The Parish Council Lengthsman.

The modern “Lengthsman” scheme is the re-incarnation of an old concept – a locally employed person to carry out highway maintenance tasks identified by the local community as important. It enables an enhanced local service with local priorities. The work may be expanded to tackle other small-scale maintenance work, either directly or jointly with the local community and the partners involved.

The work is funded by Worcestershire County Council, and we can claim for tasks that are ‘approved’. That means that while we have control over the work schedule of the Lengthsman, we can set only the tasks that are on the County Council’s list.

Lengthsman’s Tasks

Drainage

Clear gullies, headwalls, and outfalls;

Advise landowners and frontagers when their ditches need cleaning;

Vegetation Clearance

Remove vegetation obstructing signs and at junction visibility splays;

Removal of basal tree growth from highway trees;

Side out footways to normal width and spread arisings on verge where possible;

Negotiate with frontagers for them to cut back overhanging vegetation.

Miscellaneous

Rotation and charging of mobile Vehicular Activated Signs (VAS);

Clean dirty signs,

reposition signs which have been knocked out of place;

Snow clearance and gritting / salting by hand;

Removal of illegal fly posting;

Maintenance and repainting of highways approved visibility fencing.

If you spot any work that fits within the Lengthsman Scheme Work Tasks please report it to the Parish Clerk and we will investigate and where appropriate instruct the Lengthsman.

HISTORY OF THE LENGTHSMAN IN WORCESTERSHIRE

In the 1960’s increasing mechanisation and labour costs led many local authorities to move away from locally based maintenance activities. As a result, Lengthsmen disappeared, taking with them the knowledge of the local highway network, and the trust and understanding built up with many residents in their local area.

In December 2002, as a direct response to increasing numbers of minor road maintenance requests from residents, five parish councils in Worcestershire were invited to take part in a Lengthsman trial giving them greater responsibility and a budget for dealing with the highways priorities that mattered in their communities.

The trial proved to be a resounding success and, as a result, the scheme has now been rolled out to 90 per cent of the parishes in Worcestershire.

Each parish is given an amount each year, which is calculated based on the length of road within its boundary. Jobs undertaken include the clearing of gully gates, digging out of blocked gullies, removal of vegetation, cleaning of signs and hand gritting of footways/carriageways using County Council grit bins.

In short, the Parish Lengthsman scheme is all about doing the little things that matter to communities – today, and show how local people have the right knowledge to do what their communities really want done and when they want it done.