Carlisle City Council

A £25m plan for improvements to Carlisle over the next 10 years has been sent off to the government.

Carlisle is one of 101 communities in the country given a chance to bid for money from what ministers called the Towns Fund

The programme includes creating a long parkland that will include cycle routes and paths to allow people living in the new st Cuthbert's Garden Village developments, south of the city, ways to get around without using cars.

Carlisle City CouncilCopyright: Carlisle City Council

Barrow council heard last week that its submission for the towns fund had been approved.

People in Carlisle have been urged to redouble their efforts to cut down on social contacts and take other precautions after a sharp rise in Covid-19 infections in the city.

BBCCopyright: BBC

Last week saw positive test results from 190 people, compared with 87 the week before, pushing the city above the English average.

The city is currently at the tier one - medium alert level, and council leaders say they want to keep it that way to protect the local economy.

County councillor Deborah Earl said: “We’re asking residents to continue to protect their communities and follow the guidance by reducing social contact and remembering the ‘rule of six’, washing hands, wearing face coverings if you can, and self-isolating immediately if you get symptoms."

Quote Message: We need to be vigilant and stick to the public health advice. We don’t want to see our city and district go into heightened restrictions." from Elizabeth Mallinson Carlisle City Council cabinet member

We need to be vigilant and stick to the public health advice. We don’t want to see our city and district go into heightened restrictions."

A former golf practice course in Carlisle is to be changed into meadows and wetland to be a haven for bees and butterflies.

Carlisle City CouncilCopyright: Carlisle City Council

The Swifts, which used to feature a 9-hole course and a driving range, last saw a game of golf in 2018, and Cumbria Wildlife Trust has now taken it over and won £88,000 in grants to do the work.

Tanya St.Pierre, who is managing the project says bees and other pollinating insects are essential for plant life, but in decline, and planting the Swifts area with wildflowers and trees would give them space to recover.

And she said it would remain open as a green space close to the city centre.

Its hoped a new grant scheme will encourage business owners to move into vacant units in Carlisle's city centre.

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The new grants will be available to new and growing small and medium sized businesses in the city centre.

The maximum grant per business will be £5000, and the money would be for capital works like improving shop fronts, news signs, and buying other new equipment.

Carlisle City Council's appealed for private landlords with available properties to get in touch to help house homeless local people.

Councillor Paul Nedved, portfolio holder for housing, said the city had a range of hostels, safe houses and other accommodation, but was hoping to get more available in case it was needed.

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The population of Carlisle's main urban area would go over 100,000 in a set of proposals just put online by the city council.

The plans are the draft bid for up to £25m in a government scheme called Town Deal, and city councillors are hoping the public will get involved by passing comments and making suggestions.

Carlisle City CouncilCopyright: Carlisle City Council

The major developments include redeveloping the area around the Citadels as a new university campus, and the St Cuthbert's Garden village with up to 50,000 new homes eventually being built to the south of the city.

You can read the document here.

Support payments of £500 for people on low incomes who are told they have to self-isolate are becoming available through Cumbria's councils.

The payments are available for people receiving a number of benefits such as Universal Credit, if their period of isolation started after 28 September.

Carlisle City Council has set up online forms for people who think they may be eligible.

A decision on whether to approve a controversial planning application for 80 homes in Carlisle has been delayed.

City councillors were due to decide on the plans for Deer Park at a meeting today, with a recommendation to approve, although local people had said the land was a haven for nature.

Now a ruling has been deferred to a later meeting amid uncertainty over county council efforts to provide more primary school places in the north of Carlisle.

Planners have given consent to the £144m Carlisle Southern Link Road, which will complete a ring of better roads around the city for traffic heading towards West Cumbria.

The road is central to plans for St Cuthbert's, a "garden village" that will eventually have up to 10,000 homes, and the decision will disappoint conservationists.

But Lorayne Wall, a planning officer for Friends of the Lake District which campaigns to preserve landscapes, says the building of what amounts to a new suburb was an opportunity to encourage cycling and public transport.

Carlisle City CouncilCopyright: Carlisle City Council

Quote Message: We need to be doing things in different ways, not just working on the same models as we have been in the past, which has caused all the problems we're now trying to fire-fight against." from Lorayne Wall

We need to be doing things in different ways, not just working on the same models as we have been in the past, which has caused all the problems we're now trying to fire-fight against."

The Carlisle southern link road, a bypass to the south of the city that is a key part of plans for a housing development called the St Cuthbert's Garden Village, should get its formal planning go-ahead today.

Critics say building a new road will simply encourage more car journeys and damage the environment, but supporters say it will strengthen the economy and pave the way for new housing.

Cumbria County CouncilCopyright: Cumbria County Council

John Stevenson, the Conservative MP for Carlisle says he welcomes the investment and it isn't bad news for the environment.

Quote Message: It will take traffic away from the city centre, the overall benefits I think are very, very significant." from John Stevenson

It will take traffic away from the city centre, the overall benefits I think are very, very significant."

A personal reply from Sir David Attenborough has heartened a group of environmental campaigners in Carlisle.

The "Save Deer Park Field" group is opposing plans to build up to 80 homes on an area of land near the Kingmoor Sidings Nature Reserve.

The group says the area is popular with nature enthusiasts, but Carlisle City Council planning officers have recommended approval at a meeting tomorrow.

Pat Duncan from the campaign said Sir David said he understood their concern but as he knew nothing about the site itself, they should contact the Cumbria Wildlife Trust.

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Quote Message: That this great man took the time and the effort to hand-pen a letter with some advice, meant a lot not just me but too all the people who are in the Deer Park Field Group." from Pat Duncan

That this great man took the time and the effort to hand-pen a letter with some advice, meant a lot not just me but too all the people who are in the Deer Park Field Group."

The number of people who can attend cremations in Carlisle, or burials in council cemeteries will be restricted from today because of coronavirus.

The city council says up to 30 socially-distanced people can attend a graveside for a burial, because funerals are exempt from the rule of six.

But in crematorium and cemetery chapels, the council says after a risk assessment it's allowing 24 people to attend, and only six people will be able to take part when cremated remains are interred.

PA MediaCopyright: PA Media

People in Carlisle are being urged to make their voice heard by tomorrow as part of a consultation about climate change.

The city council wants to hear views about its draft "Carlisle Local Environment Climate Change Strategy" setting out how it will tackle environmental issues.

It's hoped to have a final version ready for the executive to discuss on 12 October, to consider its adoption by the whole council in early November.

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Powers aimed at stamping out anti-social behaviour in Carlisle could be strengthened to help deal with “aggressive begging” in the city.

Councillor Elizabeth Mallinson, an executive member on Carlisle City Council, claimed that the city had problems before lockdown which in some cases had included “professional beggars” travelling to the area, spending time begging then returning home at night.

She said the council should strengthen the public places protection order for the city: “We actually have one in place which is very robust but we’ve had a lot of issues and members of the public have got concerns about begging."

However, Mrs Mallinson emphasised that the council was not looking to target homeless people with the orders and was always willing to help people in need.

Quote Message: “If somebody has a genuine need, there are ways for them to be helped, local authorities and the police will help them, and we do help them." from Councillor Elizabeth Mallinson

“If somebody has a genuine need, there are ways for them to be helped, local authorities and the police will help them, and we do help them."

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