Barton-under-Needwood Village Improvement Scheme Brief for consultancy support July 2013 1
Introduction Barton-under-Needwood Parish Council has an ambition to improve the environment along the main spine through the village, whilst maintaining its historical character, with the aim of making it more pleasant and attractive for everyone who shares the village (i.e. residents, visitors and those passing through). To achieve this, professional support will be required to work with the Parish Council, particularly in respect of the development and design of options that can be consulted upon. This brief sets out the Parish Council s requirements. Suitably qualified consultants are invited to submit proposals to fulfill the requirements of the brief. Setting the scene Barton-under-Needwood is a large village (population 5000) in the District of East Staffordshire, 5 miles south west of Burton-on-Trent. It lies 1 mile north of the A38 trunk road, on the B5016 which travels through the village and north to meet the A515 at Yoxall. Being a large village, with a mix of facilities, East Staffordshire Borough Council (ESBC) has defined Barton as a strategic village. Whilst it does enjoy a ranges of shops and facilities, including infant, junior and secondary schools, its proximity to Burton means that it does not support sufficient activities to be self-sufficient. This is at odds with the emerging Local Plan that suggests that Barton is sufficiently served to be sustainable. With little employment within the village, this is certainly not the case, with significant amounts of out-commuting to a range of destinations in all directions. Whilst the presence of the three schools in the village does help keep people in the village throughout the day, at start and finish times the village becomes congested. This is partly due to the amount of traffic associated with the schools, but also due to parents parking in the vicinity of the schools. Whilst surveys suggest that a good proportion of traffic in and around the village is made up of residents, there is through traffic, some of which is going to/from the A50. General traffic levels, but particularly the use of B5016 by lorries, are a concern to residents, both in terms of noise and vibration and on grounds of road safety. The area around Barton is under pressure from all types of development and expanding activities, including business, quarrying and housing. The Parish Council has significant concerns about the impact of such proposed developments on Barton, including the generation of more traffic through the village. 2
The central part of the village is designated as a Conservation Area, with several listed buildings and trees with preservation orders all adding to the distinct character and beauty of the place. Scale and scope With respect to this brief, the area under review stretches along the B5016 (Main Street and Station Road), taking in the full length of the village between the two existing road narrowing gateway features. The central part of the area is a Conservation Area. The overall aim is to support the process of developing ideas to enhance the village streetscape, making it an attractive place for all who use it. Consideration will be given to: General streetscape, including hard landscaping and features Designation and usage of space Soft landscaping, vegetation and trees Street lighting Street furniture Signage Background For many years there have been concerns about traffic through Barton. Not just the amount of traffic, but its speed and composition, particularly heavy goods vehicles. Village surveys going back many years highlight these issues. A survey in 2003 for the development of the Village Plan indicated this as a major concern. Recognising these concerns, the Parish Council established a Transport & Environment (T&E) Sub-Committee in 2007. This meets monthly and has been active on many fronts, particularly in making representations on planning applications and the emerging East Staffordshire Local Plan. It has also been seeking to produce a Conservation Area Management Plan. The Parish Council has an ambition to enhance the village environment and maintain its historic character. It wants to emphasise the village heart around the war memorial and is keen to see innovative ways of achieving this, perhaps using such concepts as shared space. Four years ago, the County and Borough Councils and schools formed a safer routes to schools group, which sought to develop measures to improve safety for journeys to and from school. Proposals were developed but strongly rejected by the village. 3
The reaction to the safer routes to school proposals was not because villagers didn t believe that action was needed, but that they felt that proper consultation had not been undertaken and that they had not been involved in their formulation. Indeed, there has been much energy put into raising issues, and the Parish Council has met with County Council representatives several times to highlight concerns relating to the B5016. However, the response has tended to be that this B road is not as high a priority as other B roads in the county. The Parish Council recognises that there are problems caused by parking in the vicinity of the schools at drop-off and pick-up times. It therefore wishes to see creative ways of dealing with this issue, instead of merely imposing parking and waiting restrictions accompanied by unsightly yellow lines. The T&E Sub Committee of the Parish Council has been so busy addressing many concerns (particularly developer-led proposals), it agreed to establish a separate Sub-Group in 2012 which would try to generate positive proposals to improve the environment of the main spine through the village. The objective would be to maintain a thriving and vibrant village, while also providing a safer and more attractive environment for cyclists, pedestrians and other vehicular traffic. The following vision statement was adopted by the Parish Council for the project: We intend to create a safer and more pleasant environment along Station Road and Main Street, for the benefit of the whole community, and improve the environment in the village centre while maintaining its historic character. The Sub Group has spent much time researching ways of improving village environments, talking to and learning from other communities and practitioners, such as urban designers. In December 2012, the Parish Council funded a day s consultancy work by Ben Hamilton-Baillie. He looked at current conditions in the village, talked to Parish Council representatives, and met with representatives of Staffordshire County Council (SCC). The day culminated in an open meeting in the evening, to which the whole village was invited. 100 people came along for a presentation on environmental improvement schemes by Ben, followed by discussion on the possibility of such improvements being made in Barton. During the meeting, there was an opportunity to gauge the level of support for improvements in the village only 3 voiced concerns, with the vast majority wanting to see steps taken to improve conditions along Main Street / Station Road. 4
The Parish Council took this as a mandate from the village to further investigate measures that might enhance the village environment. The meeting brought about various ideas, with the view being that measures could be considered at key points along the route, including the area around the War Memorial, the village gateways and key crossing points. During March 2013, representatives of the Parish Council and Sub-Group, accompanied by Staffordshire County Council officers, visited the shared space scheme recently installed in Poynton. The visit was hosted by Poynton Town Council, allowing Barton people to understand the journey that the town had followed with its project. 5
Purpose of consultancy support Having obtained the support of the village and interest of key interested parties (such as the Borough and County Councils), support is needed to help the Parish Council take the project through the next stage. This will involve developing ideas, working with the community and preparing visual representations of potential measures for public consultation. The key outcome of this stage will be community agreement on the measures that should be taken forward for full design and implementation. Some funding is already in place to enable this stage of the project to commence, although further funding is currently being pursued. Key tasks The main tasks that the consultancy will be required to undertake fall into four main areas: 1. Work with the community 2. Develop ideas 3. Prepare visual representations for consultation 4. Identify and develop measures that can be taken forward for full design and implementation Of course, the nature of the project means that this is not an exhaustive list. Other tasks may emerge as the project progresses; equally, less emphasis may be required on some of the elements listed. We therefore wish to work with a consultancy which is able to work flexibly to best meet the requirements of the project and help us achieve the outcome described. The assistance required under each of the four work areas is described below: Work with the community The consultant will be expected to work closely with the Parish Council and other interested parties throughout. A project steering group will be established, consisting representatives of the Parish Council s Transport & Environment sub-group, Staffordshire County Council and East Staffordshire Borough Council. From this group, one person will be nominated as the main point of contact for the consultant. All communication should be via this person. For certain progress meetings during this commission, the steering group may invite wider representation of the Parish Council. 6
The consultant will be expected to provide a weekly update on progress by email, describing tasks undertaken and next steps. Any questions or points of clarification can be raised and issues that require discussion by the steering group can be submitted. On appointment, there will be an inception meeting arranged with the consultant. This will provide an opportunity for the steering group to provide background information and for a detailed work programme to be finalised. The steering group will highlight its expectations for the project. Throughout the project the consultant will meet with the steering group on four occasions (other members of the Parish Council may also be invited to attend some of these meetings): Inception meeting Progress meeting to discuss ideas and potential measures Progress meeting to agree visual representations and plans for public consultation Final meeting to present those measures chosen for full design and implementation The Transport & Environment sub-group will seek to involve other interested parties and will liaise with them. These will include Main Street businesses, residents, schools, Civic Society and Royal British Legion. The steering group will facilitate contact with the consultant. Develop ideas As part of the inception meeting, the consultant will walk the route with the steering group to discuss current issues, concerns, opportunities and ideas. The steering group will provide the consultant with background information and any relevant work that it has available, such as the signage audit undertaken 2 years ago. It is envisaged that the study will follow the principles set out in the Department for Transport s Transport Note 1/11 Shared Space. A series of quality audits will be undertaken, some by the consultant and some by the steering group, as follows: Road safety (Staffordshire CC) Street character review (consultant) Non-motorised user audit, walking audit and cycle review (steering group) Access audit (consultant) Parking audit (steering group) Community street audit (consultant) Functionality audit (consultant) Place check (consultant) Materials audit (consultant) Equality impact assessment (consultant) All aspects of the street and built environment should be considered, including street furniture, signs and lines, infrastructure, buildings, landscaping and lighting. 7
It will be important to document all the issues and problems that are identified. Then, options should be developed for streetscape improvements, including road and junction treatments, measures to improve conditions for pedestrians and cyclists, street lighting, measures to better manage parking etc. There may be more than one option for some locations in the village. For each option there should be an explanation as to how it will address particular problems, together with an estimate of cost. Having got a long list of potential measures, these will be presented to the steering group. The consultant will also suggest an appraisal framework that can be used for assessing the various measures. The steering group will also make suggestions for the framework. Having agreed the framework, the steering group and consultant will jointly appraise the options, to identify a preferred set of options. Prepare visual representations for consultation Having agreed with the steering group a set of measures to be consulted upon, the consultant will prepare visual representations of these for a public exhibition / presentation. A plan showing the layout of these on an OS base map will be required (using mapping supplied by Staffordshire CC). This should be accompanied by visual representations / artist impressions of all the proposed measures. These should be in full colour. All visual representations should be capable of being displayed in hard-copy or digital formats. In hardcopy format, the consultant will be required to provide the representations at an appropriate size for an exhibition. All documents and representations (digital and hard copy, draft and final) will be transferred to the Parish Council in formats that can be amended in the future and without restrictions on copyright. The proposals will be displayed within the village for an agreed period. During this period there will be an afternoon and evening where the consultant will be expected to be present to discuss the proposals. During this time, a public meeting will be held to describe and present the proposals, with an opportunity for people to raise questions. Feedback forms will be provided for people to make comments. Identify and develop measures for full design and implementation The comments and views expressed during the consultation will be considered by the consultant and steering group. Where amendments to measures are identified to satisfy public comments, the consultant will be required to provide amended versions of drawings, plans and representations. A set of approved, preferred measures will be identified and agreed that can be taken forward for full design and implementation. The visual representations should be accompanied by a concise final report, including an executive summary, from the consultant that documents the project, work undertaken, options considered, consultation exercise and rationale for the final set of agreed measures. Outline costs for the individual measures should also be provided, together with suggestions for funding sources. 8
Project timescales Interviews for consultants (with presentations) September Project inception meeting TBC Progress meetings - TBC Public consultation / exhibition TBC Final report of proposed options TBC Project deliverables The following deliverables will be produced: Full list of all options, together with appraisal framework, with report providing rationale for each of the options List of preferred options to be visually represented Visual materials for the public consultation / exhibition Final report of proposals / actions, including outline costing of the physical works required to implement the scheme(s) Consultant s proposal Consultants are invited to submit a proposal document of a maximum of 16 sides of A4. This should provide: An understanding of the project requirements, including an indication of what you believe to be the key considerations for the project. Please show how your proposal reflects national and local policy, practice and thinking on improving the public realm. A description of your proposed approach, timescales and project deliverables. An indication of what involvement you will require from the Parish Council. Short descriptions of the staff to be involved in the project, and what each of their roles will be. A fee proposal, broken down by stage, indicating the proposed time inputs for each member of your team. All project costs, including expenses and time, should be included and a total fixed fee provided to carry out the work described in your methodology. The figure should exclude VAT. Payments will be linked to the successful completion of each stage, with 30% of the fee held until final completion. Three references (who we may contact) for similar projects undertaken in the last 3 years. For each, please provide: name of client contact; organisation; telephone number and email address; scope of services provided, date of commission; and contract value. Where possible, 9
include some images used in the projects. If the schemes have been implemented, please give details of the outcomes achieved. Details of any added value that your organisation will provide to the Parish Council as part of the commission. A further 12 additional sides of A4 can be appended, providing any additional information about your company, team (including CVs) and details of similar work undertaken elsewhere. Overall, the proposal document should reflect the attractiveness and quality of your work. Consultants may offer additional options for work over and above that specified in the brief. Costs associated with these additional elements should be quoted separately, for the Parish Council to consider. Submission of proposal Proposals should be sent to Barton Parish Council (by post or email), to arrive no later than 1700, Wednesday 21 August 2013, as follows: Mrs Siobhan Rumsby Clerk to the Council Parish Council Office Village Hall Crowberry Lane Barton-under-Needwood Burton upon Trent DE13 8AF email: bartonpc@btinternet.com 10
Evaluation of proposals Proposals will be evaluated according to a number of criteria. Scores will be distributed according to the following proportions: Proposed approach (methodology) 20% Cost (fixed fee) 50% Experience and expertise 15% References 10% Added value demonstrated 5% Terms and conditions Consultants will meet the costs of the formulation and submission of their proposals and attendance at interview. Quotations will remain valid for 90 days. If bidding with another party, or sub-consultant, full details of all parties and the relationship between them should be provided within the proposal document. It should be clear who the lead bidder is; they will be responsible for all aspects of the project and its management and will be the organisation with which Barton Parish Council contracts. Barton Parish Council reserves the right to not accept any or all of the quotations. On appointment, the successful consultant will be required to provide evidence of its insurances (public liability cover up to 5 million; employer s liability 5 million; professional indemnity 1 million). All documents, ideas, proposals, plans and drawings produced by the consultant during the commission will become the property of Barton Parish Council, which will gain full intellectual property rights. Brief prepared by Barton Parish Council s Transport & Environment Sub Committee, June 2013 11