Please see below my regular email update to residents across Longtown Ward. If you would like to add your name to the list please email me tim.pickstone@cumberland.gov.uk. Emails are just once a month and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Bus service to Rockcliffe to start in the Autumn
Very good news is that a the Carlisle – Cargo – Rockcliffe bus service is returning. As I understand this will be operated by Stagecoach and numbered 64. There will be five services in each direction with an estimated start date of November 2024.

This is very much a ‘use it or lose it’ situation. This new service is subsidised by a grant the Council has had from the Government. There is no guarantee that the subsidy will continue in the long term, so this will be dependent on the service being commercially viable in the future so the more people who use the service the better!

The Council is currently consulting on a further grant it has been given, this time specifically focussed on rural public transport. This will include looking at public transport provision in very rural areas where (commercially viable) scheduled buses are unpractical. Major Planning Issues
The application for the SPAR to have a rebuilt store on the site of the Petrol Station goes to the Planning Committee on 16 October 2024. A lot of residents have raised concerns about the traffic safety issues turning onto the A7 at this point and I will also make these points on your behalf.

There is no news yet on the planning application for an incinerator at the North West Recycling site in Rockcliffe. It is likely this will come to Planning Committee this Autumn where we need to make sure that the strong views of the community are listened to.

The company behind the proposed tyre pyrolysis plant near Harker Lane Ends have held some engagement meetings, implying that a formal planning application is on its way. 

Some people will be aware that the National Grid in Scotland is consulting on potential routes for a new Anglo-Scottish electricity pylon route which could come through Liddesdale. At the moment there is no news on any consultation on our side of the Border. I raised this at the most recent Nicholforest Parish Council and we are getting in touch with the relevant people to find out more and how we can have our say on these proposals. 

Kinship Case Week
This week is Kinship Care Week 2024 (7 to 13 October) celebrating the more than 400 kinship carers across Cumbria who are raising children who are not their own. Anyone at any time could become a kinship carer – whether you’re a grandparent, aunt, uncle, sibling, cousin or family friend.

In Cumbria we have more than 300 families with Special Guardianship Orders and more than 100 families currently fostering or being assessed to foster a family member. These figures don’t include children subject to child arrangement orders or private family arrangements. Find out more about the support on offer for kinship carers at https://cumbriafostering.org.uk/kinship-care

Coming up in Carlisle
Not immediately local, but the following things are coming up in Carlisle which might be of interest:

Saturday 26 October – As part of the build-up to Remembrance Day commemorations and the launch of the Poppy Appeal on Saturday 26 October, hundreds of knitted and crochet poppies, produced by community groups will be displayed around the city centre including The Lanes, with a cascade of poppies on the Town Hall steps.
Saturday 2 November – Carlisle Fireshow: Bitts Park on Saturday, 2 November with bonfire and more than 2,000 fireworks set to music.
Saturday 2 and Sunday 3 November – Taste Cumbria – Carlisle Cathedral grounds sees a two-day open-air market with local food retailers, music and entertainment.

Further Reading
You many be interested in some of these reports on my website:
Reporting Back Cumberland Full Council September 2024
Hallburn Windfarm Grants 2024 and Deadlines for 2025
Answers to Written Questions September 2024

Upcoming Roadworks
You will probably have noticed the (very welcome) road resurfacing on the A7through Harder and Blackford and the resulting overnight closures. Hopefully this will have addressed some of the worst road conditions that we have all had to experience. The A7 roadworks shift to north of Longtown this month, with overnight closure on the A7 north of the Gretna Road going towards Canonbie up to 13 October 2024. 

28th October to 1st November, the road down to the Penton Linns is scheduled to be closed (near where the road used to cross the railway line). The diversion route is all the way back via Longtown. 

There are traffic lights on the A7 just south of the Community Centre on 16th October during the day (United Utilities. 

Broadband works continue in a number of areas, especially this month in the Longtown, Rockcliffe and Roadhead areas. Where I get given advance notice I will put these on my  Facebook Page and will share the main ones in in local Facebook Groups. 

Current Planning Applications
Planning applications received in Longtown Ward, August and September 2024. You can comment on individual applications yourself, but don’t hesitate to get in touch if there is anything you would like me to raise or if I can help with any questions. Variation Of Condition 2 (Approved Documents) Of Previously Approved Permission 22/0109 (Erection…
Paddock adjacent to Scaurbank, Netherby Road, Longtown, Carlisle, CA6 5NX
Ref. No: 24/0584 | Received: Wed 18 Sep 2024 | Validated: Fri 20 Sep 2024 | Status: Registered

Discharge Of Conditions 4 (Landscaping Scheme) & 6 (Trees & Hedge Protection) Of Previously Appro…
Land to south east of St Michaels Drive, Brampton Road, Longtown CA6 5FB
Ref. No: 24/0569 | Received: Mon 09 Sep 2024 | Validated: Mon 09 Sep 2024 | Status: Registered

Erection Of Single Storey Rear Extension To Provide Larger Sunroom & Utility Together With Erecti…
2 The Dell, Longtown, Carlisle, CA6 5BFRef. No: 24/0563 | Received: Mon 09 Sep 2024 | Validated: Mon 09 Sep 2024 | Status: Registered

Erection Of 1no. Timber Cabin Within Woodland For Use As Holiday Rental And Ecology And Craft Bas…
Kinkry Hill House, Roadhead, Carlisle, CA6 6NG
Ref. No: 24/0535 | Received: Tue 27 Aug 2024 | Validated: Wed 28 Aug 2024 | Status: Registered

Discharge Of Condition 3 (Construction Environmental Management Plan) Of Previously Approved Sect…
Land North of Harker Grid Sub Station, Harker, Carlisle
Ref. No: 24/0525 | Received: Mon 19 Aug 2024 | Validated: Mon 19 Aug 2024 | Status: Awaiting decision

Erection Of Single Storey Rear Extension To Provide Sunroom (Part Retrospective)
The Chapel, Longtown, Carlisle, CA6 5NX
Ref. No: 24/0502 | Received: Thu 08 Aug 2024 | Validated: Thu 22 Aug 2024 | Status: Registered

Change Of Use From Agricultural Field To Horse Riding Arena For Private & Domestic Use
Mount Farm, Blackford, Carlisle, CA6 4ERRef. No: 24/0499 | Received: Tue 06 Aug 2024 | Validated: Wed 14 Aug 2024 | Status: Registered

Non Material Amendment Of Previously Approved Permission 22/0822 To Revise House Types To Introdu…
Land to south east of, St Michaels Drive, Brampton Road, Longtown, CA6 5FA
Ref. No: 24/0495 | Received: Thu 01 Aug 2024 | Validated: Thu 01 Aug 2024 | Status: Decided

Variation Of Condition 2 (Approved Documents) Of Previously Approved Permission 22/0109 (Erection…
Paddock adjacent to Scaurbank, Netherby Road, Longtown, Carlisle, CA6 5NX
Ref. No: 24/0584 | Received: Wed 18 Sep 2024 | Validated: Fri 20 Sep 2024 | Status: Registered

Discharge Of Conditions 4 (Landscaping Scheme) & 6 (Trees & Hedge Protection) Of Previously Appro…
Land to south east of St Michaels Drive, Brampton Road, Longtown CA6 5FBRef. No: 24/0569 | Received: Mon 09 Sep 2024 | Validated: Mon 09 Sep 2024 | Status: Registered

Erection Of Single Storey Rear Extension To Provide Larger Sunroom & Utility Together With Erecti…
2 The Dell, Longtown, Carlisle, CA6 5BF
Ref. No: 24/0563 | Received: Mon 09 Sep 2024 | Validated: Mon 09 Sep 2024 | Status: Registered

Erection Of 1no. Timber Cabin Within Woodland For Use As Holiday Rental And Ecology And Craft Bas…
Kinkry Hill House, Roadhead, Carlisle, CA6 6NG
Ref. No: 24/0535 | Received: Tue 27 Aug 2024 | Validated: Wed 28 Aug 2024 | Status: Registered

Discharge Of Condition 3 (Construction Environmental Management Plan) Of Previously Approved Sect…
Land North of Harker Grid Sub Station, Harker, Carlisle
Ref. No: 24/0525 | Received: Mon 19 Aug 2024 | Validated: Mon 19 Aug 2024 | Status: Awaiting decision

Erection Of Single Storey Rear Extension To Provide Sunroom (Part Retrospective)
The Chapel, Longtown, Carlisle, CA6 5NXRef. No: 24/0502 | Received: Thu 08 Aug 2024 | Validated: Thu 22 Aug 2024 | Status: Registered

Change Of Use From Agricultural Field To Horse Riding Arena For Private & Domestic Use
Mount Farm, Blackford, Carlisle, CA6 4ER
Ref. No: 24/0499 | Received: Tue 06 Aug 2024 | Validated: Wed 14 Aug 2024 | Status: Registered

Non Material Amendment Of Previously Approved Permission 22/0822 To Revise House Types To Introdu…
Land to south east of, St Michaels Drive, Brampton Road, Longtown, CA6 5FA
Ref. No: 24/0495 | Received: Thu 01 Aug 2024 | Validated: Thu 01 Aug 2024 | Status: Decided

Tim