News

July 2022

Direction of Travel Document

Councillor Steve Collela has published the update given below in the Hagley Village News regarding a draft ‘Direction of Travel’ document written by the Hagley Neighbourhood Planning Group.

The ‘Direction of Travel’ document was issued to Bromsgrove District Council.  An initial verbal update has been received and a face-to-face feedback session will be held with Bromsgrove Planners in due course. 

The planning officers were appreciative of the early sight into the direction of travel of the plan and said that it contained some useful details. Guidance was given on some of the areas that would need further quotative evidence as well as other areas which will need further work.  Greater in-depth discussions will be held at the forthcoming meeting and public consultation meetings will be planned for autumn.  

The main points that the DoT highlighted was the increase in population over recent years and its impact on infrastructure, amenities and services, Hagley is a commuter/dormitory village and as such subject to transient traffic coming through the road networks, causing significant congestion and an increase in rat-runs, Hagley has both a daytime and night-time economy and parking in and around the centre is an issue, there has been an erosion of our natural environment and loss of important trees and hedgerows, despite increase in new houses infrastructure investment has been left behind, past mistakes should be learnt and not repeated, the plan questioned if schools and Healthcare services could cope with more houses and the point was made that the Hagley Plan must be based on an integrated, strategic approach to its specific situation, not one-off, isolated actions or subject to a district one-size-fits-all plan.

Councillor Steve Colella

 

May 2022

Hagley NP Progress Report

Hagley Neighbourhood Plan May 22 update

It is very pleasing to report that great progress has been made in the development of the Hagley Neighbourhood Plan.

Over the last month the working group has been working hard on a draft plan which we have called a ‘Direction of Travel’ in which it articulates the findings from all the work streams developed from public and stakeholder consultations, collection of evidence and information and surveys.

The idea of producing the ‘Direction of Travel’ is to complete the next stage of the consultation process with the Strategic Planners at BDC.   By doing so, we can gauge areas of support as well as areas where there may be differing points of view.  Once the consultation with BDC has been completed the group will move to the draft plan stage.

It is our aim to conduct a further consultation stage by sharing the emerging plan with the public over the summer and later this year.  Once we have a plan in mind, we will set up a series of public meetings.

Please remember that this plan is for Hagley and the volunteers are working on everyone’s behalf for the good of the community.  It would be great to see as many of you as possible when we do have public meetings as I am sure you will be very interested in the work that the group has done to date.

Councillor Steve Colella

 

December 2021

Haybridge School Survey

 During November and December 2021, in conjunction with Haybridge High School and Sixth Form, we asked pupils from all year groups to complete a survey for us. The survey yielded a good response rate of 53.5% of pupils. Splitting out the results of those who live in Hagley will help us understand more about the Parish’s teenagers, things that matter to them and concerns they may have for the future?  Moving forward, we’ll analyse data from the survey in depth which in turn may be used to support our evidence base for the Neighbourhood Plan itself. In the meantime we’re happy to share some initial results with you as follows:

How do you get to school?

47.9% of respondents said they walked to school.  The next largest group of 16.8% travel in by car. 29.9%  of respondents said they get to school via public transport. 5.4% said they use other means to include only 0.2% of respondents who cycle.

What are the issues you feel are most important to you and your family?

We asked pupils to rank in importance a number of matters. “Environmental Issues and Climate Change” ranked most important for 40.5% of pupils. Second most important is “Traffic Congestion and Road Safety” with 33.2%. At the opposite end of the rankings,  “More Shops, Cafes or Restaurants” proved least important for 35.3% of respondents.

Would you like to live in Hagley?

Respondents were asked if they would like to live in Hagley after they had finished school?  73.6% of them said no. Of those who said no, the main reason given is to Attend University by 33.8% of respondents. Job Opportunities came next at 15.9%. The third main reason is Housing costs at 14.4%. 35.8% gave other reasons to include 8.8% of respondents who said they wanted Independence from Family.

 

May 2021 

Footways (pavements) within Hagley

As you will be aware, the Hagley Neighbourhood Plan team are concerned with the general condition of the footways (pavements) within Hagley. During lockdown more and more people have been out walking and, while it is to be hoped that this continues as we go back to normal, this has highlighted the poor condition of some footways and the dangers that this creates for our older residents.

Members of the Movement Group within the Neighbourhood Plan Team have recently updated their database on the state of Footways (Pavements) in and around Hagley. Any dangerous trips or severe surface deterioration have been reported to WCC with a request for action. In our experience they have actioned, at least, the most dangerous trips.

In the future, all members of the Neighbourhood Plan team will report any changes in the condition of our Footways that they observe while walking around Hagley to the Movement Group, and the database will be updated on a regular basis. In the longer term this database will be handed over to the Clerk to the Parish Council to maintain.

You should note that an existing process exists whereby, if you see a major problem with the Footways, you can report it to the Clerk who will pursue it with WCC. This is an ad-hoc process, and any reports that you make will be fed into the database. The Clerk can be contacted as follows:

email: clerk@hagleyparishcouncil.gov.uk           Telephone: 01562 886239

April 2021
Wyre Forest Local plan Examination 

A great deal has been happening on Transport and Traffic issues in the last few months.

Peter King (Vice Chairman of Hagley Parish Council) represented Hagley at the Wyre Forest Local Plan Examination in January and February, supported on traffic issues by Tony Helliwell of the Hagley Neighbourhood Plan Group.

Hagley’s objections to the proposed developments at Lea Castle and Kidderminster East were tabled in written form and discussed at the Examination meeting; we argued that Wyre Forest should not be allowed to build more houses than was required by government and that mitigation should be implemented to remove any impact on Hagley from the inevitable increase in traffic that would be created. Bromsgrove District Council (Mike Dunphy) also objected that WFLP proposals were unsound on the basis that up to date traffic data and analysis was not available and that due process had therefore not been followed. The results of the Examination are awaited.

Useful information was forthcoming in the Examination:

• An expansion of parking at Blakedown Railway Station (in the former station yard) and at Kidderminster Station is planned
• The County Council have approached Midlands Connect for funding for upgrades to the A456 and A491.

March 2021

 Footpaths in and around Hagley

Have there been any benefits from lockdown?  Perhaps having more time together as a family or maybe more opportunity to keep fit?

During the pandemic period, there has been a noticeably large increase in the number of families and individuals, using the network of roadside footpaths in Hagley and the public footpaths in the surrounding Green Belt countryside.  It is also well known that people can benefit from recreational activity  and improve their the physical and mental health well-being.

Have you or your family members been walking, running, cycling or exercising a dog in and around Hagley during the pandemic?

If so, you can help the Neighbourhood Plan Group volunteers who are working on proposals to improve or expand the network of safe recreational footpath and cycleway routes.

• Are there any safety issues on the pathways or roads you have used?
• Is access restricted to some public footpaths for push chairs or wheel chairs?
• Would you walk or cycle on more routes if access and safety issues were improved?
• Should the public footpath network be improved and extended to give safer access to the countryside for a wider cross section of the community?

Let us know what you think. Your ideas and opinions will be very helpful.

Please submit your thoughts by completing the form on the contact us page. 

December 2020

Junction changes in Hagley

Councillor Steve Colella (Hagley Parish Council and Bromsgrove District Council), in conjunction with members of the Hagley Neighbourhood Planning Group and some Hagley residents, have been working with officers of Worcestershire County Council Highways Department, and Councillor Karen May, to examine junctions on the A456 through Hagley to see if traffic flow and safety could be improved at peak times.

Junctions which were reviewed included:

• the A456/A450 traffic lights near the Shell Garage.
• the A456/B4187/Western Road/Summervale Road traffic lights.
• the A456/A491 ‘CALA’ roundabout
• the A456/A491 traffic lights near the Wychbury Inn. 

Traffic flow has been modelled at these junctions to see if the proposed changes would cut journey times through Hagley, improve safety and reduce queuing at those junctions.

You may have already seen the changes near the A456/A491 Wychbury Inn traffic lights where a left hand turn only lane has been introduced after Middlefield lane on the Birmingham bound A456.

Changes have been proposed and modelled at the A456/B4187/Western Road/Summervale Road junction traffic lights. If adopted, this would be a layout similar to the ‘pre-CALA’ layout at this junction. No changes are currently planned at any of the other junctions examined.

September 2020

Wychbury Hill.

The Neighbourhood Plan’s Environmental and Character Team met with Lord and Lady Cobham and the Hagley Hall estate office to discuss Wychbury Hill.

This was a positive meeting and was so sad to hear of the anti social behaviour (ASB) and vandalism affecting that area.  The purpose of the meeting was to establish what were the plans for the hill especially knowing that the area of the hill that falls within Pedmore and therefore Dudley MBC appears to be attracting the interest of a developer.  This area of the hill in Pedmore is owned by a different land owner to the Hagley Hall Estate.  It was reassuring that Lord Cobham has no plans to develop this site but is very keen to continue his support to protect the hill.

The group took the opportunity to discuss its aspiration to encourage landowners in Hagley to utilise as much land as possible to convert into flower meadows, grassland pollinators, woodlands or natural havens for wildlife.

Further aspirations for the group is to develop and promote countryside walks in and around Hagley and present a map which will contain reference points of historical interest.

Should anyone wish to help this group please contact this Facebook page.

 

July 2020

Census initial findings

 The monthly Hagley Neighbourhood Plan meetings started again in June and have been taking place virtually.  The last meeting before lockdown was in February but the group have been busy analysing the Hagley Census 2020 data and will be sharing findings with Hagley residents over the next few months.

You can read several of the initial findings from the census on the Hagley Census 2020 page.

February 2020

Census response

A fantastic response from Hagley residents – just over 40% of households responded to the Census which exceeded the Neighbourhood Plan Group’s expectations by some way. So a big THANK YOU to those households who responded. The data analysis will be undertaken in March/April. The Hagley Census 2020 page is the place to go for updates on the responses we have had so far.

February 2020

Census Closed 

The Hagley Census 2020 has now closed – it is looking like the response rate will exceed 30% which is excellent! Keep checking the Hagley Census 2020 page over the coming weeks for further updates once we have analysed the responses.

February 2020

Census: Closing date approaching

There are only 9 days left to complete your Census:

The census closes on Monday 17 February.

We’ve had around 20% response rate so far but would love this to be a lot higher. Go to the Hagley Census 2020 page by clicking here.

January 2020

Hagley Census Launched  

The Hagley Census 2020 is here. You can complete it online – click here to take you straight to the Hagley Census 2020 page where the link to the survey is just one further click away. Thank you for taking the time to complete the survey – the more responses we get from Hagley residents, the stronger our evidence base will be for your Neighbourhood Plan.

January 2020

Hagley Census Distribution Date

 The Hagley Census is due to land on all Hagley residents’ doormats on or around Saturday 1 February 2020 – please do take the time to complete it – either return it by post or complete it online by Monday 17 February 2020 to have your views counted. See our dedicated page for more details.

December  2019

Happy Christmas 

Merry Christmas to all Hagley residents from your Neighbourhood Plan team. We are looking forward to launching the Hagley Census in January 2020 – see the dedicated page for updates on the Census.

December 2019

Traffic and transport issues with WCC

 At the end of October a small group of Hagley Neighbourhood Plan group members and one resident, led by Steve Colella, met with members of WCC to discuss traffic and transport issues. We met with Councillor Karen May, and Andy Baker (Transport Planning and Commissioning Manager) amongst others, and covered congestion on the A456/450/491 through Hagley, the traffic impacts of proposed Wyre Forest developments at Lea Castle and Kidderminster East, and charges for parking at Hagley Station.

It was a productive meeting and key points to emerge from it were:

• An acceptance that the main roads through Hagley were at saturation point. WCC have appointed consultants who are reviewing the 4 major junctions through Hagley and a report is expected shortly.
• WCC have commissioned a traffic impact analysis on the proposed WF developments and will share it with us once it is available.
• Councillor May advised that she had negotiated the Hagley Station parking charges down before they were introduced. Without her intervention they may have been even higher. A separate meeting with West Midlands Rail (who are responsible for the charges) is being arranged.
• A by-pass for Hagley is a possibility in the much longer term (after 2025), if funding can be obtained.

A follow-up meeting with WCC is planned in February next year, as well as meetings with representatives of West Midlands Rail and the West Midlands Transport Executive to discuss train and bus services through Hagley.

August 2019

Hagley Rail Station- Car parking charges 

Charges will be introduced from 18 August – £3 per day or £1.12 per day if you are a car park season ticket holder. Article in the Worcester News can be found here

August 2019

WCC Passenger Transport Strategy  

Worcestershire County Council is currently consulting residents on the Passenger Transport Strategy to request your views on the usage and value of transport services to the local community, the local economy and the health and well-being of residents.

The survey can be completed online or downloaded and posted back. Further details of the Passenger Transport Strategy can be found online here.

The survey includes questions on usage of buses and trains, the mode of transport you normally use for a variety of journeys (e.g. work, healthcare appointments, shopping and leisure activities), what factors might encourage you to use public transport if you don’t currently use these methods and whether you think the proposed Strategy would meet your transport needs.

May 2019

Hagley Footway (pavement) Survey 

The Hagley footway survey was conducted during the Autumn/Winter of 2018 by the Hagley Neighbourhood Plan Group in response to concerns voiced by the public regarding access for pedestrians and the condition of the footways (pavements) in Hagley. The Group has finally collated all of the results – head to the Movement section on the consultation topics page to see whether footways near you were found with defects.

The final report of the survey will inform part of the Hagley Neighbourhood Plan.

April 2019

Did You Know?  – Dwellings in Hagley 

A new feature has been added to the website – Did You Know? – where we will occasionally post facts about Hagley. Follow the link to the Did You Know? page to find out more. Did you know the number of dwellings in Hagley?

• • In 2011, Hagley had 2,504 dwellings (National Census, 2011) 
  • By 2030, it is predicted Hagley will around 3,000 dwellings

March 2019

Public Consultations

 We are holding interactive public consultation sessions on Tuesday 26th, Wednesday 27th and Saturday 30th March for residents of Hagley to have their say on Hagley’s future. Topics for discussion will include Pedestrians and Transport, and Housing and the Green Belt. A copy of the invitation which all Hagley residents should receive through their doors is viewable by clicking the following link: Public Consultation Interactive Sessions – March 2019

December 2018

Public consultations – Hagley Primary School  

If you missed us during the public consultation sessions in October and at the Hagley Christmas lights switch on last Saturday, we will be at the Primary School’s Christmas Fayre on Saturday 8 December and would love to hear your views on the future of Hagley.

December 2018

Public Consultations – Q&A responses

 Questions and comments raised throughout the initial public consultation sessions have been added to the Community Consultation page.

November 2018 

Public Consultations – Christmas at Hagley

We invite you to say hello to members of the neighbourhood plan group who will be manning a stall at the Christmas in Hagley event on the High Street on Saturday 1 December (4-8pm). You’ll be able to have your say on the future of Hagley.

October 2018

Public Consultation Events 

Thanks to those who were able to join the Group for the 4 initial consultation events over the two weeks commencing 15th and 22nd October 2018. We are busy collating peoples’ views and comments. If you couldn’t attend a consultation event, it’s not too late to give your views. Head to the community consultation page and you can view the presentation the Group delivered at each of the meetings and see how you can get in touch.

October 2018

Hagley NP Newsletter

The first newsletter regarding the Hagley Neighbourhood Plan can be downloaded following the link below. All households in Hagley should have had a printed copy delivered over the first week or so of October. Click on the link to view the letter – HNP October consultation letter.

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