Stuart Hughes: Could you become a Devon road warden?
Stuart Hughes. Ref shs 22 18TI 4996. Picture: Terry Ife - Credit: Archant
In his latest column, County councillor Stuart Hughes writes about the council’s Road Warden Scheme
During the current lockdown I’ve received several enquiries from members of the public about Devon County Council’s Road Warden Scheme and how they should go about becoming one of the growing band across Devon. And so first of all what is the Road Warden Scheme?
It is a formal agreement between Devon County Council and a town or parish council, which enables them to deliver minor works in or around the public highway allowing communities to organise minor works either on, or off, the live carriageway. It also means that work can be carried out by a qualified Road Warden volunteer.
Works can include: Pothole repairs (when they do not meet the county council’s intervention criteria); clearing weeds; cleaning signs; cleaning drainage (gully grating); cutting grass; repairing finger posts; cutting hedges and vegetation; managing verges for wildlife and with Chapter 8 training and setting up and managing road closures for special events.
There are many benefits to being part of the Road Warden Scheme in that communities are able to carry out minor works which the county council is no longer able to resource and do not have a legal responsibility to carry out. The county will provide third party insurance for the works as well as free training courses arranged to gain City of Guilds Chapter 8 which allows those trained to carry out small defect/ pothole repairs… but not on an A road.
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The town or parish also receives priority status for Highway Maintenance Community Enhancement Fund applications, allowing them to purchase the tools and highway management to carry out the work along with access to larger tools held at various locations around the county.
And so a Road Warden should:-
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• Be nominated as suitable by the town or parish council
• Be the communication link between the county council and the town or parish council
• Agree to work within the arrangements set forward by the Road Warden agreement
• Coordinate any minor works which are undertaken within the parish or town
• Ensure that risk assessments are undertaken and are easily accessible upon the County Councils request.
A Road Warden volunteer should:
• Be nominated as suitable by the town or parish council or similar body
• Have received suitable training to carry out minor works
• Agree to work within the arrangements set forward by the Road Warden.
