The Bradley Stoke Journal

Proposals for a number of road safety improvement schemes around Bradley Stoke achieved limited success when they were discussed at a recent meeting of South Gloucestershire Council’s Southern Brooks Area Forum.

Seven Bradley Stoke schemes were competing for a share of the £50k pot available, along with other proposals from Filton, Patchway, Stoke Gifford and Winterbourne.

In the end, just two of the Bradley Stoke schemes were awarded funding – and only for “investigation” work rather than full implementation:

• Noise and speed reduction measures in Woodlands Lane, near Woodlands Park
• Introduction of a pedestrian crossing on Brook Way near the junction of Elm Close

Each of the above projects was awarded £5k, with the Brook Way proposal being extended to also investigate the possibility of providing a pedestrian crossing facility near the Concord Medical Centre in Braydon Avenue.

Of the eight schemes awarded funding by the area forum, six were given £5k for “investigation” work. The only two projects to receive funding for implementation were in Patchway, where the left turn from the A38 Gloucester Road into Shellmor Road is to be prohibited and a bus stop on the A38 northbound, near the Callicroft Road junction, relocated.

More: No joy for Bradley Stoke 'safer routes to school' plans »

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A public meeting in Bradley Stoke on Tuesday night (29th November) will see Councillors decide how to spend the area’s allocation of £50k for local transport schemes.

The meeting of South Gloucestershire Council’s (SGC’s) Southern Brooks Area Forum, at the Jubilee Centre (7pm start) will consider a total of 28 potential schemes, proposed by residents, Councils, Councillors and schools.

Seven of the proposed schemes lie within the Bradley Stoke town boundaries, these being:

• Kerb works near Pear Tree Roundabout on Woodlands Lane
• Improved school signage in Breaches Gate, near Baileys Court Primary School
• Noise and speed reduction measures in Woodlands Lane, near Woodlands Park
• Speed reduction measures in Ormonds Close, near Bowsland Green School
• Introduction of a pedestrian crossing on Brook Way between Braydon Avenue and Baileys Court Road
• Cycle track measures in Webbs Wood Road, near St Mary’s Primary School
• School ‘keep clear’ markings and traffic orders in Webbs Wood , near St Mary’s Primary School

The Bradley Stoke schemes are pitched against five from Filton, five from Patchway, six from Stoke Gifford and five from Winterbourne.

More: Chances are slim as budget is massively oversubscribed »

Town Councillors have urged residents concerned by proposed changes to bus services in Bradley Stoke to attend tonight’s Southern Brooks Area Forum meeting in Filton.

Residents attending last week’s Town Council Planning Committee meeting were advised that the changes were a commercial decision by the operator, Wessex Connect, and not South Gloucestershire Council (SGC).

Protests by bus users and Journal readers have already resulted in an amendment to the originally proposed route of the new peak-hours-only U8 service that replaces the hourly 71 service from 18th September. The new U8 service will now additionally pass through the south of Bradley Stoke, enabling that area to at least maintain a link with Bristol city centre at peak times.

The recent changes can be seen by comparing the (original) version 2 and (latest) version 4 issues of the U8 timetable on the UWE website, although Cllr Keith Cranney warns that “the situation is liable to change from day to day.”

Town Councillors agreed to “write to Wessex Connect raising concerns, on behalf of the residents of Bradley Stoke, with regard to the withdrawal of bus services from the town.”

The Southern Brooks Area Forum meeting takes place tonight (Tuesday 30th) at Filton Community Association, Elm Park, Filton BS34 7PS [map], starting at 7pm.

The main business of the Area Forum meeting will be to allocate the £26,607 of capital grant funding available to voluntary organisations in the Southern Brooks area, which includes Bradley Stoke, Filton, Frenchay, Patchway, Stoke Gifford and Winterbourne, for the 2011/2012 financial year.

Read about the Bradley Stoke groups that have applied for grants »

Work to install a new raised table pedestrian crossing on Brook Way, close to the mini-roundabout at the junction with Wheatfield Drive, is set to commence on Monday (20th June).

The work to install a 75mm high raised table across the full width of the road and widen the island and footway approaches to the crossing could last until Friday 1st July, according to information published in South Gloucestershire Council’s (SGC’s) weekly Road Report.

A pair of ‘children going to school’ warning signs will also be installed on Brook Way (near Brackendene and Dewfalls Drive) as part of the scheme.

The Council warns that temporary two-way traffic signals will be used during the installation work.

The crossing upgrade was first proposed following a a campaign by parents of children at Wheatfield Primary School, who had complained of the difficulty of crossing Brook Way at peak hours.

In December 2009, the Southern Brooks Area Forum agreed to meet the £20,000 cost of the work and a public consultation on the proposals followed in October 2010.

Local politicians later squabbled over who should take credit for winning funding for the project, with the Liberal Democrats’ Jon Williams claiming the Tories were trying to “re-write history”, countered by Brian Allinson saying that Cllr Williams’ “pram [was] increasingly lacking toys”.

Read on for details of how objections have delayed the project »

Four Bradley Stoke organisations will be hoping to win a share of a £28,161 grant fund at this Tuesday’s meeting of the Southern Brooks Area Forum in Winterbourne.

A total of 26 applications totalling £43,888 have been received from organisations in the Bradley Stoke, Filton, Patchway, Stoke Gifford, Winterbourne, Frenchay and Stoke Park areas covered by the Forum.

The South West Winterguard Academy (SWWA), which meets at Meadowbrook Primary School and promotes ‘Colourguard’ (a dance based activity using flags and other equipment), is asking for £2,168 to cover the cost of hall rental, equipment, travel and insurance.

Bradley Stoke Bowls Club (BSBC), based at Baileys Court,  is looking for £2,500 (half the annual cost of green and room rental that it pays to Bradley Stoke Town Council) so that it can reduce its membership fees and hopefully attract new members.

Bradley Stoke Community Radio Association (BSCRA), which has recently occupied a studio at the Willow Brook Centre, wants £3,000 to pay for the official licences that it needs to broadcast over a 28-day period covering the Community Festival in June.

Finally, the Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group (TBNCG) is seeking £400 to pay for bee friendly flowers that will be planted in the community orchard behind Bradley Stoke Community School.

Read on to find out how Council officers have assessed the bids »

A number of clubs and organisations that operate in Bradley Stoke will tonight (Tuesday 31st) learn the fate of grant applications made to South Gloucestershire Council’s Southern Brooks Area Forum.

The Forum, which has £23k to allocate from its Capital Grant Funding scheme, has received 17 applications totalling £37k.

Organisations with Bradley Stoke links that have applied for funding include South West Winterguard Academy, Bradley Stoke Community Radio Association, 1st Bradley Stoke Scout Group and Bradley Stoke Bowls Club.

The Winterguard Academy, which meets at Meadowbrook Primary School, is a group that promotes a dance-based activity called ‘colourguard’ – using flags and other equipment to perform a routine to music. They are looking for £2,000 to purchase equipment.

Bradley Stoke Community Radio Association is asking for £3,000 to purchase recording equipment so that it can create programmes and interviews for a radio broadcast planned for October. They say they will work with Bradley Stoke Community School and the local youth service to run workshops to train young people to use the radio equipment to produce jingles. The association previously received a grant of £1,500 from the forum and was recently awarded £400 by Bradley Stoke Town Council.

Read on for details of two more organisations that could win grants tonight »