St Mary Out Liberty’s (New Hedges) county councillor continues to push for footpath improvements for the village.

Giving an update to the Community Council on the matter this month, Clr. Jon Preston said: “I am still trying to make progress on a request for the footpath between the Mini Market and Knighston Close to be widened. This path has significant footfall, especially during the holiday season.

“I have put the case forward to have the path widened to accommodate the number of pedestrians who use the path,” continued Clr. Preston, who said that the path was currently unsuitable for wheelchair users, buggies and pushchairs.

“I hope to establish an agreement to put a works program in place before the County Council is effectively dissolved on March 18 in readiness for the Local Authority elections in May. However, this is dependent on the support of colleagues at county hall who may now be focused on the newly elected council in May,” he added.

Discussions on grass cutting around New Hedges also continue to arise for the ward.

Members of the Community Council recently received an email from Pembrokeshire County Council’s Grounds Maintenance Team, which confirmed that the various parcels of grass, within the village, which the Community Council have cut, belong to PCC and are depicted on its cutting schedule.

It was confirmed that PCC will be responsible for all grass areas from the 2022 season onwards.

Giving an update on matters in a report to the councillor this month, county councillor for the ward Clr. Jon Preston said that due to the individual issues that have arisen over the last eighteen months it has been ‘challenging’ to direct some services to the areas where they have been needed most, but that it had been identified that some grassed areas that were contracted out for cutting by PCC were not being maintained as there existed some confusion over service providers areas of responsibility.

“This has now been rectified as we approach the Spring when we expect all areas to be cut as the contracts have illustrated,” explained Clr. Preston.

“In addition to this, several New Hedges residents have contacted me regarding village hedge trimming, particularly around the Charles Norris Gardens area. Some of the growth has been obstructing the view from the Charles Norris junction, creating a hazardous situation.

“I visited the site last month with PCC’s area maintenance team who carried out cutting works the following day. However, there remains some clarification as to the on-going maintenance in this area which will be matter for the community council to address and for PCC to establish clarity on the boundaries which has been requested from property services,” he added.