
Works on Carlisle station redevelopment to start
The space is the main point of arrival for visitors to the city, but the current layout and appearance of Court Square is dominated by vehicles, making the space problematic for pedestrians, a report said.
'Excellent news for Carlisle'
Planning officer Stephen Daniel said the design was considered to be acceptable and it would have a significantly positive impact on the station and the listed buildings around it. The Lawson's drinking fountain will return to Court Square where it used to be located before it was moved in 1936 due to the construction of underground toilets.The plans were unanimously approved on Wednesday, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.Cumberland Council Leader Mark Fryer said: "This is excellent news for Carlisle."He said it would support the city's regeneration and and make he station more accessible, while moving the fountain back would "restore an important part of our local history".Work is due to start in the autumn after highways and public realm improvements to English Street and the Crescent and Botchergate junction are completed.
Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Send your story ideas here.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Last Pub Standing in Norwich applies for longer music hours
The owners of a city centre pub hoped to host later outdoor music events despite previous noise complaints from Last Pub Standing, in Norwich, applied to the council for an amendment to its premises licence to permit the playing of music in the garden until King Street bar currently has to shut off entertainment in the garden at 22:00 BST, or 23:00 on Fridays and Saturdays, under an agreement made less than two years officials have raised concerns about the application, pointing to a history of noise complaints and enforcement action which previously troubled the venue. It will be discussed at a Norwich City Council meeting. A previous premises licence was lost when a company set up by the owner of the pub, Simon Peters, with a business colleague, went into to a split between the pair, a new company was formed by Mr Peters and the licence was an administrative mistake meant the venue was mistakenly operating without a licence for some time before it secured a new licence in January licence was currently in use, but Mr Peters said it was handed to him with "more onerous terms" than the original, including strict limits on the use of the garden and the shutting of windows. His new application sought to extend the hours permitted for the playing of recorded music in the back garden to 23:00, or midnight on Fridays and also hoped to secure permission to leave windows open when entertainment is playing, to prevent overheating inside the Peters was given temporary permission to trial these later hours over the Easter period and said no complaints were received during this application is set to be considered at a meeting of Norwich City Council's licensing sub-committee on of that decision, the authority's environmental protection team have objected on public nuisance grounds, with an officer saying it is "important to note that an abatement notice" is in place in relation to objection added that a revised noise impact assessment would be required. Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.


BBC News
19 hours ago
- BBC News
Tiffin Sandwiches expansion to create hundreds of Bradford jobs
A sandwich company has been given the go-ahead to expand its operations, creating hundreds of company Tiffin Sandwiches was granted permission to build a 50,000 sq ft (4,645 sq m) factory next to its base on Commondale Way, near the company also announced it had purchased another Bradford sandwich company, Love Bites.A spokesman for Tiffin said the company was "committed to building a sustainable future while ensuring the growth and prosperity of our local community in Bradford". They told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "The new factory is set to create and secure numerous local jobs, providing opportunities for professional growth and development while fostering relationships with local suppliers."Our investment not only strengthens our operations but also boosts the Bradford economy, empowering the community as a whole."The company thanked Love Bites founders Richard and Gill Smith for their dedication to the business over the past 35 said: "Their passion and commitment have created a strong foundation, and we are pleased to announce that Richard will continue to play a key role within the business, utilising his extensive industry experience to guide the future of Love Bites."Last summer Tiffin applied for permission to build a new factory and office space next to its headquarters. It said the £10m project would create about 400 site is currently used as a lorry the development, Bradford Council planning officers said: "The proposal is considered to represent a sustainable form of development which would provide economic development and employment opportunities within the district." Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.


Wales Online
a day ago
- Wales Online
Council accused of 'throwing money like confetti' to 'gag' staff who leave
Council accused of 'throwing money like confetti' to 'gag' staff who leave Figures show just how much was spent on staff non-disclosure agreements Plaid Cymru's Caerphilly group leader Lindsay Whittle is among the critics of the council's NDA use (Image: Plaid Cymru) A Welsh council has been accused of "gagging" former employees and treating money like 'confetti' after figures showed it spent more than £800,000 last year on staff non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). Caerphilly council signed as many NDAs with staff leaving its employment in 2024/25 as the other four councils in Gwent combined. The council has long had a comparatively high use of NDAs, which over the past five years has cost it more than £2.7million. Critics have questioned the motives, suggesting they could be used to "cover up" issues or "stifle" whistleblowers. Caerphilly council challenged those claims and described the use of NDAs as "common practice" between employers and employees. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter . In 2023/24 the council signed 41 NDAs for a total cost of around £784,000. It signed fewer agreements last year, but a total of 32 NDAs added up to more than £832,000. A Freedom of Information request by the Local Democracy Reporting Service showed that over the past five years Caerphilly has signed 150 NDAs with departing employees – while, elsewhere in the Gwent region, Newport signed 62, Blaenau Gwent signed 40, Torfaen signed 18 and Monmouthshire signed 17. Article continues below Councillor Nigel Dix, who leads Caerphilly council's independent group, called the use of NDAs "absolutely wrong" and said they should be "banned in the public sector". "Somebody leaves their employment and they are gagged, basically," he said. "It smacks of a cover-up and that is unacceptable." Mr Dix also said he was concerned about a lack of democratic oversight, and accused the council of "throwing money around like it's confetti". Concerns were also raised by the council's Plaid Cymru group leader, councillor Lindsay Whittle, who said the council should "explain in detail" its use of NDAs. "The widespread use of the so-called gagging orders worries me," he said. "What type of information is so confidential that former staff have to be gagged from speaking about them? "Are these NDAs being used as a way of covering up matters within the workings of the council which may be in the public interest?" A Caerphilly council spokesman said: "These types of settlements are not 'gagging orders', they are agreements that are common practice and are used by many employers to facilitate a mutual termination between an employer and employee." On the comparative figures, the spokesman said: "Caerphilly is one of the largest councils in Wales. Therefore, you would expect these figures to be higher than other smaller local authorities." However, population comparisons show Caerphilly's use of NDAs is higher than other authorities. The most recent Welsh figures show Newport's population is more than 90% of Caerphilly county's, yet Caerphilly council's use of NDAs is more than double that of Newport in the last five years. "As front-line services have been cut back, paying out such sums to ex-staff shows a complete lack of priorities and principle, and stifles any attempts by staff who want to 'whistle-blow,'" said one Caerphilly resident and taxpayer. "There's a widespread belief that people are being gagged not to spill the beans on some of the council's gaffes." The council spokesman, however, said NDAs "are only used when a robust business case has been completed to demonstrate their requirement and are, by their nature, designed to minimise the financial impact on the council". Article continues below He added: 'We will continue to carefully monitor the use of such agreements going forward.'