of between 3 and 9 mph. Speeds exceeding the limit were also reduced.

Using this psychological approach, most drivers will make the connection between their own speed and the signs being triggered.

Locally, and in similar circumstances to Luddington Road, the neighbouring village of Binton have recently installed VAS. This was an effort to slow down the very fast ‘rat run’ traffic that goes through the village. They decided on the flashing speed sign where the speed flashes and decreases when cars slow.  Initial evidence suggests that vehicles really do slow when the sign is activated.

The sign is battery operated and is charged easily. The sign is moved between 4 pole locations  every 3 – 4 weeks and the battery is changed then.  The sign collects data of the speed of all the cars going through the village from both directions.  When the sign is moved the data is downloaded which is being collated and used to send to various authorities (WCC, Police etc) to make them aware of the scale of the issue and support the argument for more regular patrols etc.

Binton Parish Council have been very helpful and even supplied a Data Sheet downloaded from the information gathered via the sign. The initial 2 months of data show that 80% of traffic exceeded the 30mph limit, average weekday traffic (both ways) is 1,600 vehicles compared to 700 at weekends, the average speed is 36mph and the the highest recorded average speeds entering the village were 76mph!

The cost for a sign, an additional battery, 4 poles and their attachments was approx £3,200 , not including installation.

Warwickshire County Council (WCC) Commissioned Survey

In November 2019 a WCC engineer reviewed Luddington Road and Luddington Village speed limits. Unfortunately, in the engineer’s report received Spring 2020, VAS signs were confirmed to be unacceptable. A formal reduction in speed limit to 20mph in Luddington Village and 30mph on Luddington Road could cost in excess of £20,000 chargeable to LPC. A series of new signs warning of sharp bends was recommended at a cost to LPC. Due to the restrictions of the Covid-19 pandemic, this matter was put on hold.

October 2020 – What is the way forward?

The Parish Council will be receiving CIL fund contributions from the Cameron Homes via the development of the DEFRA site, some of which could be allocated to Traffic Calming. LPC recognises that it may also need to look at other possibilities for funding measures as any major project may not otherwise be affordable.

It is hoped that a Traffic Calming and Highways Working Group will be set up at the end of 2020 to work on traffic calming recommendations to LPC.

LPC are committed to further public consultation and lobbying of WCC on this matter.

PATCH – Parish Action on Traffic Calming and Highways working group

This working group was formed at the end of 2020 to work on recommendations for Traffic Calming throughout the parish. The working group produced a summary report of issues in December 2020. The Chair and Clerk met with Councillor Brain and County Highways in January 2021 and March 2021 to discuss the whole parish, and will be updating full council on April 27th on potential new traffic calming measures and highways maintenance.

The PATCH working group are also working on some additional traffic calming measures that will be considered for CIL funding later in 2021-22.

Originally posted April 2019

Updated October 2020

Updated January 2021

Updated April 2021

Stratford-on-Avon District Council is responsible for approximately 250 hectares of land, ranging from car parks to local nature reserves, upon which are over 5,000 trees. Trees are dynamic structures, constantly growing and changing to adapt to environmental conditions.

Stratford-on-Avon District Council recognises that it has a ‘Duty of Care’ to ensure that all of the trees on its land remain in a safe condition as far as it is reasonably practicable. To find out about how the Council manages the condition of trees and the risk that they pose to nearby people and property, please read the Tree Management Protocol.

Works to Our Trees

For more information about how Stratford-on-Avon District Council organises and carries out works to trees, and the considerations that need to be made before any works are carried out, please read Works to our Trees.

Tree Planting

For more information about the factors that Stratford-on-Avon District Council considers to determine which trees to plant and where, please read Tree Planting.

The Value of Trees

Stratford-on-Avon District Council recognises that trees are a valuable asset to our residents and the local environment, and should be maintained and developed accordingly to ensure future generations will have at least the same healthy provision of tree cover as we do today. To find out more, please read The Value of Trees.

Threats to Trees in the UK

For more information about the threats UK trees face, please read Threats to Trees in the UK.