Councillor Graham Stokes Cabinet Member for Corporate Services

DECEMBER 2005

"Conversation is a meeting of minds with different memories and habits. When minds meet, they don’t just exchange facts; they transform them, reshape them, draw different implications from them, engage in new trains of thought. Conversation doesn’t just reshuffle the cards; it creates new cards."
From Theodore Zeldin’s ‘Conversations’

KARL BRIDGES
Police in the Wakefield District are appealing for further information following a fatal fire in an outhouse in the Broomhill area of Knottingley shortly after 01.30 am on the morning of Tuesday 8th November 2005. Officers were called to the scene by the fire service. The body of a 36-year-old local man, Karl Bridges of Broomhill, Knottingley, was recovered. Enquiries are continuing into the circumstances surrounding Karl’s death.

Officers are keen to speak to anyone who has had any recent contact with Karl over the last few weeks. They know he used to spend time in both Knottingley and Wakefield and want to build up a picture of his movements and lifestyle. Anyone who knew or associated with Karl, particularly in the weeks leading up to his death, is asked to contact officers at Pontefract CID on 01977 601085.

FERRYBRIDGE POWER STATION
A bit of good news for local industry is that Scottish and Southern Energy plans to opt in to the Large Combustion Plant Directive (LCPD) utilising all the capacity at its 2000MW Fiddler’s Ferry power station in Cheshire and half of the capacity at its 2000MW Ferrybridge power station in West Yorkshire. To do this will require the installation of Flue Gas Desulphurisation (FGD) and an investment estimated to be around £225m. This is in addition to Scottish & Southern’s existing investment in the development of additional facilities at the stations to increase their ability to ‘co-fire’ fuels from renewable sources. Lurgi (UK) Ltd., has been appointed preferred bidder for the FGD installation work. Preliminary work has already started and it is expected to be complete in time for the power stations to generate electricity through a ‘de-sulphurised’ process in the first half of 2008.

SSE acquired the Ferrybridge and Fiddler’s Ferry power stations and associated coal stocks, which have a total capacity of 4,000MW, from AEP Energy Services UK Ltd for £136m in July 2004. Opting capacity at the two stations in to the LCPD means that, following the installation of the FGD equipment, restrictions on their ability to generate electricity between 2008 and 2015 will be lifted and they will be able to remain open after 2015. This is good news for local jobs and for the environment with reduced Sulphur Dioxide emissions. The stations had been opted out of the LCPD by previous owners, which meant they were scheduled for full closure by 2015.

The electricity generated at the stations meets around five per cent of the demand for power in Great Britain in a typical year. Extending their lives beyond 2015 will, therefore, add significantly to the long-term security of the country’s electricity supply. The decision to install FGD also represents a potential opportunity for UK deep-mined coal to help meet fuel requirements and SSE will explore this opportunity with UK coal producers, it is anticipated that coal will brought in to Ferrybridge via barge and rail.

FGD equipment is designed and operated as a chemical absorption process. Injection of a limestone slurry removes at least 94 percent of the sulphur dioxide, one of the main causes of acid rain, and produces gypsum, which is a saleable product.

As a local councillor and resident I have a keen interest in what these proposals mean for our area, both for jobs and the local environment. A consultation exercise was held recently at Knottingley Sports Centre, and the views of local residents expressed at that meeting are to be taken on board. We will also need to agree routeing for construction traffic, and for traffic generated in the long term to bring in and remove materials from the FGD Plant.

It was stated at the consultation that a proposal would be to have a local liaison committee that would be consulted during construction and operation of the FGD equipment. This would be comprised of representatives from Scottish & Southern Energy, the contractors, Wakefield Council, Selby Council, North Yorkshire County Council, The Environment Agency, English Nature and Local Groups. There will also be a Scottish & Southern Energy Environmental Officer who will act as a contact to keep local residents informed and deal with any complaints. It is intended that nominations for the liaison committee will be sought from interested parties within the next few weeks, so that the first meeting can be held in January.

REGENERATION ISSUES
Glenn Burton, Pat Doyle and myself recently met the Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor Phil Dobson who also has portfolio responsibility for Regeneration. We invited him to Knottingley and showed him around some of the areas we would like to see developed as we very much want to keep alive the issues identified in the urban renaissance report for Knottingley. A number of areas were discussed including the rear of Knottingley Sports Centre - children’s park, Ferrybridge Park changing rooms, and the future use of the Pollard Bearings site.

We also want to learn of the progress being made on issues identified within the urban renaissance process, such as the limestone walls throughout the town. We raised the issue of boundary wall erosion in the Knottingley area, though these are owned by several landowners and a co-ordinated approach to their repair is required. Councillor Dobson informed us of his intention to do a tour of the area sometime in the New Year.

YORKSHIRE BUS INITIATIVES

The Yorkshire Bus Initiative aims to deliver a step change in bus provision in West Yorkshire and across the region. It is proposed to make improvements to bus stops along the main core network and some of this work will be carried out in Crofton, Sharlston, Featherstone, Pontefract, Ferrybridge and Knottingley. The proposals consist of raising kerb heights, replacing poles / shelters and footway improvements to facilitate safer and more convenient access to buses for all passengers.

In Knottingley and Ferrybridge the kerb heights at all the bus stops will be lifted to 180mm above road level to facilitate easier boarding for passengers and new bus stop poles will be provided at most stops. The following stops will also receive new replacement shelters:

Ferrybridge Road, Vale; Ferrybridge Road, Hilltop; Hazel Road, Junction with Simpsons Lane, bottom of Warwick Estate; Hazel Road, between Pinewood place and Kershaw Lane; Windermere Drive, near Coniston Place and Headlands Lane, next to the shops

ANNUAL AWARD EVENING FOR CLEANING ASSISTANTS
The annual awards for cleaning assistants was held on Tuesday 1st November in the Town Hall, Wakefield. Shirley Sewell and Barbara Shaw (Knottingley Area Housing Office) were once again nominated and received a highly commended award. This could be Barbara’s last year at the awards as she is due for well-earned retirement next March, something I am sure she is looking forward to, although she says she finds the prospect a little frightening. Knottingley did very well on the evening with awards also going to Ann Fisher from the Church of England School and Maureen Blackett winning an award for Knottingley High School. This is quite an achievement. The nominees were judged by representatives from Accrington and Rossedale College who actually visited, tested their knowledge and watched them in their workplace.

THE CROFT
Following concerns raised by local residents about the speed of vehicles travelling along The Croft, speed checks were carried out and it was found that 85% of traffic was travelling at 38mph in a 30mph area. To address this a flashing vehicle activated sign is to be erected on The Croft adjacent to the Church next to Willow Road.

GHOSTLY GOINGS ON
Did you know that the Close on Hilltop is haunted? A ghost, nicknamed little Emma by the cleaning staff, has also been spotted by other members of staff. She is described as a small elderly lady and apparently mischievous, particularly so when there is a full moon. The sightings commenced following the building of the rent office extension. During the building works a previously unknown well was found which held up work for a while whilst it was dealt with. It is thought that the haunting arises from the disturbance of the well. Does anyone have any recollection of a well in this area?

PLANNING APPLICATIONS
There seems to be an increased amount of planning applications within our area recently, with a planning appeal at Pottery Lane, and planning applications at Marsh Lane, the quarry site on Womersley Road, and the depot site at Hazel Road. I am not surprised given the vicinity of Knottingley and Ferrybridge to the motorway network but it is something we need to keep a close eye on to ensure that new developments within our area are of the kind and quality that we would expect.

The Marsh Lane application for 14, one bedroom flats was amended after the developer listened to concerns from local residents and council members. The application was approved by the Planning Committee following a site visit, for 12 two-bedroom flats and two one-bedroom flats.

The application for 169 dwellings on land off Womersley Road, in the quarry, was withdrawn on 10th November 2005. The reasons for this are that there are a number of issues that require further information, including highway, drainage, contaminated land and ecological issues. It is envisaged that a further application will be submitted in the future once all the issues have been further addressed.

Any further planning application will be advertised in the same way as the original one and people will have the opportunity to comment again. Councillor Burton and I attended a meeting of local residents to hear their concerns and views. It was a well-constructed and orderly meeting and everyone managed to get their point across. Clearly we will take notice of what was said at this meeting in our submission to the planning department should the application be resubmitted.

A ROAD THROUGH TIME
Last month I reported that a publication had been printed identifying archaeological investigations along the route of the A1. This was funded by the Highways Agency, and entitled ‘A Road Through Tim’. It is a fascinating history of the Ferrybridge area from early prehistory to the post – Medieval Period. It contains information on the Beaker Burial (c2200 BC), The Iron Age, The Ferry Fryston Chariot Burial, The Roman Period, The Medieval period and Post Medieval periods.

CHRISTMAS ROAD & STREET WORKS EMBARGO 2005/2006
A Christmas embargo has been placed on all programmed works within the highway areas of Wakefield City Centre, the five towns and the district major retail parks. This embargo ensures no programmed road or street works will take place by statutory undertakers or our own workforce from the 21st November 2005 until the 3rd January 2006 so as to reduce disruption to highway users over the Christmas period. However, this embargo cannot prevent necessary emergency works taking place on the streets identified. The areas in Pontefract and Castleford are:

Castleford:
Albion Street, Back Bank Street, Bank Street, Booth Street, Carlton Street, Church Street, Colorado Way, Enterprise Way, Greaves Street, Powell Street, Sagar Street, Wesley Street.

Pontefract:
Baxtergate, Beastfair, Bridge Street, Church Lane, Cornmarket, Finkle Street, Front Street, Gillygate, Headlands Lane, Headlands Road, Horsefair, Liquorice Way, Market Place, Park Road, Ropergate, Salter Row, Sessions House Yard, Shoemarket, Skinner Lane - Denwell Terrace to Finkle Street, Stuart Road, Trinity Street, Valley Road, Watergate, Wool Market.

SEASONS GREETINGS
I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Graham Stokes
Cabinet Member for Corporate Services

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