Funding to be fast tracked to support York residents through the impact of coronavirus

Local ward funding is to be accelerated and used flexibly to help community organisations respond to local needs during the outbreak of coronavirus. 

This source of funding is ideal for supporting local charities, community groups and other agencies delivering the support to residents in need.

Ward Councillors are being encouraged to work with their communities to identify needs and solutions and use their ward budgets accordingly. The Council will be as flexible and as responsive as we can in approving expenditure, so long as it complies with the council’s financial regulations.

The Council will be able to process applications very quickly to ensure that funding can be with the relevant community organisation immediately for use to support local residents.

Any groups interested in applying for ward funding should go to www.york.gov.uk/WardGrantApplications to submit their application. To find out more, contact the Council’s Communities team, email: shapingneighbourhoods@york.gov.uk or telephone: 01904 551832.

Cllr Darryl Smalley, Executive Member for Culture, Leisure and Communities at City of York Council, said:

City of York Council is doing everything possible respond to the current situation, and the latest part of this is ensuring that every penny possible goes to those on the frontline in the coming weeks.

“Ward Councillors have been urged to consider how the ward budgets, particularly the Safer Communities Fund, can be deployed in a way that supports their communities through Coronavirus.

Ward committee funding will be as flexible as possible and any funds granted for date-specific activities will be extended until it is safe for them to be held.”

Westfield Councillors to debate what to do about building works at public meeting tomorrow


Bowling club building site not on the agenda?

The Westfield Councillors are right to insist on more information being provided on building works in the area, when they meet tomorrow (Wednesday)

However, they will be meeting only a few metres away from the spoil heaps and site compound which has been constructed on the Council owned land to the rear of the Library.

Large spoil heap on Council land at the Acomb Library

Some explanation for the decision to allow the contractors to use this Council owned site will be expected. It is an issue that is not likely to go away.

Some residents still hope that Council will offer some sort of compensation for the problems that have been caused by the use of the compound

Elsewhere, the Lowfields development saga continues.

There has still not been any explanation about how the York Council came to mislead residents about the inclusion of a “police station” and health centre/GP surgery in the original consultation plans.

Both these promises turned out to be bogus. It is unclear what will happen to what, otherwise, will be unused plots on the east of the site.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Carriageway-cracking-on-Kingsway-West-1300hrs-5th-May-2019-.jpg
The Kingsway West carriageway is already breaking up

On Ascot Way, access arrangements, for the heavy plant needed to complete the demolition of Windsor House, remain unclear. It seems that access for the plant will be via Kingsway West and Ascot Way It is clear that the roads are too narrow in the area to avoid major damage to adjacent verges and paths. A “one way” system has been suggested but not confirmed.

There are real concerns that the bus route will be obstructed by the likely congestion

The original hope had been that more parking lay-bys would have been provided by now.

…..and the problem of the promised replacement for the all weather games area seems to be no closer to resolution. The existing MUGA has already been converted into a building compound.

Games area is now a building compound. No alternative provision for children has been provided

There is no word about the proposed alternative site on the Thanet Road Sports Area although officials were asked to follow this up 3 months ago.

Residents will no doubt be hoping that some answers emerge from the meeting

Spoil heaps dominate neighbouring properties on Lowfields Drive

Westfield Ward budget allocations announced

Details have emerged about how the  budget – delegated to local Westfield Councillors – will be spent during the present financial year. Similar budgets are available across the whole of York (although the extent to which individual Ward Councillors consult, before allocating the funds, does vary)

Westfield Ward Committee will award:

A youth club and “hub” will operate from Sanderson Court in Chapelfields

In addition, Westfield Ward Committee will dedicate:

  • £920 towards ward directory project

    A local pub team will bring football back to Chesney’s Field

  • £2,000 to set a pot of funding for activities provision for young people
  • £1,500 to set a pot of funding for support for sports teams
  • £2,000 to set a pot of funding for activities for older residents
  • £2,000 to set a pot of funding for trimming of City of York Council trees – to be used for work at locations across the ward
  • £2,000 to set a pot of funding for trimming of overgrown shrubs and repairs to fencing on the City of York Council land
  • £1,500 to support a project to tidy up the Acomb war memorials
  • £500 to set a pot of funding towards anti dog fouling campaign
  • £5,000 to set a pot of funding towards mobile CCTV cameras to catch fly tipping
  • £2,000 to set a pot of funding towards tidy up and bulky waste removal projects
  • £2,000 to set a pot of funding towards removal or refurbishment of obsolete or damaged street furniture and signs
  • £3,000 to set a pot of funding towards projects with the aim to tackle anti-social behaviour
  • £1,250 towards painting cycle hoops along Front Street

    More parking lay-bys will be provided

Councillors also considered ward capital projects and decided to invest in the following:

  • installation of a parking bay to accommodate 2 to 3 cars between number 12 and number 20 Bachelor Hill
  • continue with the levelling programme of Front Street and other footpaths
  • installation of a parking bay on Dijon Avenue at the verge to the side of no 41 Green Lane
  • installation of a parking bay on verge adjacent to number 95 Lowfields Drive
  • reconstruction and protection of grass verges at locations across the ward
  • installation of barriers in the Walker Drive snicket

There was a limited turn out in the  residents ballot about priorities. Fewer than 70 votes were recorded for the most popular schemes

Public meeting to discuss future of Windsor House site

Plans for Centre of Excellence for Disabled Children

Windsor House which would be demolished under the plans

Residents are being invited to give their views at a Westfield ward meeting being held on 15th January 2018. The meeting is being held at Hob Moor school with the Windsor House item being discussed from 7:30pm

No details are given of access arrangements. There are concerns that any intensification of the use of the Windsor House site on Ascot Way, would exacerbate traffic congestion and parking problems in the area.

A decision on whether to proceed with the centre idea is due to be taken at a Council executive meeting being held on 25th January 2018

A special website gives more details of the disability centre plans.

Disability Centre of Excellence Monthly Updates

What we have done

  • Final feasibility design, layout and site options have been presented by Gilling Dod Architects to a group of key staff, managers, parent / carers and partner agencies.
  • A potential land option for the Centre of Excellence has been agreed by Council Executive in December. This is the site of Windsor House Older Person Accommodation, which is planned to close. This land is adjacent to the Hob Moor Oaks Special School playing fields. Discussions are taking place with Hob Moor Federation of Schools about co locating part of the new provision and its outdoor amenities and space on some of the surplus playing field land.
  • A report is being prepared for the Council Executive meeting on 25th January 2018. This report will ask Elected Members to commit the capital needed to build a Centre of Excellence for Disabled Children and their families and seek agreement for the preferred site layout
  • The report also contains information about how staffing roles and structures will develop in the future in order to deliver a new way of working within a Centre of Excellence.

What we plan to do next

  • We will communicate the decision following the meeting on 25th January to parent /carers, staff and partner agencies.
  • If there is agreement to progress the project to an implementation phase, we will continue to adopt a co production approach of involving parent /carer, staff, children and young people and partner agencies in each stage of the future development.
  • Finally, hope you all have a great Christmas and new year. Thank you all for your time, energy, enthusiasm, ideas and input that has helped shape and develop this project to the stage we are at now.

 How you can be involved

Please send ideas, questions, feedback to feasibility@york.gov.uk

For more information please contact william.shaw@york.gov.uk

Keep checking web pages for the latest information and areas that we are working on that we want feedback on

Westfield Ward committee seeking grant applications

Perhaps surprisingly, the Westfield Ward Committee is seeking new grant applications again for 2018/19.

Surprising, because there are dozens of outstanding issues – mainly relating to street level improvements – which have yet to be addressed in the current year.

Hopefully we will see some progress shortly now. Not least, overgrown hedges and trees need to be cut back during the current winter period.  

Site visit to decide on pruning plan for trees in little Green Lane

Most residents, who responded to a survey conducted by local Councillors, said that they wanted the trees in little Green Lane (Acomb) lopped.

The trees hadn’t received any maintenance by the City of York Council for over 20 years. Now some are interfering with communication wires and several are blocking street lights.

Councillors have arranged to meet local residents on Tuesday 26th September st 5:45pm on the bridge at the school end of Green Lane.

It is hoped that a consensus will be developed on precisely how much work needs to be undertaken on each tree (there are about a dozen in the street)

It is hoped that a tree expert will be present at the site meeting, and later at the Ward committee meeting (see below), when the crisis in tree management in the ward will be discussed.

The Ward Committee has allocated over £3000 to pay for urgent works required to trim trees and remove self seeded bushes which are causing problems in parts of the Westfield area. This work is best undertaken in late autumn so decisions need to be taken quickly. 

Westfield ward committee improvements – list published

The Council, has published a list of projects that will be funded from the Westfield ward delegated budget this year. Most other wards have announced similar lists. The Westfield list can be found by clicking here

Although covering 30 months of funding, the list does include schemes which have not yet got off the ground.

Amongst them are plans for diversionary activities in the beleaguered Chapelfields area.

Allocations include

  • £6,841 funding to tackle anti-social behaviour across the ward.  Out of that fund, £376 was allocated to pay for CCTV maintenance on Bramham Road between September 2017 to September 2018.
  • £1500  was transferred to tackle anti-social behaviour in the Chapelfields area.
  • £3,521 funding to tackle anti-social behaviour in the Chapelfields area

The Chapelfields programe is described as “a multi-agency team involving police, LAT and Public Health as well as local community groups who will seek to address anti-social behaviour through targeted diversionary activities for local children and young people. This will link to the Communities that Care programme which is being developed by the local police”.  £500 has been paid for Urbie sessions (a community youth activity bus project) in a local church car park. Further visits are expected in September

Residents have written to the Council asking for an update on the progress with these projects and a similar initiative at the Kingsway West MUGA which although allocated £2000 in the budget, also does not seem to have started yet.

We wish the authorities well in their attempts to defuse the situation.

Westfield survey priorities at 18th August 2017 (excluding Foxwood)

The results of the Ward Committees ballot, which sought residents priorities on use of its delegated budget, have not been published yet.

However the results of a similar door to door survey conducted by local Councillors are available.

So far over 1540 forms have been returned.

They show strong support for five projects.

These include funding for leisure activities for younger people and security improvements. 

 

 

Improvements in Front Street

Railings painted and weeds removed at the Acomb toilets. Vast improvement.

The cycle hoops on Front Street are to be repainted this week. They will not be available for use in the evening while the work takes place.

The improvement is the first of many instigated by the Westfield Ward Committee and follows the publication of the results of a residents survey in which support for  refurbishment schemes got a high level of residents support.

The repainting programme will move on over the next few weeks to other parts of the area including the Tedder Road park.

Separately, BT has agreed to repair the damaged telephone kiosks on Front Street. The company says that, subject to consultation, the kiosks which are a target for vandals, may be removed altogether next year.