Arnside Parish Council

Parish Plan

The Parish Plan was completed and printed in September, and then was launched at a very successful meeting, on October 1st. Our thanks go to the many people who contributed, directly or indirectly, to this major project. The Steering Group has been disbanded, but is being replaced with the Arnside Plan Management Group. The Group is scheduled to have its first meeting on November 12th, under the Chairmanship of Brian Walker. The work of the various ‘action groups’ will continue, under the co-ordination of APMG.

The Parish Council is keen to press ahead with a major project of bringing the Cemetery Chapel into fuller use, as a ‘heritage centre’, in addition to its primary use as a non-consecrated chapel. Before we can start to use it, in a meaningful way, it is essential that we have an electricity supply connected to the building, and it is also desirable to connect mains water, and a sewer. At the moment we are investigating sources of funding.

United Utilities - Arnside Waste Water Transfer Scheme

In our last newsletter we expressed the hope that, by the time of this newsletter, we would be able to announce that agreement had been reached about the impact of the scheme on Ashmeadow, and that the Abbeyfield Society were in a position to proceed with their plans. Unfortunately we are not able to do so. We had an informal meeting with representatives of U.U. on 7th August, and reported our observations, at the Special Meeting, held on 11th August. It is really too involved to report in detail, in this newsletter, but if you would like to know more, please click on “Meetings” at the head of this page and then open the Minutes for 110803.

Car Parking at Arnside Station and Station Road

If you have looked-up the Minutes referred to above, you might also have noticed that we have had a bit of a ‘dispute’ with the County Council, about their promises for action to alleviate parking and traffic problems. To put it bluntly, we have received several assurances, over the past two years, or more, about traffic surveys, parking surveys and negotiations to obtain a car-parking facility for the southbound side of the railway station. When we discovered that none of these items were proceeding, we became rather angry. At least our anger resulted in a hasty meeting, receipt of apologies, and the offer of an immediate availability of £10,000, for measures to alleviate on-street parking, and traffic problems, in the area. We earnestly hope that by the time of our next newsletter, something positive will have been done (if not, your Council will be on the war path, again).

COPS Team

We - the Council, residents and traders - are well and truly fed-up, and disgusted, with the amount of vandalism, and unruly behaviour, that is plaguing our village nowadays. The Police have responded by appointing a COPS Team (Community Orientated Problem Solving Team). They have started by trying to tackle the under-age drinking problem - the sight of youngsters being made to pour their alcohol down a drain and then place the empty containers in a litter bin, has been quite encouraging. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg, and we really must assist the Police in tackling the full problem. On the first Wednesday of every month, the COPS team hold a Police Surgery, from 4.00 to 6.00pm, at the Parish Office, in Church Hill. If you have any concerns, information, or points to make, please visit the surgery. This facility will only continue if people actually use it. Don’t forget also, that it is essential to report any crime, or suspicious activity, using the 999 system - don’t assume that someone else will make the call.

Arnside Bike and Skate Group

The Group has now submitted a Planning Application, which is expected to go through the consultation process quite soon. Once received from the District Council, the plans will be available for inspection, in the Parish Office, any Wednesday or Saturday, from 10.30 to 11.30am.

Kerbside Re-Cycling Scheme

We have heard some very encouraging reports from the District Council about the success of the pilot scheme. They have been very impressed with the amount of re-cycleable material which our residents have carefully sorted into the appropriate containers, and dutifully left out for collection on appropriate days. Unfortunately we have also heard many reports from residents, and traders, of problems (usually the description has been rather more colourful than “problems”). The Parish Council is not, in any way, involved with this scheme, but nevertheless we have done what we can to try to get problems resolved. At the time of writing this newsletter, we regret that there has only been limited success.

Maintenance of Public Footpaths

This is the responsibility of Cumbria County Council, but is currently delegated to South Lakeland District Council. Now we have learned that the District Council is thinking of ending the scheme of delegation, so that the County Council will have to take back the responsibility. The Parish Council is not happy about this, and we have therefore written to SLDC stating that we would like to take-over the duty, subject to adequate funding and other terms. We honestly believe that, with the appropriate resources, we can do a better job. What is more, if you were to have any cause for complaint, you could easily bend the ear of any of your local Councillors. We have not yet had a positive response, so we don’t know whether or not our proposal will succeed.