After the rains... the clean up in Calderdale
Plus, council U-turn on gritting cuts and this week's cultural guide
Hello and welcome to the third issue of The Calderdale Lead.
I hope you all managed to stay safe, warm and well last weekend as Storm Bert smashed its way through the borough causing carnage and flooding.
In today’s edition we look at how the clean-up efforts are going and how the various agencies and partners prepared for the arrival of Storm Bert.
Plus, we look at the council’s decision to scrap plans to cut gritting routes and we have our usual Wednesday run down of the best cultural events happening over the next week.
But first, Storm Bert…
If there’s ever such a thing as a perfect storm, Calderdale experienced it at the weekend.
The arrival of an actual storm - cheerily named Bert - and the thawing of the previous week’s snow and ice brought chaos and worry to the borough.
Roads were closed, communities cut off, train services cancelled and businesses - already hard hit by cost of living crisis - were left to count the costs of a pre-Christmas weekend of low trade.
But the clean-up operation is now well underway and the LDRS’ John Greenwood has been finding out more about not only that but the kind of planning that went in to mitigating the impact of the storm.
Calderdale Council’s Deputy Leader, and Cabinet member for Climate Action and Housing, Coun Scott Patient, thanked all who supported the council and partners before, during and after the intense period of rainfall experienced.
“As a local councillor and flood warden who was on the ground, I saw first-hand the response from council staff, local people, the flood warden network and our partner organisations.
“As usual, everyone was incredible – difficult situations like this really do demonstrate the amazing kindness of our communities, he said.
Coun Patient said on Saturday, weather warnings of rain and snow were in place for the borough.
“The council, the Environment Agency, emergency services and other organisations were working hard to prepare before the storm hit, with measures, plans and extra resources in place.
“For the council this included clearing gullies and trash screens in flood prone areas and checking culverts.
“On the basis of the forecast, the council also deployed Highways teams throughout the day to respond as weather conditions worsened,” he said.
Following flood warnings issued and flood sirens sounded in Walsden, Todmorden and Hebden Bridge, Hebden Bridge Town Hall was opened as a rest centre for anyone requiring support in that town, he said.
Some clear-up work was still continuing, said Coun Patient.
“Although there were a number of road closures, these were in large part due to surface water flooding, with the majority of issues caused by the intense amount of rainfall, surface run off and snow from the hillsides.
“The clean-up operation is continuing and teams are busy removing debris from the road.
“There is still some surface water at Callis Bridge and we’re working with the fire service to clear this as quickly as possible,” he said.
Coun Patient said “thankfully” the forecast looks much improved for the week ahead.
“But we remain ready to respond if necessary,” he added.
“We keep a close eye on forecasts, especially throughout the winter months, when storms are more likely and can be more severe.”
Coun Patient encouraged residents in flood risk areas to sign up to receive free flood warnings.
Registering for these can be done by calling Floodline on 0345 988 118 or visiting www.eyeoncalderdale.com, which also includes a lot of other information and advice to help people in flood-hit areas to plan where possible and deal with occurring incidents.
U-turn on the gritters
Elsewhere, Calderdale Council has confirmed it is scrapping plans to make cuts to gritting routes, reports Local Democracy Reporter John Greenwood.
The proposals to reduce the number of places which would be gritted on a precautionary basis received a huge backlash from residents and from opposition political parties.
The changes, approved in the ruling Labour group’s budget earlier this year, were due to come into effect on December 1.
Now, the authority has confirmed those changes will no longer take place.
Council Leader Coun Jane Scullions said the impact of severe weather creates extreme challenges in Calderdale in keeping residents safe.
“We understand this and have listened.
“We pride ourselves on keeping people safe, whilst also balancing our budget in tough times as we must do legally.
“We will think again, consider what other ways we can achieve these savings, and put these options to all councillors to consider when we launch our proposed budget in the new year, and when we approve our final budget in February 2025,” she said.
Cabinet member for Regeneration and Transport, Coun Sarah Courtney added the main priority has always been public safety during the winter months, and delivering the best service within available resources.
“It’s not possible for us to grit every street and road.
“Whilst the proposed changes agreed at the budget meeting earlier this year meet our statutory duties as a highway authority, we have carefully considered the large volume of concerns we have received from local residents, and have decided not to enact the proposed changes to our Winter Service.
“We have asked officers to undertake further work on efficiencies over coming weeks, and will seek to maximise our scarce resources the best we can.
“This will not lead to any reduction in the current precautionary gritting routes.
“We recognise these actions will not address the financial pressures caused by delivering our current winter service in Calderdale, with its steep-sided hills and valleys.
“This means we will need to consider further alternative savings, at an unprecedented and difficult time for local councils, as we set the council budget next year,” she said.
The council continues to encourage use of grit bins for those residents that qualify for one.
It will be writing to all households affected over the next week to ensure they are fully informed of this revised position.
Now, here’s this week’s Culture Guide:
November 28 - Paddy McGuinness: Nearly There… - Victoria Theatre, Halifax
Fresh from his cycling exploits - which saw the Bolton funny man ride from Wrexham to Glasgow on a Chopper (!), Paddy McGuinness is hitting the road again and lands in Halifax tomorrow.
Expect plenty of laughs, observations on life and a look back on his TV career - Phoenix Nights, Max and Paddy, Top Gear and Question of Sport to name just a few - as part of his new tour.
Oh, and probably some of talk about how sore his backside is after his £8m+ charity challenge for Children in Need!
Limited tickets are still available. Click here for more details.
November 29 - The Full Band Jam - The Jam Shack, Halifax
The Jam Shack at the Piece Hall is hosting another of it’s jam nights this Friday.
It’s a great chance for musicians to get together, socialise, improvise and meet other musicians.
Starts at 7pm and takes place every last Friday of the month.
An under-16s jam night is taking place on Sunday, starting from 5pm.
For more information click here.
November 30 - Bottomless Brunch with Diana DoGood - The Mill, Walsden
One of the hottest acts on the local drag scene, Diana DoGood returns to Calderdale for a special bottomless brunch this weekend.
Diana will have you laughing from start to finish with her quick wit, comedy cabaret, audience interactions and games.
There’s lots of different packages available including bottomless drinks, bottomless food, a mix of both and show-only!
Whichever you choose, you’re sure to enjoy bottomless laughs with Burnley’s Queen of Drag Diana!
For more information and tickets, click here.
That’s it for today’s issue, I’ll be back on Saturday with our usual long-read edition.
Until, enjoy the rest of you week!
Andrew