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We have recently seen a number of repairs to both roads and pavements in particular Park Lane which look to be a temporary measure but at least some progress is being made. We will monitor the area and report to Highways.
In the meantime you can report pot holes and similar direct to Staffordshire Moorlands Council, the more they get complaints the quicker they will respond.

You can report any particular defect to the Highway Hotline (0800 23 23 23 or
send email to clarence@staffordshire.gov.uk). This will ensure a Reactive Inspector visits the location to prioritize the defect for repair as necessary.

May 2011
Letter from David Greatbatch, Community Highway Liaison Manager whom we thank for the information we requested on the state of local paths and roads in the areas of Knypersley and Biddulph.

Colwyn Drive, Nevin Avenue, Gwyn Avenue and Menai Drive have all been identified for the 5 year forward structural footway programme but as to when they are delivered will be dependent upon future funding levels. There are at present sites of higher priority with examples being Orme Road, which forms the rear access to the High School, which will be reconstructed commencing in August and Park Lane (see comment below).

I understand that the Biddulph Arms location will be covered under the A527 Congleton Road scheme (estimated investment of £750,000) which commences in October - there will be areas of footway and kerbing replaced but not the whole length.

Lawton Street, by the Doctors’ surgery, is programmed to commence in August and will be the completion of the scheme which was commenced last year to reconstruct/resurface between Congleton Road and St John’s Road.

Park Lane footways have provisionally been identified for reconstruction in the 2012/13 financial year but a proviso to this is we are currently reviewing next year's capital budget and first impression is the structural funding for the county may be reducing from approx £12.5m this year to possibly half of this value for 2012/2013. Should such a reduction take place this will of course have great impact upon the number of schemes which can be delivered and list currently compiled will need to be reconsidered.
July 2011 - some repairs done to pavements in lower Park Lane.

The works referred to around Diamond Close etc. are surface dressing works which have recently been completed and were carried out on roads which were suitable for a preventative treatment. By definition this type of work is undertaken on locations which are in reasonable condition. The aim of such preventative maintenance is to catch a location before it deteriorates to the point where it will require structural maintenance in order to extend its life before such, more expensive, measures are required. This I hope clarifies why locations in better condition than others have received this treatment.

Other footway sites in Biddulph identified for the 5 year forward programme include Conway Road estate, Princess Street, parts of Lotus Avenue estate Slater Street.

As the Highway Authority we have a duty (i.e. no choice) to ensure the safety of the road user (pedestrian and driver) on the adopted highway network. To undertake this duty, with the resources available which are not unlimited, we carry out cyclic inspections of the network to identify and prioritise defects for repair, the frequency of inspections being based on the importance of the road with, as I am sure can be understood, greater frequency of inspection for A roads through to lesser frequencies for minor, unclassified, roads. We also have the Highway Hotline to enable members of the public to report defects following which we inspect the location and assess the priority required for a repair.

In conjunction with this day to day process we have another to identify locations which require structural repair (as against minor remedial works) and preventative maintenance.

Identification and prioritisation of such schemes on footways and carriageways is undertaken using the results from independent accredited highway condition surveys that are undertaken each year. A lifecycle planning approach is then adopted to ensure highways benefit from the correct maintenance treatment at the appropriate time within their lifecycle. This ensures the efficient and effective use of available resources.

As the funding for highway maintenance is not commensurate with all of the work required, a further developed value management process is used to prioritise sites that are of an equal or similar condition. This involves scoring schemes against various criteria including the number of safety defects recorded at the site, accident rates and the contribution of the scheme to the sustainability of the area.

The above processes, in particular the inspection and repair prioritisation regime, are used to defend claims brought against the council, since it is recognised that it is not possible for us to be aware of all defects on all parts of the network at all times. It also recognises that the funding is insufficient to enable all locations to be structurally replaced and that we have to prioritise locations. Provided we can demonstrate that we have adequate processes in place and that repairs, once identified, are carried out within the time frames we have set we can successfully defend our position.

I apologise if my reference to funding and prioritisation being necessary due to the funds being insufficient to meet the demands are considered to be excuses but I can assure you this is not the case - I believe it necessary to be open and honest and to confirm the facts in order for the reasons why some locations have delayed repairs of varying lengths to be known and, hopefully, understood.

With regards to additional funding received from the government (as mentioned by Mr Swindells in his e-mail of 18 May) I can confirm that in essence this funding was utilized to enable the council to employ more crews to carry out maintenance patching works following damage incurred by two successive poor winter seasons. Across the county as a whole this funding enabled us to establish 6 extra maintenance crews and 4 crews to assist with the pre-patching for surface dressing. As I trust can be appreciated 10 crews across the county area, whilst no doubt of benefit, is limited and most likely resulted in 1 and occasionally 2 crews for the Staffordshire Moorlands area.