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DENT PARISH COUNCIL
Dent Parish Council meets on the first Monday of each month in the Sedgwick Room.
Since the local elections in May, two new Councillors have been co-opted to the Council: Margaret Fothergill has joined Graham Dalton, Peter Knapton, Ken McClurg, Ann Wilson and Geoff Woof for the Dent ward, and Jenny Pilgrim has joined Jock Cairns and David Hartley for the Cowgill Ward. At the May meeting, Jock Cairns was elected Chair and Ann Wilson became the Vice Chair.
Mike Duxbury, the Parish Clerk has reluctantly decided that he can no longer undertake the role, owing to pressure of his other commitments. The Council have been lucky to be able to appoint Kevin Price to take over from Mike in September. Kevin is Clerk to several Parish and Town Councils, including Kirkby Lonsdale, and so brings a considerable amount of experience to his new role with Dent.
Finance
The Council's financial statement for 2005/06 was approved at the June meeting, and showed an income of £26,544.64 for the year, of which £18,578.65 came from Dent Car Park. The expenditure was £17,472.24. Though this included the amount spent on running the car park in 2005/06, a number of items of expenditure for that year - such as rent to the Yorkshire Dales National Park, business rates, re-decoration of the toilet block, tree maintenance and grass cutting, which will add up to a further £8 -9,000 - will not be payable until 2006/07.
Stonehouse Bridge
The damage caused recently to Stonehouse and Lea Yeat bridges by lorries and coaches trying to cross them or, most recently, reversing into the parapet and knocking it into the river, has caused a great deal of anger among residents, and the Council has been trying for some time to put pressure on the County Council, who are the highway authority, to carry out repairs. So when the Council was asked what items it would like to have on the agenda of the recent Neighbourhood Forum meeting that was held in Dent, it asked if someone from the Highways Department could come and speak to residents about the situation. As a result, Nick Raymond, who has responsibility for Highways in this area, came to the meeting and stated that work was due to start on Stonehouse bridge at the end of July. It will unfortunately involve closing the road for about a week while the work is carried out, but it may be possible to make special arrangements for local residents as was done in Garsdale recently. As Stonehouse Bridge is a listed structure, the work will aim to return it to the same state as it was before the damage occurred.
Gibbs Hall Phone Box
The Council has been concerned that the public phone box at Gibbs Hall is now behind a gate. After a meeting with the resident, it has now been agreed that a sign will shortly be placed on the gate to indicate that there is public access to the box. In addition, a corresponding sign will be erected at Ibeth Peril to show that the nearest phone is at Gibbs Hall.
Playing Field
At the June meeting, the Playing Field Committee was discussed and Jock Cairns and Geoff Woof then met with representatives of the Football and Cricket Clubs, who are the main users of the field. Discussions will be continuing over the Summer to explore the way forward.
Dent Folk Festival
At the July meeting, the Council passed a vote of thanks to Alec Lyon for organising yet another highly successful Folk Festival.
Next Meeting
Unless any items of urgent business occur before the end of July, the Council will not be meeting in August. The next meeting will be on at 7.30 on Monday 4th September in the Sedgwick Room, when the public will be invited to attend as usual. If anyone has any matter that they would like to raise with the Council in the meantime, please contact any one of the Councillors above.
DIALECT DIGEST
I know that Yorkshire fooak everywhere will have been saddened by the recent loss of cricketing legend Freddie Trueman. Whenever the sport is mentioned, his name is bound to crop up. A teacher from Scotland was taking a group of Yorkshire schoolboys in history and offered a prize of one pound for the best answer to the question, 'Who was the greatest man in history?' Little Tommy stuck his hand up and said, "Robert t'Bruce, sir." The teacher congratulated him, handed over the money and asked what was the reason for his answer. Tommy replied, "Weel, Ah knaws deep doon i' mi heart Ah should hev said 'Freddie Trueman' - bud business is business!"
An even earlier legend from the county, Herbert Sutcliffe, consented to take part in a charity match between two Yorkshire village teams, which attracted a tremendous crowd. Batting first, Herbert thought a six would be fitting and, stepping down the wicket, he slipped on the poor-quality turf and missed the ball completely. The wicket-keeper gathered it and whipped the bails off, shouting 'Howzat' in a voice that could be heard all over Yorkshire. The umpire gazed sadly at the lad before replying, witheringly, "Nut oot! Dis thoo think all thease fooak hev cum ti wetch thoo stump?
Michael Park
SETTLEBECK HIGH SCHOOL
Mini-Bus: Seat Belt Regulations
New regulations governing the use of child seat and seatbelts and are due to come into force in September 2006. In terms of taking young people on trips the relevant section states:
What are the seat belt wearing rules in mini-buses and coaches?
Seat belt wearing is already compulsory in mini-buses. The driver is responsible for seat belt wearing by children under 14 years.
The new regulations will mean that seated passengers aged 3 years and above will have to use seat belts where they are fitting in the larger buses and coaches. In vehicles with over 16 seats, the driver is exempt from this responsibility because he cannot be expected to monitor seat belt wearing and drive safely at the same time.
The regulations for this will be laid in parliament at the same time as the child seat regulations. Subject to parliamentary approval, they are intended to come into force during September.
If you carry young people aged under 14 in a private car then as the driver you are responsible for ensuring they wear a seat belt. Above the age of 14, young people become responsible for themselves but it would be prudent to ensure they wear a seat belt.
The regulations are fairly complex but these two areas are very clear.
A SEDBERGH VIEWPOINT
I drove through Kirkby Stephen recently and was surprised to see that the mini-roundabout nearest to Brough (by the Co-op) had been removed. I wonder why. Had there been accidents? I've noticed over the past few months that Sedbergh's spot on the road min-roundabout is wearing thin in more ways than one. I've witnessed a lot of near misses because traffic on Finkle Street / Loftus Hill have driven straight across without the hint of even a cursory look along Back Lane. It is only because visibility from Back Lane is so poor that drivers approaching from that direction do so cautiously and are ready to stop quickly even if they have the right of way. I do fear that there is an accident waiting to happen there. I think there might be merit in removing this roundabout too - but that's only my viewpoint.
I've heard much criticism these past few weeks about a large sign at Long Lane / Maryfell announcing modernisation of the "council houses" there. If you haven't seen it, it is worth a look. Talk about a blot on the landscape. It is bigger than many motorway signs fixed to poles that appear to be thicker than street light columns. Folk think it is totally un-necessary (I agree) and folk who have bought their houses are not too chuffed about a sign which might suggest that they too are benefiting from the scheme. I just wonder whether it has planning approval.
The gas main renewal work in Main Street has been proceeding at a pace for the last two months. And what a pace! No doubt a complicated job but it seems to be taking for ever. The Post Office and the Dalesman were under siege for about two months, and the traffic lights kept everyone waiting too (except when they were working only at one end). Sometimes the workers were only there a couple of days a week and often packed up mid-afternoon. If the present rate of progress is maintained they might make New Street by April I guess. A job which has to be done, no doubt, but it is a shame for Sedbergh that it is taking so long.
The Book Town project seems to be proceeding at a rather better pace. Congratulations to all who have worked hard to make it happen. Good publicity recently on TV and in the Dalesman magazine. Don't forget the Book and Drama Festival which starts on 20th August and no doubt is advertised elsewhere in this Lookaround.
As you know I like to keep the local politicians on their toes. I was delighted therefore to see reports in last month's Lookaround by our local MP and by our local Liberal SLDC Councillor (under the heading Councillors' Corner). Keep it up, please. We like to be informed of what you are doing for us.
Being a councillor is probably quite a stressful occupation, but seemingly so is working for the council. I heard with amazement that SLDC staff have forms to fill in to record their stress - surely stress is part of the job. But I wonder who stresses whom in the councillor - staff relationship.
Well, the school summer holidays are here and I wish you all a happy holiday. A welcome too to all who are visiting Sedbergh for their holiday.
Best wishes,
N Hastle.
CUMBRIA WILDLIFE TRUST
Our Local Reserves: Smardale Gill
This unique reserve is situated about one mile south of Kirkby Stephen and can be reached via Newbiggin or the Smardale hamlet itself. It occupies a three and a half mile section of disused railway which once ran from Tebay to Darlington. At the northern end, the reserve also includes steep wooded slopes of the gill carved by Scandale Beck whilst south of the viaduct the character changes to open rolling countryside.
Because of the abundance of flora and fauna found here, the reserve has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Evidence of man's activities in the area, long before the coming of the railway, is abundant. The remains of a Romano-British settlement can still be seen on the lower slopes of Crosby Garrett fell. Smardale Bridge was originally built for the pack horses of the 15th century. Old charcoal pitsteads are visible testimony to managed woodland and a metal-smelting industry.
The railway was started in 1857 to transport coke from the coalfields of Durham to the furnaces of Barrow and the west coast. This route required a splendid viaduct constructed in 1860 of local sandstone and using lime mortar produced from the nearby lime-kilns. The line closed in 1962. In 1990 the Northern Viaduct Trust carried out major repairs making it safe for visitors to the reserve.
Cumbria Wildlife Trust is managing the track-side areas where birch, willow and
hazel have colonised the banks. Primroses, bluebells, ramsons and many fern species can be seen in spring in the older more diverse woodland areas which are also frequented by roe deer and red squirrels. Bird species include redstart, wood warbler and pied flycatcher in the summer with buzzard, treecreeper and sparrowhawk in evidence all year round.
The grassland areas are dominated by blue moor grass, rare elsewhere in Britain. Amongst this grows a number of herb species such as bloody cranesbill, birds foot sedge, common rockrose and wild thyme. Common spotted orchid, fly and fragrant orchids also grow on the grassy slopes of the embankments and cuttings.
The grass attracts a rare butterfly, the Scotch Argus. Its eggs are laid on the leaves of the blue moor grass, a staple food of the caterpillars. Adults can be seen flying in late July to early September. Smardale is one of just two sites in England where the butterfly occurs. Others to look out for include common blue, northern brown argus and dingy skipper. The Trust is managing the grasslands by scrub removal and light sheep grazing to maintain the rich flora and invertebrate fauna.
Although the reserve is always open to visitors, why not take advantage of the Open Day scheduled for August 20th? Family activities and home-made teas are added attractions.
More information is available at the Tourist Information Centre.
Susan Garnett
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