Hereford Voice

Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service deployed boat crews from Hereford and Worcester stations, a drone was used from Ledbury Fire Station and another fire crew from Fownhope were all mobilised to reports of a person in the River Wye in Hereford.

A Police helicopter was seen hovering over the River Wye using a search light and emergency services were near to the Bunch of Carrots. The incident was finally left with West Mercia Police

We reported the story late last night here https://hfd.news/kud

Here's a wonderful photo of one of the regular coal trains crossing the river along the Great Western Way from our Old Hereford Pics archive.

Who remembers when the trains were active along the GWW?

Herefordshire Council teams have recently completed a programme of resurfacing and drainage works on the U71005 - Sellack Boat, Kings Caple in Herefordshire

Leader of Herefordshire Council, Cllr David Hitchiner, has announced changes to Cabinet Member portfolios, to take effect from 1 August 2021.

Leader of Herefordshire Council, Cllr David Hitchiner

Councillor Pauline Crockett will step down from Cabinet due to personal reasons, but will continue her duties as a ward member.

Councillor Felicity Norman is the new Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Wellbeing, and Councillor Jenny Bartlett will continue as Cabinet Support Member.

Councillor Diana Toynbee’s Children’s and Family Services portfolio returns to the full list of responsibilities which Councillor Felicity Norman had when she had this portfolio, but with the addition of Councillor Kath Hey who is appointed as an additional Cabinet Support to support Young People’s Attainment, including post-16 education, training and skills development.

This additional support role is important to reflect the responsibilities that Councillor Toynbee has concerning the Improvement journey in Children’s Services and also the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young people and to ensure that the county’s education and skills are aligned and delivered effectively.

The new Cabinet will come into effect from Sunday 1 August 2021:

• Councillor David Hitchiner - Leader of Herefordshire Council / Corporate strategy and budget
• Councillor Liz Harvey – Deputy Leader of Herefordshire Council / Finance, Corporate Services and Planning
• Councillor Diana Toynbee - Children’s and Family Services, and Young People’s Attainment
• Councillor Gemma Davies - Commissioning, Procurement and Assets
• Councillor Ellie Chowns – Environment and Economy
• Councillor Felicity Norman - Health and Adult Wellbeing
• Councillor John Harrington - Infrastructure and Transport
• Councillor Ange Tyler - Housing, Regulatory Services and Community Safety

West Mercia Police wrote;

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"A statement from Superintendent Edd Williams following videos that have recently been circulating on social media.

“We’re aware of two videos circulating on social media filmed at Leominster and Hereford Police Stations showing our officers engaging with a man who was filming in a public place, outside the police station.

Whilst anyone can legally film in a public place there are security and safety considerations around filming police buildings.

Our officers are trained to measure the threat, harm and risk of incidents and act accordingly, and where necessary will challenge individuals.

“However, while it is only right that officers do challenge individuals this should be done in a friendly, professional and appropriate manner.

We recognise the behaviour of one officer in the videos is not to the standard we would expect when engaging with the public and have spoken to the officer about this.

“Our officers will continue to be proactive in addressing security concerns in and around police premises, which is as much about protecting the public as it is our own workforce.”

 

Hereford Video https://youtu.be/10BTI0woGfU

Leominster Video https://youtu.be/cWlN_NLBJtk

#HerefordVoice | #HerefordNews | #LeominsterNews

‘Hereford City Life’ backed by Hereford BID are launching the ‘Hereford Gift Card’!

They are launching a brand new gift card to help encourage customers to spend their money with local Hereford businesses.

The Hereford Gift Card is a pre-paid ‘Master Card’ based programme, that can be accepted by independents and nationals within Hereford city centre.

Consumers

The new Hereford Gift Card can be purchased as a gift for a family member or friend or even to give to someone to say thank you. The gift card is just like any other gift card that you see on the high street and you will be able to use it to spend in many of the local shops, cafés, restaurants and bars and all participating businesses in Hereford City Centre including Marks and Spencers, Primark, New Look, Timothy Hawkins Gallery, Saxtys, Pleasance and Harper, Toni and Guy, Fox and Mabel...to name but a few however, a full list of those participating businesses will be provided once the gift card is launched in the next few months, just in time for Christmas!!

Businesses

This scheme is another great way to encourage visitors to shop and spend with your business and can benefit many sectors, including retail, hospitality, leisure and service. 

How do I register?

To register your business as an approved Hereford Gift Card location, please visit the registration page here https://hfd.news/kwj and follow the steps outlined.

Costs

Being an approved location for the Hereford Gift Card will cost you nothing other than the levy you already pay to us. Every penny the customer spends on the card will be loaded on the card too - there are no hidden fees!

What if I have more questions?

If you have more queries about the Hereford Gift Card and registering your businesses, you can find FAQs on the Hereford BID website using our link - https://hfd.news/2so or alternatively, please feel free to contact Hereford BID by email info@herefordbid.co.uk 

Reduce, reuse, recycle, recover – a new way for managing waste

Reducing the amount of waste we produce, and reusing and recycling where possible, benefits the county and the environment, and is the aim of a new waste strategy for Herefordshire agreed at the council’s cabinet meeting today (29 July).

The new waste strategy sets out the changes that will be taking place to the way that household and business waste is collected and then treated, and schemes that support and encourage a reduction in the amount of waste being produced. These include:

• Reduce – promoting schemes that reduce the amount we throw away such as community fridge schemes
• Reuse – supporting organisations that repair and reuse items, community share schemes and encouraging donations to charity
• Recycle – composting garden waste, supporting people to recycle more
• Recover – introducing a new kerbside food waste collection and producing energy from food waste

The small proportion of waste remaining will only then go to landfill.

The strategy also sets out changes to the black bin and recycling collections based on feedback from a resident consultation held earlier this year, when around 3,500 people told us what worked well for them and what could be improved about their kerbside collection service.

A number of pilot schemes will trial these changes to see what works best, so that they can be introduced across the county in the most effective way.Cllr Gemma Davies, cabinet member commissioning, procurement and assets said:

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“We want to introduce and support more ways for people to reuse and recycle, reduce the amount of waste we all produce and ultimately reduce what goes to landfill, as this benefits residents and communities and is better for the environment. Our new waste strategy sets out clear measures to achieve this.

“The council’s waste collection and disposal contracts are due to end in 2024. It is important that we use this opportunity to align our waste strategy with our vision for a more sustainable county and our declared climate and ecological emergency, and to fully consider how to make changes to meet the requirements of the government’s 2018 Resources and Waste Strategy for England.

“I am particularly excited to see how we can work with our local communities to support and encourage people to reuse and recycle more. They do say one person’s trash is another person’s treasure - and we have set an ambitious target to increase the amount of recycling in the county. We also intend to make better use of our garden waste for composting and food waste to produce energy.”

 

The new waste strategy, as well as the outcome of the rubbish and recycling consultation, can be found on the Herefordshire Council website.

Police in Hereford are appealing for information following a racially aggravated assault in the city.

The incident happened in the Church Street area of the city at around 4.00pm on Wednesday 7 July 2021. The victim sustained facial injuries as a result.

Officers are appealing for any witnesses to come forward with information and are particularly interested in identifying the man shown in the image below.

If you have any information please contact PC Karol Kujawa on 07971 395081 quoting incident number 369i of the 7th July 2021 or report anonymously using the Tell Us About section of the website.

Following on from our article yesterday here 👉 https://hfd.news/hwo Andrew Thompson, aged 52, Hereford, has been charged with attempt murder and will appear in Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court today (Thursday 29 July).

He has been charged in relation to an incident that occurred in the early hours of Tuesday (27 July) in Dartmouth Court, Hereford.

The cordons have now been released and we would like thank the community for their patience and help with our investigation.

Officers have arrested a 52-year-old man from Hereford on suspicion of attempted murder.

The arrest was made after police were alerted to an incident at an address in Dartmouth Court at 2.12am on Tuesday 27 July.

A man has received treatment for stab injuries to his neck and abdomen, he is now in a stable condition.

A cordon remains in place at Dartmouth Court.

The 52-year-old remains in custody while the investigation continues.

We are asking for members of the public that may have seen or heard anything suspicious in the area of Dartmouth Court between 2am - 3am on Tuesday 27 July to please contact us via the website or via 101 quoting reference 55i of 27 July.

The Centre, which is owned by the Council and managed by Social Enterprise and Registered Charity Halo Leisure was forced to close in March 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The original plan was to reopen in August 2020 along with all other leisure facilities, however, this wasn’t possible due to severe and deliberate damage caused to the roof of the Centre through vandalism.

Since then the contractors working on behalf of the Council have made the building watertight and repaired the substantial water damage caused by the vandalism. The Centre is now due reopening ahead of schedule today.

Alex Haines, Halo Partnership Manager said:

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"When the centre reopens it is going to be a real hub of activity with gym workouts, an exciting range of exciting group exercise classes, badminton, sports hall activities and library all under one (recently repaired) roof. Bookings are now open on the Halo Leisure Bromyard Centre app for gym and group exercise sessions".

Cllr Gemma Davies, Cabinet member for commissioning, procurement and assets, said:

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“We have all been frustrated that The Bromyard Centre has had to remain closed for such a long time, and we are very sorry that needless vandalism prevented the Centre from re-opening much sooner. The benefits that come from such community assets, including boosts for physical and mental health, and community cohesion, are needed now more than ever.

“Halo customers and the community in general have been anxious to see their Centre return to business, and we are delighted that it will be re-opening its doors this month, providing a great way for residents to get active and enjoy themselves this summer.”

Supporting Local Business | Sensory & Rye are opening in the former 'British Heart Foundation' shop opposite the Kerry, but they need a little bit of local support...

Over the last 6 years we have seen the incredible rise in Herefords food scene and they have been right at the heart of it.

Based in Bastion Mews they have built this creative, beautiful restaurant, packed with good vibes, stunningly beautiful food and some of the best coffee in Hereford!

Bastion Mews has been their original home, but they are restricted by size and their ideas, passion and creativity needs space to grow!

They are moving into the British Heart Foundation building, just across from where they are now and they are already in the process of turning it into the most incredible restaurant! The additional space will Sensory & Rye to offer a dinner menu, live music, breakfast, brunch and lunches as well as many more ideas that they have secretly kept up their sleeves.

Their small team have made huge strides in the renovations, but they need local support to help them to complete the journey.

If you would like to help, full details https://bit.ly/3wWxEu8

In a post on their Facebook page Hereford Police wrote;

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"We attended a report of 2 distressed dogs in the rear of a vehicle parked in an underground car park today. They had been there for 90 minutes and temps inside the vehicle still registering at nearly 30c even in the shade.

We WILL take action to protect a dog in distress! Entry forced and 2 dogs checked over by a local vet with signs of a mild heatstroke but recovered well with some fresh air and water"

Unbelievable that some people think it's okay to leave animals in vehicles, particularly in this extreme heatwave

Cabinet members in Herefordshire Council are facing a slew of questions after the city’s major road project careered out of control.

Furious residents want answers and have submitted numerous questions to the cabinet about the City Link Road which faces a £6 million overspend, jeopardising the Transport Hub and improvements the Commercial, Newmarket and Blue School Street elements, as well as flood mitigation measures in Hereford.

Image | Google 

The ruling Coalition leaders will meet on Thursday to discuss the matter and have expressed grave concerns about the ‘casual culture of overspend’ they say was the hallmark of the previous Conservative administration's approach to the delivery of major capital projects. Cabinet member for transport, John Harrington, said

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'the previous administration, which held power for 12 years before losing to the coalition of Herefordshire Independents, IOC and The Green Party in May 2019, seemed unaware, or unwilling, to get to grips with what was: ‘at best a lazy approach to procurement that simply sought to shift all projects out to Balfour Beatty to deliver, without anywhere near the tight internal project management and oversight we should have been exercising as a council’.

At a public Cabinet meeting this Thursday, 22nd July, members will debate a report which they say highlights a litany of errors and possible cover-ups which took place at the council under the Conservatives between 2015-2019. The current administration say previous cabinet members and officers played down the ballooning cost of the compulsory purchase orders needed to deliver the road element of the Hereford City Centre Transport Package. Coun Harrington claims the public and opposition councillors who challenged promises that ‘the most expensive piece of tarmac in England’ was delivered on time and to budget, were misled.

Coalition members committed themselves to unearthing the overspend on the city road scheme during a purge to improve project management and governance of major infrastructure projects in the council.

Cabinet Member for Finance, Liz Harvey said:

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‘At exactly the same time as past Chief Executive, Alistair Neal, was providing assurances to the Council’s Audit and Governance Committee that lessons would be learned and the council’s project management culture would be improved following the £1m overspend on refurbishing the council's Blueschool House, the City Link Road project was careering off the financial rails. This is another Blueschool House - with bells on, with an overspend of over £6 million.’

How Did Hereford’s City Link Road Spiral Out of Control?

Investigations commissioned by the current cabinet into value for money around council capital projects have concluded that land block purchases at the station end of the road created an early £3.8m overspend on the Link Road. The Coalition administration say this hole in the project’s finances was masked by combining the original stand-alone City Link Road project with an entirely separate Marches LEP funded project intended to deliver a transport hub at the station, public realm improvements on Commercial Road, Blueschool Street and Newmarket Street, providing much needed safe walking and cycling routes from the city to the railway station. The GP hub and new student accommodation along the Link Road were included and the combined project was rebranded as the Hereford City Centre Transport Package. Coun Harvey said she believed that combining of separate projects: ‘allowed Peter to rob Paul, and spiralling City Link Road costs were paid for with budgets originally set aside for the transport hub and other public realm improvements.’

Of particular concern to the current administration is the unusually high level, over 100, of 'compensation events', according to Coun Harrington, that saw contractors, Balfour Beatty Living Places, revise upwards their original bid to deliver the projects. Coun Harrington said: ‘I am not suggesting that BBLP deliberately underinflated their bid to secure the HCCTP contract, but so many compensation events during the delivery of a project raises questions about how the council managed this contract and how realistic BBLP's original bid was. We simply must not operate like this again in the future and, alongside senior officers, we have put in place procedures to ensure that all major capital projects are run by one corporate department from now on, with cross cutting responsibilities ensuring we do not ever again get the kind of silo working that I believe has led to some of the missteps that have dogged this project.’

Prior to Thursday’s cabinet meeting to discuss the matter Coun Harrington said that

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'the Coalition administration had been committed to improving project management in the council and that he was ‘extremely concerned’ when in early January 2021 officers told him that a compulsory purchase mechanism used to buy properties along the Link Road, a route of less than one mile, meant that the council had not yet finished paying for land acquired to build the road, despite the road being opened and the former administration claiming it had been delivered 'on time and in budget'.

Coun Harrington said:

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‘I had to take a decision to allow already severely depleted existing capital left in the scheme’s budget to be used to pay landowner's final settlements or the council would have faced certain legal action. I made this decision understanding that another decision would have to be taken to add capital to the programme in order to deliver the remaining elements of the package, once we had worked out what we eventually had left in the pot. I was dumbfounded by the approach taken by the previous administration, which was to keep reducing the budget for the non-road elements of the Hereford City Centre Transport Package in order to pay for the burgeoning costs of a road that is less than one mile and will end up costing us in excess of £30 million. At what point did they realise that this was not sustainable and they would have to add more capital to the project? Why didn't they bring this out into the public domain before we came in as administration and began a thorough review? Was it because they were unaware of the major problems around the finances of this project or because they chose to bury the bad news until after the May 2019 local elections?’

Coun Harrington added:

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‘In our first two years of administration, not only have we had to deal with the continued and severe effects of the national Conservative government's devastating austerity policy on rural authorities like Herefordshire, the worst floods in recorded history and an unprecedented global pandemic, but we have had to grasp and deal with structural issues, casual overspends and working practices within the council that the previous Conservative administration seem simply to have chosen to ignore for 12 years. To hear them now in opposition, pandering to the crowd and reinforcing the claptrap in some media outlets about the panacea of a western bypass, a road of several miles with an estimated cost of a quarter of a billion pounds, when they couldn't even deliver a road of less than one mile on time and on budget, just makes my brain hurt.’

Finance member, Coun Liz Harvey, commented:

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‘It’s reassuring to see that the measures we have put in place to tackle project management and governance failures are flushing out these sorts of issues. What’s concerning is the plundering of other project budgets to hide overspends on land acquisitions via the back door, and that a worrying number of unscheduled changes to the road construction contract itself have been kept under wraps for so long. The most charitable view one can take is that the previous Conservative cabinet were just asleep at the wheel. If that’s not the case, then serious questions need to be asked of those in charge at the time over the misleading statements they made to the public, to council and to the LEP in hiding this mess.’

Hereford’s looking up, with new bee-friendly bus shelters 🐝

When you’re next out and about, you may notice that three ‘green’ bus shelters with living plants on the roofs have been installed at the Red Barn Drive stop on Yazor Road, and the Memorial and Victoria bus stops on Whitecross Road. 

The roofs are planted with 16 different varieties of Sedum plants, which are known to have many benefits for the environment. As plants they help absorb CO2 and release oxygen, while their flowers are also great for bees providing a haven and a welcome food source for many different pollinators along the urban roadsides. 

The sedum plants can also filter fine dust particles and so help to purify air, cutting pollution levels and they can help to capture rain water - all while bringing a little bit of nature into the City.

Cllr John Harrington, Cabinet member for Infrastructure and Transport, said:

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“It’s marvellous to see the new sedum bus shelters in situ. They contribute to our efforts to tackle the Climate & Ecological emergency by absorbing CO2 and cutting air pollution, they’re great for bees and other pollinating insects – and with their blend of plants, they look great, too.

“We funded the shelters through the ‘greening the city’ strand of the Accelerated Towns Fund monies, and have identified shelters in prominent places that needed replacing. I’d like to thank Externiture for making this possible. They have installed quality shelters and been flexible enough to deliver the project on schedule despite several obstacles, none of which were of their making.”

Read more about the Externiture City Haven shelters and their benefits at externiture.com

Herefordshire Council is also running a Bus Service Improvement Survey from Friday 16 July to Sunday 15 August.

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“We need your views to help shape our Bus Service Improvement Plan, and therefore the future of safe, healthy transport that reflects the needs of local people,” Cllr Harrington added. “We’re looking for feedback from people who currently use buses, and those who don’t, so I’d encourage everybody to take a few minutes to complete the survey.”

To access the consultation, please visit www.herefordshire.gov.uk/bus-survey

Update 10.30am

Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service crews from Ledbury Fire Station and Hereford Fire Station are still currently dealing with a fire near the railway track in Ledbury. Fire crews are liaising with Network Rail and extinguishing the fire.

Disruption between Hereford and Worcester Foregate Street expected until 10:00

Ledbury Train Station

A fire next to the track at Ledbury is causing disruption to journeys between Hereford and Worcester Foregate Street.

Services may be cancelled, delayed or revised.

Natioanl Rail anticipate disruption will continue until 10:00.

Alternative travel advice for West Midlands Railway customers:

Replacement road transport has been requested to run in both directions between Hereford and Worcester Shrub Hill, however, this is not expected to arrive at Hereford until at least at 08:30.

📷 Wikimedia Commons

The future of Hereford’s Town Hall lies in the hands of those who love it, according to Coalition councillor Gemma Davies.

Councillor Gemma Davies

Regarding news that Herefordshire Council can no longer afford the Town Hall, Councillor Davies said:

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‘As a Herefordian, I am as sad as any that austerity has led to the neglect of our precious civil buildings such as the Town Hall. Yet, under the present conditions Herefordshire Council cannot be a responsible landlord of the Town Hall.

The Council simply does not have the money to maintain the building properly and it will only deteriorate further. We must find another solution.’

‘Herefordshire Council’s revenue support grant from central government has diminished from £60 million in 2010, to £600 thousand in 2021. The effect of that on the council’s ability to support civic buildings, never mind people and families at breaking point, has been catastrophic.’

Councillor Davies said:

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‘If ever there was a time for a partnership between the Town Hall and the community it serves, that time is now. It is time for a group to emerge that can forge a cohesive plan for how this much loved building can best serve the people of Hereford.

There is no doubt in my mind that the Town Hall is an asset of community value and I look forward to seeing how a plan for the building can develop and how Herefordshire Council can help facilitate a viable vision.’

The B4362 between Orleton and Woofferton was closed at the railway bridge earlier this afternoon. Rail services between Leominster and Ludlow were disrupted and emergency services attended the scene. Unfortunately one patient sadly died.

The road is now open.

📷 Google

Herefordshire Council teams have recently completed a programme of resurfacing and drainage works on the U75235 - Browns Lane, near The Bage, Dorstone in Herefordshire 

The incident happened around 11.15pm last night (Friday 16 July) in High Street.

A 29 year old man attended hospital for lacerations caused by a knife.

A 26 year old man and a 23 year old woman have been arrested on suspicion of assault and are currently in police custody.

Officers are carrying out enquiries and appealing for witnesses, in particular two people seen on CCTV in the area at the time.

Detective Sergeant Jim Moore, from Hereford CID, said: “We believe we have identified two people we have on CCTV who may have witnessed the assault and would ask they get in contact with us.”

Witnesses can contact Hereford CID on 01432 347399 or alternatively online under the Tell Us About section of West Mercia Police’s website (quote reference 00192_I_17072021). If you do not wish to speak to police direct you can speak to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Good to see West Mercia Police & Crime Commissioner, John-Paul Campion out on the streets with Hereford Police last night.

In line with government advice on the removal of many Covid-19 restrictions, Herefordshire Council will begin the process of removing some Emergency Active Travel Measures following the 19 July 2021. 

Some measures will be removed in the weeks following the 19th July, whilst the removal of others will follow after the summer to allow a more sensible and balanced return to pre-Covid streetscapes. 

The initial elements to be removed are:

• Footway widening in High Street Bromyard, Broad Street and King Street Hereford
• Temporary 20mph limits in Hereford and the Market Towns
• Highway Covid warning signage in Ross on Wye & Kington
• Friday closure of High Street Leominster
• Extension to closure time of Widemarsh Street Hereford

Elements to be removed at the end of September:

• Old Wye Bridge Closure Hereford
• Footway widening in Bridge Street Hereford

The following elements are to remain for the time being:

• Closure of Aubrey Street Hereford
• Advisory cycle lane on Ledbury Road Hereford

Cllr John Harrington, Cabinet member for Infrastructure and Transport, said: 

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“In line with the government’s advice that social distancing and other restrictions are no longer mandatory, we will start to return roads and pavements back to their original layout. 

“During this period many hospitality outlets have applied for pavement licences which we have been happy to support to allow these local Herefordshire businesses to trade as best as possible. Businesses will be able to continue trading until these licences expire at the end of September, so that they and patrons can enjoy the summer and school holidays.

“After some consideration we have decided to keep the Old Bridge closed to non-pedestrian or cycling traffic (except emergency vehicles, buses and taxis) until the end of September. We have seen significant increases in walking and cycling in this area during the partial closure and I hope businesses who were initially nervous have seen the benefits of slower and less congested streets. The footway widening in Bridge Street will remain in place until 30 September to support the continuing closure of the Old Bridge and street pavement licences.         

“I want to thank everyone for their input over the last few months, I know these measures were not universally popular but I believe this period of restrictions has allowed us to see a different way of using our streets. I am committed to providing the best environment for both continued use of motor vehicles in the centre of Hereford whilst encouraging better walking and cycling routes and better use of our pavements for hospitality outlets. 

“We are working towards a masterplan for the City environs and will consult fully with all stakeholders and the public to get the best input for the vision we hopefully all share for our vibrant city and market towns.”