West Parley Parish Council
To carry out the rescheduled essential drainage works, cancelled because of SGN's emergency closure of Christchurch Road, Dorset Council now plan to close Longham double mini roundabout between Sunday 7th and Friday 12th January 2024.
For more information please see the Dorset Council closure notice.
Five miles of highway maintenance will be done on the A338 Spur Road, between Ashley Heath roundabout on the A31 and Blackwater junction at Christchurch Road.
Temporary restrictions will be put in place between Monday, November 6 and Friday, November 10. The closures will be from 9pm to 6am with the southbound carriageway shut on November 6 and 7, and the northbound closed on November 8 and 9. It is expected to fully reopen on November 10 at 6am.
Dorset Council says a signed diversion route will be in place via the A31 Ringwood Road to Ferndown and then onto New Road. After that, signs will take drivers to Christchurch Road and then Parley Lane past the airport and back to Blackwater junction. The council warns fines of up to £1,000 will be handed out to drivers who drive on Spur Road during the overnight closures.
The Fund provides a helping hand to low-income households in the Dorset Council area. For eligibility criteria, please check Dorset Council's Household Support Fund webpage.
The Household Support Fund Round 4 opens 10am 2nd November, with a further round opening 5th December.
West Parley and Ferndown appear to be subjected to numerous roadworks and road closures presently. An update on the current plans for, or affecting, West Parley are as follows:
Christchurch Road (close to Longham roundabouts)
will remain closed until 30 November.
The Parish Council have asked Dorset Council to liaise with the contractor regarding improved signage & the correct positioning of signage to help combat the volume of traffic using the smaller roads, and especially HGVs.
New Road (south of Parley Cross at the new junction with the development site)
manned 2-way temporary signals; 9am – 7pm,
commencing 30th October and completed by 10th November.
New Road (Parley Cross to Dudsbury Avenue)
resurfacing works have been postponed and are now planned to take place between 21/03/24 – 28/03/24.
Following reports of a road being installed across the footpath which crosses the New Road development, a member of the Parish Council visited the site and spoke with a contractor. They informed the Councillor that this was a 'haul road' and was not permanent. The footpath is subject to a Dorset Council approved diversion for 6 months since 16th June 2023. For more information please see the temporary footpath closure notice.
Due to unforeseen circumstances Dorset Council have unfortunately had to change purposed dates for planned maintenance works at, New Road, West Parley.
Planned Closure between 17th and 24th November 2023 between the hours of 8pm and 6am,and will re-open to traffic daily and at weekends. For more information please see the latest New Road closure notice.
Subsequent to the resignation of Councillor Ann Morgan, would residents please note there is a vacancy in the office of Parish Councillor. For more information please see the Notice of Casual Vacancy.
Citizens Advice are holding a Halloween-themed Family Fun Day on Sunday 29th October, 10am-2pm at the Allendale Centre, Wimborne. All funds raised will go to Citizens Advice in East Dorset & Purbeck. For more information please see this Citizens Advice poster (pdf).
Dorset Council is required by law to review all polling district, polling places and polling stations in the Dorset Council area.
The electoral register for Dorset Council is divided into approximately 400 local areas (polling districts) and by law every polling district must be assigned a polling place where electors can go to vote. Around 320 buildings are used as polling stations by Dorset Council with most being village and church halls, schools and community centres. This review aims to ensure that voting arrangements for future elections suit the needs of electors in each area, so that electors have access to reasonable facilities for voting.
The Council is consulting the public to seek their comments on the suitability of the polling station where they voted in person. The Council is also consulting local political parties, local party agents, parish and town councils, MPs and local disability groups.
The review starts today, and the consultation finishes on the 13 November. We would very much welcome your views. Please see this consultation document and information about the current polling arrangements.
On the subject of Elections, please remember the new requirement to provide photo id when voting at Polling Stations.
For more information please click on this Electoral Comission link.
The speed of traffic within the village is something that is always a concern for residents; be it that the traffic is at a standstill or travelling too fast.
With frequent congestion at the crossroads, many vehicles take to the side roads to beat the queues which impacts Dudsbury Road and Chine Walk. We recently commissioned Dorset Council to undertake traffic surveys on both roads to establish whether or not they meet the criteria for installing Speed Indicator Devices (SIDs) SIDs are vehicle activated signs displaying the real-time speeds of passing vehicles. They are effective in highlighting the speed to drivers and are moved between locations every 6 weeks. The SID is mounted on a post, the location of which is determined by Dorset Council after they have given consideration to matters such as : not creating an obstruction to users of the pavement; ensuring a clear view down the highway for oncoming vehicles, no overhanging vegetation and the absence of a tree canopy as the SID is solar.
The results of the surveys showed that the average speed of vehicles on Chine Walk did not meet with Dorset Council criteria for a SID installation. The section of Dudsbury Road from New Road to the junction with Ellesfield Drive was surveyed. The speed of vehicles travelling from New Road, failed to meet criteria due predominantly to the bend prior to the Ellesfield Road junction; along with a frequency of parked vehicles. However, the average speed of vehicles travelling from the Ellesfield Road junction towards New Road, did meet the criteria for the installation of a SID.
You may have noticed that a post has recently been installed on Dudsbury Road, in preparation. The SID is shared with Ferndown Town Council and will be moved between this site and one of their sites on a rota basis to ensure the effectiveness is maintained. We hope that the introduction of the SID will act as a reminder to drivers to keep within the speed limits.
Dorset Council do not support the installation of SIDs on 40mph roads, which excludes New Road or Christchurch Road from this initiative however we continue to raise our highways concerns with Dorset Council.
You may have seen 20mph limits in neighbouring areas and one of the criteria is the presence of a Community Speedwatch Group. This is something that the Parish Council would also like to progress, but we need more volunteers to be able to get this started. If you are interested, please email the Parish Clerk..
There are reports of 1 attempted and 1 successful break in on Dudsbury Road last night. A grey VW Transporter Van (HJ71 ZGC) was stolen off the drive of one property. Please check any CCTV or video doorbells, in case you have any footage of 2 individuals in dark clothing just prior to 1am this morning. Please contact Dorset Police if you have any information to assist their investigation.
A reminder to residents to ensure your property and outbuildings are secure and please check in on more vulnerable neighbours.
Residents please note that Christchurch Road near Longham is currently closed for emergency gas pipe replacement works, expected to be completed by the 9th October.
For more details please see the latest Christchurch Road Closure Notice.
For all the contact information and how to access the books, please click on this link (pdf).
