Agenda item

The Committee has requested an update on the implementation of the Verge and Vegetation Policy.  It has invited Cllr Andrew Gant, Cabinet member for Transport Management, to present the report and has also invited Paul Fermer, Director of Environment, Highways & Transport, Sean Rooney, Head of Highway Maintenance and Road Safety, and Paul Wilson, Operational Manager (Operations) to attend and to answer the Committee’s questions.

The Committee is asked to consider the report and raise any questions, and to AGREE any recommendations it wishes to make to Cabinet arising therefrom.

The Committee invited Cllr Andrew Gant, Cabinet member for Transport Management, to present the report and also invited Paul Fermer, Director of Environment, Highways & Transport, Sean Rooney, Head of Highway Maintenance and Road Safety, Paul Wilson, Operational Manager (Operations), Jack Wheeler, Senior Biodiversity Officer, and Charlottle Knowles, Marketing and Campaigns Manager, to attend and to answer the Committee’s questions.

The Cabinet member for Transport Management introduced the verge and vegetation management, highlighting that verge management was a specific part of the Committee’s remit to be viewed in the context of wider biodiversity and planning policies. The Head of Highway Maintenance and Road Safety explained that the report reviewed current practices across the county, described the established processes and the close collaboration within environment teams.

The Committee raised the following questions and comments:

·       The amount paid by the Council for verge management and the timing of the last review of the payment rate. It was clarified that payments to parish and town councils amounted to approximately £342,000 per year, with the rate for urban grass cutting set at a flat £0.10 per square metre. This rate had not been reviewed for eight to ten years, despite occasional requests for an increase. The overall cost had remained stable towing to a reduction in the number of cuts, moving from two per year to a single cut as recommended in the current policy. The possibility of a rate review was tied to the annual budget-setting process, where all service costs and charges were considered, but affordability was emphasised.

It was stated that parish and town councils could undertake grass cutting themselves on county land, and there were arrangements in place for the County Council to provide funding for this. The payment had been a flat rate for many years, and parishes could supplement this with their own funds if needed.

·       What support was provided to parish and town councils and how communication was managed to ensure proper delivery of verge management, and how residents were informed about the balance between environmental impact and safety. The Head of Highway Maintenance and Road Safety and the Marketing and Campaigns Manager explained that the Council published the cutting programme and policy on its website which enabled residents to access relevant information. Communication with parish and town councils, as well as local divisional members, was handled directly by the engagement team, who also supported elected members to promote the programme within their communities. Issues raised by residents, through FixMyStreet, were addressed by the operational team.

·       Whether it made sense to prioritise maintenance on key cycle routes and if the policy already addressed this, as well as the role of FixMyStreet in reporting issues. Officers explained that active travel routes had been prioritised for maintenance, especially with additional funding, and that visibility and safety were the main considerations. The maintenance programme gave early attention to these routes, and, in years with high growth, a second cut could be arranged if needed. However, due to the variable nature of vegetation growth, it was advised that members and residents should report specific issues via FixMyStreet, particularly when they posed a safety hazard.

·       The sufficiency of an annual cut. The Head of Highway Maintenance and Road Safety, and Senior Biodiversity Officer, clarified that the move to a single annual cut was a deliberate policy decision to enhance biodiversity, allowing wildflowers and mature verges to flourish.

It was emphasised that safety remained the overriding priority. Where safety and biodiversity conflicted, safety would take precedence, particularly regarding visibility splays and key active travel routes. However, the Committee was advised that allowing verges to grow could help reduce verge erosion by keeping vehicles more centrally on rural roads, and in some cases, additional vegetation might slow traffic, potentially improving safety.

·       Clarity on rural concerns and nuances of biodiversity priorities, including how verge cutting interacted with hedges, the impact on verge erosion, and whether ecological outcomes such as wildlife support and edge erosion mitigation had been quantified. The Senior Biodiversity Officer explained that the approach to verge and hedge management depended on the specific habitat and legal responsibilities, with verges and hedges treated according to their own ecological considerations.

·       What additional efforts were being made on council-owned land to increase biodiversity and raise awareness. Officers answered that there was agreement on the importance of identifying and celebrating best practice sites, improving communication both internally and externally, and ensuring that council-owned spaces, such as library verges, were managed to support biodiversity. It was also noted that there was a need to coordinate internally to prevent biodiversity initiatives from being undermined, such as wildflower areas being accidentally mown, and to better publicise these efforts to the community.

·       Whether the Council was working with national landscape boards to communicate messages and fulfil its duties, and whether the terminology in documents should be updated from "areas of outstanding natural beauty" to "national landscapes." The Senior Biodiversity Officer answered that the council had a landscape officer who contributed to the biodiversity action framework, ensuring that duties to national landscapes were considered and that work was being done closely with these boards in the designation and management of roadside nature reserves and other verge management activities.

The Committee AGREED to recommendations under the following headings:

• That the Council should increase communications, consultation, and engagement about the benefits for biodiversity of verge and vegetation managements to ensure that members and residents, as well as parish and town councils

• That the Council should commit to progressing the digitisation of an online platform setting out the status of verges and vegetation across the county;

• That the Council should explore the possibility of increasing the number of places where ‘cut and pile’ is undertaken;

• That the Council should undertake a review of the amount paid to parish and town councils to assess whether it would be appropriate to increase the amount;

• That the Council should commit to the possibility of a second cut when weather conditions have resulted in unexpected