New council homes in the heart of Abingdon
Vale of White Horse District Council has announced it is intending to develop the first council-built homes in decades, right in the heart of Abingdon.
Using financial contributions from other housing developments including the nearby Old Gaol the council plans to redevelop the former Town Council offices at Old Abbey House.
Cllr Matthew Barber, Leader of the district council, said: "Using money from commercial developers this is the perfect opportunity to make use of a vacant office building in the heart of the community and provide much needed affordable homes for local people."
Delivering the Wantage Eastern Link Road
An important link road to support new housing developments in Wantage and Grove is a step closer after a bid for nearly £8million of funding was submitted by Vale of White Horse District Council to the government.
The Wantage Eastern Link Road will connect the A338 near Mably Way to the A417 on the eastern side of Wantage. If the bid to the government is successful it will contribute to the cost of the road along with other sources of funding, including housing developer contributions from the airfield and Crab Hill developments. Securing government funding now will ensure the road is built more quickly.
Cllr Matthew Barber, leader of the Vale of White Horse District Council, said: “I think everybody agrees this road is absolutely vital. Securing this funding from the government would mean we can get it built more quickly. Along with the new Leisure Centre on Mably Way, we’re working hard to ensure the infrastructure is in place before the majority of the houses are built.”
Steventon bridge demolition postponed
After years of protracted discussion over the prospect of demolishing and replacing Steventon railway bridge Network Rail have announced that they are delaying plans until at least April 2019.
Electrification will still go ahead as planned to deliver improved capacity and reliability for commuters but instead of the demolition temporary solution will be put in place at Steventon including a speed reduction.
Abingdon Leisure Centre one of the best in the country
White Horse Leisure and Tennis Centre in Abingdon has been awarded Quest ‘Excellence’ status, one of just 16 centres nationally to have achieved this rating and the first time a publicly owned leisure centre has been awarded this status in Oxfordshire.
The centre, which hosts more than 800,000 visits a year, was recently assessed by Quest, the Sport England recommended programme which measures how effective leisure facilities and sports development teams are at providing customer service.
The centre was checked against 13 categories over two days, including maintenance, participation, environment and customer experience. Staff were interviewed and mystery shopper visits also took place.
Disused underpass revamped at Milton Park
Work leading to the reopening of a disused underpass on the edge of Milton Park is now in its final stages, with the next phase of the project set to be completed as soon as early-November.
The redevelopment of Backhill Tunnel – adjacent to the A4130 in west Didcot – will firstly see a pedestrian and cycle link beneath the existing railway embankment, linking the A-road into Milton Park.
The County Council will now undertake the final phases of works with pedestrian and cycle connections west along the A4130 towards Milton Gate. The final element of the project will see the creation of a crossing for pedestrians and cyclists across the A4130, adjacent to the tunnel.
The completion of the tunnel will enable several thousand people based at Milton Park, to either cycle or walk to-and-from work. In turn, this will reduce demand on the road network and support more healthy, active residents.
The tunnel will give workers at Milton Park better access to amenities on Milton Gate, including the recently announced four star Milton Marriott hotel which is due to open in summer 2018.
Local Plan Part 2 consultation begins
Vale of White Horse District Council has published part 2 of its Local Plan and invited residents to comments by 22 November.
The comments will then be submitted along with the Plan to the Secretary of State in the New Year. It will then be examined by a planning inspector later next year.
The council adopted part one of the Plan in 2016, which deals with the main strategic housing sites for the district, and identifies the main infrastructure that would be needed to support the new communities. Part 2 deals with more detailed policies the council will use to decide planning applications over the life of the Plan.
This is a more technical stage of the process and the planning inspector will give more weight to comments based on the technical “soundness” of the Plan – the council has created a short video and a guidance note to explain what this means, to help residents provide effective comments.
The Plan, video, guidance note and details on how to comment are available at www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/LPP2
The council is inviting residents to come along and find out more about the Plan at a series of drop-in events and public meetings throughout October and November at the following locations:
Exhibitions from 4 to 6.30pm followed by public meetings from 7 to 8.30pm
- Monday 6 November: Abingdon and Witney College, Abingdon Campus, Wootton Road, Abingdon, OX14 1GG
- Tuesday 14 November: Corn Exchange, Gloucester Street, Faringdon, SN7 7JA
- Wednesday 15 November: Harwell Village Hall, High Street, Harwell, OX11 0EX
Apply for community grants
Vale White Horse District Council has £175,000 available in community grants but is urging people to apply before it’s too late, as the next deadline for applications is 4pm on 15 October.
The district council has funded over one hundred projects over the last five years, from straightforward jobs like replacing furniture, toilets and heating systems, to unique ones like chiller cabinet for community shops, cinema equipment, art-inspired walking trails – and even some chainsaw sculptures. It has also helped to fund large-scale projects like new and extended village halls and replacement play areas.
Vale of White Horse District Council’s Grants Team offers advice and support on the council’s community grants as well as additional sources of funding to help pay for a project. For more information or to apply for a grant visit www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/grants or contact the team at [email protected] or on 01235 422405.
Fly-tipper stuck in the mud
A fly-tipper who was caught after getting stuck in the mud has been ordered to pay £900 after admitting dumping hazardous waste.
Dean Paul Smith, 36, of Blackthorn Road, Didcot, appeared at Oxford Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday 19 September when he pleaded guilty to the charge of unlawfully depositing waste and failing to provide information as to who the driver of the vehicle from which the waste was deposited.
Magistrates heard how, on 6 February 2017, a member of the public contacted the police after seeing two men unloading waste from a vehicle on land off Mill Road in Abingdon. When the police arrived they found a significant amount of waste had been dumped and the two men were trying to move the vehicle which had got stuck in the mud as they attempted to leave the site. The pair claimed they had stopped at the site to eat lunch, during this time the vehicle got stuck and so they decided to remove the waste in order to lighten the load to help get it free.
£500 million bid for Oxfordshire infrastructure
The Oxfordshire Growth Board has provided unanimous support for an application to the Government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) as part of a package of investment to deliver the transport infrastructure necessary to allow the development of new garden towns and villages across the county.
Money is sought to bring forward infrastructure investment to pump-prime three major development schemes:
- Didcot Garden Town – £171m is bid for transport improvements including a Didcot Science Bridge and A4130 dual carriageway, a new river crossing at Culham and Clifton Hampden Bypass. This would support the delivery of over 22,000 homes in Didcot, Culham, Harwell and Berinsfield. Additionally up to £70m of cycle and other sustainable transport improvements are proposed for inclusion in the bid plan.
- West Oxfordshire Garden Village – £135.4m is bid for further upgrades to the A40, building on existing schemes and based on the approved A40 Long Term Strategy including development of the Rapid Transit network and additional highway capacity on A40 transport corridor. This would support the delivery of over 10,000 homes in Witney & Carterton, and around Eynsham.
- North of Oxford – £152m is bid for the development of Rapid Transit lines on upgraded A44 and A4260 corridors, a new Park & Ride, and strategic cycle infrastructure plus. Support is also sought for additional education requirements (as yet un-costed). This.would support the delivery of 5,570 homes in Woodstock, Begbroke/Yarnton and the Northern Gateway.
The Government will consider Oxfordshire’s bids along with those from other areas and the highest ranking schemes will go through to a second stage in Spring 2018, with final funding awards announced from Summer 2018.