Current view of Blue House Roundabout, High West Jesmond – from Google Maps
The Blue House Working Group recently made recommendations to Newcastle City Council about the Blue House Roundabout and a public meeting was arranged on 12 March 2018 so that local residents could hear more from the working group.
Download the BHWG presentation
The full 52 page pdf slide deck used for the 12 March 2018 presentation has now become available and has been placed on the Blue House Working Group website here – Blue House Working Group 12 March 2018 presentation
The Blue House Working Group recently made recommendations to Newcastle City Council about the Blue House Roundabout and a public meeting was arranged on 12 March 2018 so that local residents could hear more from the working group.
John Dales, Independent Chair of Blue House Working Group, invited local residents and other stakeholders to a meeting to find out more about the Group’s recommendations about the Blue House junction and the principles that underpin them.
Residents filled the senior school hall at Newcastle School for Boys – photo courtesy Katie Dickinson from Twitter @KatieJDickinson
There was a packed room in the senior school hall at Newcastle School for Boys on The Grove, Gosforth for the meeting which started at 6.30pm.
John Dales introduced the proposals and other members of the Working Group explained how they had been involved with the process of developing the recommendations.
The meeting also provided an opportunity for some questions from the audience, which were responded to by members of the Blue House Working Group and a representative from Newcastle City Council, Graham Grant who is Head of Transport Investment with the Council.
Representatives at the meeting
A number of community groups were represented at the meeting who spoke including:
Nick Moore, Chair, High West Jesmond Residents Association
Veronica Stoner, Chair, West Gosforth Residents Association
Tony Waterson, Chair, Jesmond Residents Association
Peter MacDonald, Space for Gosforth
Sally Watson, Newcastle Cycling Campaign
Andrew Lambert, Gosforth Traffic
Speakers also included two of our local councillors:
Stella Postlethwaite, Cllr North Jesmond (Lab)
Nick Cott, Cllr West Gosforth (Lib Dem)
Recommendations made to the Council
Current view of Blue House Roundabout, High West Jesmond – from Google Maps
John Dales explained that the working group had made recommendations to the Council.
It was noted that traffic flows at the Blue House Roundabout in 2016 were 10% lower than they had been in 2008 and that this equated to approximately 400 less peak hour vehicles.
Drawing A – proposed by the Blue House Working Group
Drawing A sets out the scope of change recommended at the Blue House junction in the immediate future. This involves limited work.
Drawing B – proposed by the Blue House Working Group
Drawing B sets out how this could be further built upon in the future to increase traffic capacity if this was required. This is more major work, a bigger roundabout and demolition of the Blue House itself.
Council not able to respond to recommendations before purdah starts
The audience was interested in knowing what the next steps would be and when Newcastle City Council would respond to the recommendations it had received from the Blue House Working Group. And when Newcastle CityCouncil would publish its revised plans for the roundabout.
Graham Grant, Head of Transport Investment at Newcastle City Council said that Newcastle City Council would not be able to respond within the next two weeks and then, after 27 March 2018, the ‘purdah’ rules on the run up to the local government elections on 3 May 2018 would prevent the council from making an announcement until after the elections.
This means that local residents will not know the council plans as they go to the polls to elect their local councillors.
Following changes to the ward boundaries in Newcastle upon Tyne the local government election on 3 May will be an ‘all-out’ election with every seat being contested at the same time, rather than the normal third of the seats being up for election. All 78 seats will be up for re-election with electors voting for up to 3 candidates.
Residents were shown recommendation Drawing A – for potential development at Blue House Roundabout – photo courtesy Oliver Ross Assogna from Twitter @OliverR_Assogna
Council to undertake work
Graham Grant explained that the council was undertaking work following receipt of the recommendations from the Blue House Working Group.
He also noted that the council was keen to keep the Blue House Working Group involved as the council develops its plans.
Graham announced that the council’s work would include:
Reviewing detailed plans;
undertaking a ‘micro simulation’ model;
undertaking modelling using air quality software;
sharing the results of work with the Blue House Working Group;
discussing matters with the Stewards’ Committee of the Freeman of the City of Newcastle;
discussing with the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (North East LEP) how criteria for funding can be used; and
considering the impact of changes in the public’s travel behaviour.
Graham Grant also committed that representatives from the Blue House Working Group would be invited to meetings with both the North East LEP and the Steward’s Committee.
Questions from audience
Following questions from the audience about openness and transparency, Graham Grant also noted that he was more than happy to give access to the council’s modelling information so that those who were interested would have the opportunity to study the details.
A member of the Blue House Working Group noted that they had challenged some of the outputs from earlier data models as not making sense and when the Council reviewed these again different results were obtained. John Dales acknowledged that traffic models were always challenging.
Another audience member asked why comments/questions previously left on the Blue House Working Group website had not been responded as not responding did not fulfil the definition of engagement.
Whilst the Blue House Working Group website had been set up by Newcastle City Council and Open Labs at Newcastle University, a volunteer member of the Blue House Working Group offered an apology that the resources had not been deployed to respond to comments that had been left.
Going forwards, anyone who wishes to receive future updates from the council was asked to leave their email address with Ali Lamb. The council plans to send an update email within the next 2 weeks.
As well as local residents and stakeholders the meeting was also attended by reporters from the Newcastle Chronicle and Jesmond Local. The meeting closed at 8.30pm.
John Dales, the Independent Chair of Blue House Working Group, is inviting local residents and other stakeholders to a meeting to find out more about the Group’s recommendations about the Blue House junction and the principles that underpin them.
John will be introducing the proposals and answering questions, members of the Working Group will also be speaking about their experience of developing the proposal during their time on the group and answering questions.
You can find out more about the Working Group, read meeting notes and background papers and read the recommendations on the group’s web site.
HWJRA has represented residents
High West Jesmond Residents’ Association (HWJRA) has represented residents’ concerns and has been one of the local community groups that has contributed to the Blue House Working Group discussions on the Blue House Roundabout.
We encourage residents from High West Jesmond to attend this meeting to hear more about the recommendations made by Blue House Working Group to Newcastle City council.
Newcastle University and Newcastle University Students’ Union have recently launched their Best Neighbour on Campus competion
The aim behind Newcastle University’s Best Neighbour On Campus competition is to recognise and celebrate the positive behaviour of many of the University’s students, living in Jesmond and other parts of the city.
Nominations could range from students who have gone above and beyond to volunteer and have made an active contribution to their neighbourhood, through to students who are simply considerate of those around them.
Nominations will be judged on a monthly basis, by a panel comprising representatives of Newcastle University and Newcastle University Students’ Union, as well as local councillors, Nick Brown MP, the Business & Communities Editor of the Journal – and a number of local residents.
From this process Newcastle University plans to promote good examples of neighbourly behaviour shown by the city’s students, which we hope others will follow.
Watch the video to find out more
Newcastle University has launched a short video – watch this short film to find out more.
Nominate your student neighbours
So, do you know a student household that’s made a real difference to your community – and if so, please nominate them by visiting www.ncl.ac.uk/community-living/.
On these new pages you will also find more information about Newcastle University’s support for residents (see below also).
The winning student household will receive up to £1,000 to help with living costs such as utility bills, food shopping and rent payments.
Students invited to be a good neighbour
Newcastle University has also information for students on its website with suggestions on how to be a good neighbour.
Newcastle University notes that the city has a diverse and interconnected community, which means people of all backgrounds and professions are your neighbours.
Although your university years are an exciting time, it’s important to think about the people living around you. Developing a respect for each other is a great step in having the best living situation in your community.
To be a good neighbour you could:
introduce yourself to your neighbours when you first move in
keep noise limited – be considerate of your neighbours and the noise they might hear
avoid bringing your car unless it is absolutely essential
if you have a car, try not to park outside your neighbours’ property
keep the areas of your property that are visible to neighbours clean
Newcastle University has a dedicated page of information for residents where the university notes that it understands that, at times, problems can arise between students and permanent local residents.
The university states that “We take concerns very seriously and are committed to resolving potential issues quickly through our formal complaints procedure. If a friendly word has not helped, and you are seeking advice or would like to make a complaint, use the following contacts.”
Noise
Contact Newcastle City Council (0191 278 7878).
Staff are available from 08:30 and 16:30 (Monday to Friday).
Calls received after this time are dealt with by a 24-hour Call Centre staffed by ‘Your Homes Newcastle’ and are sent to the relevant City Council team for investigation the next day.
Operation Oak
This is an emergency anti-social behaviour contact number: 07504 898 148.
It is available between 11:00pm and 4:30am on Friday and Saturday nights.
Please text this number rather than call, as the Police/Council Officers may be attending a different incident and may not be able to answer a call immediately. If you send a text they will respond at the earliest opportunity.
Rubbish
Contact Envirocall at Newcastle City Council for all environmental services, including street cleaning, rubbish and recycling and vandalism.
Visit the Envirocall website or call 0191 278 7878 and ask for Envirocall.
Antisocial behaviour or criminal damage
Call Northumbria Police on 101.
General noise, nuisance or other complaints
Newcastle University Student Progress Service – email casework@ncl.ac.uk.
Newcastle City Council are to hold feedback sessions regarding the creation of Newcastle Parks Trust.
In November 2017, after research, discussion and consultation, Newcastle City Council’s Cabinet approved the proposal for Newcastle’s parks and allotments to be managed by a new charitable company (with ownership staying with the City) supported by the National Trust and Heritage Lottery Fund.
Recruitment of Chair and Trustees
The next stage of this project is the recruitment of the inaugural
Chair and a Board of Trustees (all voluntary roles).
The posts can be found listed with Guardian Jobs Online: https://goo.gl/TPjr3e (closes 12 February 2018).
Feedback sessions to residents planned
The Council would also like to feedback to the public, in person, at 4
locations around the City to explain what the council’s Cabinet has decided and what will happen next.
The sessions will be on:-
Sat 10 Feb 2018 – 12pm – 1pm – Jesmond Dene Visitor Centre
Mon 12 Feb 2018 – 7pm – 8pm – Nunsmoor Centre
Tue 13 Feb 2018 – 7pm – 8pm – Civic Centre Armstrong Room
Sat 24 Feb 2018 – 12pm – 1pm – Civic Centre Collingwood Suite
Friends of the Valley and Little Dene Annual Report
2017 Committee Annual Report
Although 2017 was a dormant year in terms of organised events on the Valley, it did prove to be significant for two contrasting reasons.
Thank you Warwick
The first was, sadly, losing Warwick Ogden. From his family home he had overlooked the Valley since the early 1970’s and soon became the “guardian” of what was a rather neglected open space.
The Valley, High West Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne – mid 1960’s
He witnessed and contributed to the renaissance of the Valley from being a sparsely surrounded field in the years following the Council’s 1960’s tipping contract, to the beautiful open space that it now is.
He was one of our founder members. So we owe a big thank you to Warwick for all his efforts over 45 years.
The Valley, High West Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne in 2016
Lending a Hand
The second is that FOVALD members spread their wings during 2017.
As well as looking after the Valley surrounds and the Little Dene, a sub-group was formed, Lending a Hand, to do the landscape maintenance work in HWJ that the City Council has stopped doing, mainly on Moorfield, Little Moor and Freeman’s Park (which we now know as Litle Dene Park)).
The group meets once a week and started in early March.
By December, over 1 km of footpaths had been edged; approx 140 barrow/bag loads of leaves collected; and lots of trees & shrubs pruned.
One of the aims is to recycle all compostable material.
FOVALD adopts further park
Freeman’s Park is Town Moor land and the quality of our work persuaded the City’s Freemen to agree to FOVALD adopting the park on a similar basis to the adoption agreement that we have with the City Council for the Valley.
This means that we have responsibility for looking after all of the open spaces that abut HWJ to the north and west, i.e. the Valley, Little Dene and Freeman Park.
All lie within the City’s defined “wildlife corridor”, so we have the opportunity to introduce changes that will not only benefit and enhance the landscape but also wildlife.
So a big thank you to all residents who have contributed.
Little Moor path – the start of work by FOVALD’s Lending a Hand group, High West Jesmond, Newcastle upon TyneLittle Moor path – nearly finished! Work undertaken by FOVALD’s Lending a Hand group, High West Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne
The Landscape
There was little change to report regarding the Valley’s trees & shrubs.
The ash trees have not succumbed to “die-back” and even the old lilac on the north side, which predated the 1962 “levelling contract”, continued to bloom.
It was good to see “Joanna’s” cherry tree, on Lodore Road next to the garage, starting to make a significant contribution!
Two pear trees and another apple were planted close to an existing apple tree in the north-east corner, close to the blackberry patch – perhaps the start of a “community orchard”?
There are 2-3 trees in Little Dene that are overhanging Lodore Road that will probably need intervention during 2018.
More work was undertaken keeping weeds at bay and it is good to see that the hollies & hazels planted 5 years ago are gradually starting to form an understorey.
A lot of shrub pruning and tree “crown lifting” was carried out on Freeman’s Park, to improve visibility both within and alongside the space and to improve the structure of the plants.
A landscape action plan was produced for 2018 which received approval from the Freemen. This includes the further pruning of trees & shrubs bordering Little Dene flats, which will be the subject of consultation.
A disappointment was the loss of a substantial part of a beautiful “choisya” bush through vandalism. We are hopeful it can be nurtured back to prime condition.
Wildlife
During last winter, bird feeders were placed on the Valley close to the Little Dene.
They have attracted a variety of birds. The most notable seen on the Valley being a woodcock, a bullfinch and a lesser spotted woodpecker.
A recent bird survey in Jesmond Dene also recorded sightings of bullfinches and the lesser spotted woodpecker, plus many species that were recorded in the 2016 FOVALD survey.
This is good news in that it is evidence of the wildlife link between Jesmond Dene and the Valley & the Little Dene.
Grey squirrels continue to occupy the trees in our area.
However, it is also interesting to note that otters have recently been seen in the Dene beside Fisherman’s Lodge.
Several years ago, footprints were seen in the mud beside the culvert entrance in Little Dene and it was suspected, at that time, that the prints may have been an otter’s. Another possible wildlife corridor link!
Use of the Valley and Freeman’s Park
Without doubt, the most popular use of the Valley in 2017 was dog walking and adult socialising!
People walk around the Valley at all times of the day, with early mornings and lunchtimes being times when people tend to congregate, chat and network.
It has been described as an “outdoor community centre”!
The dryer summer months saw the usual ball games, picnics and “congregations” – large numbers of young people meeting on the Valley on some summer evenings.
Freeman’s Park is different. It is a place to pass through rather than a destination.
However, it is an attractive space and the 4 seats available are frequently used by residents wishing to sit and relax before continuing their journey.
It may be useful to undertake a user count during 2018.
Freeman Park (now also known as Little Dene Park) after maintenance work carried out by FOVALD, High West Jesmond, Newcastle upon TyneJoanna’s cherry tree, the Valley, High West Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne
Committee of Friends of the Valley and Little Dene
February 2018
Graham Grant explained that the council was undertaking work following receipt of the recommendations from the Blue House Working Group.
High West Jesmond Residents’ Association (HWJRA) has represented residents’ concerns and has been one of the local community groups that has contributed to the Blue House Working Group discussions on the Blue House Roundabout.
Newcastle University and Newcastle University Students’ Union have recently launched their Best Neighbour on Campus competion
In November 2017, after research, discussion and consultation, Newcastle City Council’s Cabinet approved the proposal for Newcastle’s parks and allotments to be managed by a new charitable company (with ownership staying with the City) supported by the National Trust and Heritage Lottery Fund.
