Nunthorpe Parish Council

Please go the the Greater Nunthorpe News page using the main menu, or click here to see the latest edition and the archive.

Please follow this link to read Nunthorpe Vision’s “Vision” and to comment on it, and please do come along to the Drop In events detailed in the poster below.

Your opinions are really important!

We have heard the sad news of the passing of Tony Bell, the Treasurer and Secretary of the NMPFA and a keen supporter of  cricket. Tony has been involved in the NMPFA for many years and, like so many of us, was a determined volunteer who gave a great deal of time to the community. He held some strong views but did a great deal regardless and there is no doubt he will be hard to replace.

The Chair of the Parish Council attended the Middlesbrough Council Planning Committee on 16th December 2022 to present this agreed statement of objection.

Persimmon Application – Planning Committee 16/12/22

Agreed speech by Adrian Walker on behalf of Nunthorpe Parish Council and Residents.

“As I’m speaking on behalf of the Parish Council and a number of residents, there is only time to select a few points from our detailed written submissions.  The overwhelming view in Nunthorpe, shared by the Parish Council, is that there should be no housebuilding in Nunthorpe Grange.  However, the Parish Council is prepared to accept that construction of 250 dwellings over the entire Nunthorpe Grange site does have a legal foundation in Middlesbrough Council’s Local Plan.  Our core objection is that the case presented in the Report today is selective, because it quotes the Local Plan as authoritative when convenient, while setting aside the requirements of the Local Plan when they are not convenient.

“Our argument is that, if Nunthorpe must accept Middlesbrough Council’s Local Plan, the explicit maximum of 250 houses established by that Local Plan for Nunthorpe Grange, cannot be exceeded.   A formal Council decision of such strategic importance as a Local Plan must mean something more than a “pick and mix” from which we may select which parts we will accept.  It follows that Persimmon’s claimed entitlement to construct 69 dwellings is not only excessive, but asserts for Persimmon an apparently uncontrolled advantage over the other 2 landowners at Nunthorpe Grange – just because the Persimmon application is being decided first.

“This cannot be the rational approach to planning envisaged when Middlesbrough Council established the Local Plan.

“Similarly, if the Local Plan is authoritative, how is it possible to ignore its categorical requirement that there must be a Park and Ride before there is any building in Nunthorpe Grange?

“Surely we can’t selectively ignore one requirement and not another.  It must have been evident to Councillors at the time that an expensive infrastructure project like this, requiring support from another local authority, would pose a massive challenge.

“If this part of the Local Plan can be ignored, who decides what parts we must follow?

“Meanwhile, there has been no alternative proposal to alleviate the traffic problems of Nunthorpe.

“The additional cars of the residents of Persimmon’s site would only add to the Marton and Coulby Crawl.

“The extensive documentation from the Parish Council and from residents also points out numerous logistical concerns.  For example, Persimmon’s drawings show a cycleway/footpath which suddenly stops at Persimmon’s site boundary.  This is presumably because further access for cyclists and pedestrians through Nunthorpe Gardens is unlikely to be achievable if the landowners in Nunthorpe Gardens do not facilitate a connection.

“We draw attention to paragraphs 34 – 42 of the Officers Report which admit that, without this pedestrian link through Nunthorpe Gardens, there cannot be a Sustainable Travel Plan, and that therefore zero development on Persimmon’s site may proceed without this link.

“Similar issues have been identified by residents in relation to the same land in Nunthorpe Gardens involving a foul sewer rising water main and such other utilities as water mains connections.

“Unfortunately, although the Persimmon documentation describes the boundary with Nunthorpe Gardens as “sensitive”, communication with residents on these and other matters has not only been surprisingly limited, but has even been made worse by Persimmon’s decision to reverse its previous undertaking to review the proximity of the houses closest to Nunthorpe Gardens (numbers 18 and 19).  Persimmon has more than enough land to make the sort of gesture requested by the residents of Nunthorpe Gardens – although our case remains that the Local Plan necessitates more than such a gesture, because 69 houses exceed the pro-rata overall density authorised by the Local Plan for Nunthorpe Grange.

“We encourage you to reflect on the detailed analysis in our documentation, and to uphold our objection to this application as fundamentally non-compliant with the Local Plan and associated Policies.  It is also non-compliant with various other requirements, particularly a sustainable Travel Plan.”

Please click on the following link to see the latest Winter edition and all previous editions of the Greater Nunthorpe News: https://nunthorpepc.org.uk/gnn/

Generous grants are currently available as part of the Home Upgrade Grant (HUG). This is part of a £3 million fund to improve the energy efficiency of homes across Tees Valley.

HUG funding is available to residents whether they own or privately rent their home.
The following works are eligible;

• Replacement Cavity Wall Insulation
• External Wall Insulation
• High Retention Storage Heaters
• Solar PV
• Solar Thermal
• Loft Insulation
• Double Glazing
• Draft proofing
• Air Source Heat Pumps

To be eligible for the improvements all of the following criteria must be met:

The home must be “Off Gas” i.e., not connected to the gas network and the owner must be able to demonstrate there is no gas meter at the property or it is heated by other low efficiency means (gas alternatives) for example, oil, solid fuel, electricity (low efficiency storage heaters) etc. The total household income must be less than £30,000 annually (although it may be higher in some instances).

The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) for the property must have a rating of E to G (in some cases D rating). Information on EPC rating for houses can be found using this link https://find-energy-certificate.digital.communities.gov.uk/

HUG is fully funded if you are an owner occupier. Where there is a private landlord, the permission of the owner is required, and a one-third contribution from the landlord towards the work is required.

Applicants must live in the Redcar & Cleveland, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees or Darlington Local Authority areas. Hartlepool Borough Council have secured their own funding for HUG so residents in this area should contact the Council Web page for more information

If your residents would like to take part in the scheme they should contact the delivery partner Marshall and McCourt on telephone number 01642 913 200 or register using the following link https://marshallandmccourt.co.uk/funding/home-upgrade-grant/

The roundabout has been re-opened to traffic to and from Guisborough Road. Although there are multiple entry lanes from all the roads connecting to the roundabout, only one lane from each entrance point is currently in use. The others are coned off. The innermost circulatory lane is also coned off meaning that some of the lane markings are confusing at present.

Please take care as you adjust to the new lane disciplines required. Also beware of the new zebra crossing just beyond the A1043 Nunthorpe Bypass junction. It is very close to the roundabout.

Please visit our Neighbourhood Plan Page – both Middlesbrough and Redcar & Cleveland Councils have now agreed to the Neighbourhood Plan area, and development of the plan can now go ahead.

Please click on the image to open the latest Greater Nunthorpe News (GNN). All residents of Greater Nunthorpe should have received their printed copy by now.

All the pulished copies of GNN are shared on their own page on the website here: https://nunthorpepc.org.uk/gnn/