Housing on former hospital site

July 21, 2010

Community consultations on the housing plans for the redevelopment of part of the former Shotley Bridge Hospital site are expected to take place mid-October.

The developers have now exchanged contracts with the Homes and Communities Agency and they are are looking to submit a Reserved Matters application by the end of November, with planning approval anticipated in February/March next year.

Outline planning permission was granted in April 2008 with agreement to provide funding for improvements to the Derwent Walk and Shotley Bridge village centre.

Story Homes were selected as the preferred developer in May 2009.

Cumbria-based housebuilder Story Homes were celebrating last month after scooping a major award in the hotly contested ‘House of the Year’ category in the prestigious Scottish Home awards.

Posted in Community, Design awards, Planning applications | Leave a Comment »

Hospital Support Group AGM

July 14, 2010

The first AGM of the Shotley Bridge Hospital Support Group is to be held this evening.

To enable it to apply for funding from grant-awarding bodies. a new constitution for the Group is to be adopted. Its objects being:

  • To safeguard the future of Shotley Bridge Community Hospital
  • To be actively engaged with partners, including the NHS, County Council and other local groups and organisations in developing the best services for the local community
  • To ensure access to the hospital as a health and community resource in particular for those made vulnerable by age, frailty, disability, economic or other disadvantage

Membership of the Group is free and it meets every two months in the hospital restaurant. [Update – As the hospital restaurant closed in February 2016 the Group now meet at the Lodge, Consett & Blackhill Park.]

The Group’s garden project came to a successful conclusion last Wednesday when Lady Calman, chair of NHS County Durham, opened the new garden next to the main waiting area.

 

Posted in Community, Meetings | Leave a Comment »

Durham Records Online

July 7, 2010

Durham Records Online is a service intended to help genealogists find their ancestors in County Durham, England. Shotley baptisms, marriages and burials have been recently updated.

All Shotley records are now instantly available:
• 1,612 baptisms covering 1675-1812
• 534 marriages covering 1670-1818
• 880 burials covering 1690-1812

In these records, the term “Shotley” can be misleading. There is no village named Shotley. The bridge over the River Derwent is the boundary between Shotley parish in Northumberland and Medomsley parish in County Durham. The old spa township of Shotley Bridge is on the Durham side, with a handful of houses on the Northumberland side before the road comes to The Snods. There is also a place called Shotley Field nearby in Northumberland. “Shotley” in the register is probably usually a shortened form of “Shotley Parish”, but sometimes it appears to be a shortened form of ”Shotley Field” or “Shotley Bridge”.

Posted in Community, Historic, Statistics | Leave a Comment »

Conservation Area Appraisal

June 30, 2010

The Shotley Bridge conservation Area was originally designated in 1975 and the boundary has been amended three times since.

A Conservation Area Appraisal has been produced by Northumberland and Durham County Councils to assess the features and qualities of the Area that make it special, and consider how it can be effectively preserved and enhanced.  The Village Trust was consulted on the draft version and the final version was adopted in December 2009.

The document explains the planning policy framework, history of development, buildings and materials of architectural interest. Nine character areas are described, issues and potential for improvement are discussed and management proposals outlined. There are some interesting maps and photographs as well as information on all the listed buildings and buildings of local interest.

Download a .pdf version of the document from the Conservation Area page.

Posted in Conservation area, Environment, Historic, Maps | Leave a Comment »

Shotley Grove footbridge delayed!

June 18, 2010

Although all the advance works for the replacement footbridge are all complete [including road widening for crane access], construction workers have moved off site.

Access issues on the Northumberland side of the river are still not resolved. It appears that land negotiations failed at the 11th hour.

The fabrication of the additional 10 metre section of bridge [to be added to an existing 30 metre section] has been put on hold and other orders cancelled whilst land agents try to deal with the issues.

There is only a limited window in which construction can take place, before October, to satisfy Environment Agency requirements.  If an affordable agreement cannot be reached the viability of the scheme may be in doubt, particularly in the current economic climate with budget cuts looming.

Posted in Footpath | Leave a Comment »

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