Waverley children practice cycling skills
The new bike track at Waverley is now open and is already being enjoyed by the community.
This month we marked the opening by holding an exciting cycling skills session for pupils at Waverley Junior Academy led by Team GB cyclist, George Hunt. Pupils spent the afternoon testing out the new track and practicing riding BMX bikes.
The children were also joined by Ed Clancy OBE, three-time Olympic champion and six-time world champion cyclist and South Yorkshire Active Travel Commissioner.
The bike track has been created with funding from Harworth and Places to Ride – a partnership between British Cycling, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sports and Sport England.
This October half term, Harworth will be offering more children in the community the chance to practice their cycling on the track, with help from BMX racing trainers Tuff Riders. These free training sessions will be held on Tuesday 24th and Friday 27th October.
Looking ahead to Olive Lane
We’re making good progress on our plans to create a new local centre at Waverley – Olive Lane.
Olive Lane will be home to amenities including shops and places to eat and drink, as well as a new public square and outdoor space for the community to come together.
We know many residents are looking forward to seeing this part of the development come to life, and we wanted to provide an update on timescales.
Our planning application is currently being considered by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council following consultation with the community earlier this year. We are hopeful the plans will be approved by the council in October, and we will then be beginning work on site later this year.
There will also be a new GP surgery at Olive Lane. We’re working closely with the NHS on this, which is leading on the development of the facility.
Elsewhere at Waverley
Highfield Lane
We recently carried out works on key junctions along Highfield Lane to encourage safer driving on this road. The safety of people living and working at Waverley is very important to us, and we have taken the vehicle incidents that occurred this summer very seriously.
Over the last few months we have been working to assess what traffic calming measures are needed on Harworth-owned roads to reduce the risks of future accidents occurring. As agreed with Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, we have now installed road markings at the following junctions:
- Bradfield Way and Derwent Chase
- Askham Way and Broomhill Avenue
- Rivelin Way
The other roads are under the ownership of the housebuilders who have bought parcels of land from us and built homes here, and they manage any works that need to take place directly with RMBC. We work closely with these housebuilders and are in regular contact with them, including raising issues about the roads with them on behalf of residents.
Construction of the hotel
Residents may have noticed that construction of the new Marriott hotel has temporarily stalled. This land is owned by developer Stapleford which is working with its contractor to build the new hotel.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, works by its contractor have been delayed. Harworth is in constant dialogue with the developer, and we’re focused on ensuring construction will resume at the earliest opportunity.
A new play area at School Square
As residents may have spotted, we are making some changes to the play area outside of Waverley Junior Academy on Waverley Walk.
Colourful markings have been created on the asphalt, the vertical poles have been repainted and the landscaped area improved. We want this to be a fun and interactive informal play area for school pupils and younger children living at Waverley to enjoy.
Residents living in the immediate area will have received a letter with more detail on arrangements for the works, which commenced on 18 September.
You can keep updated on wider progress across Waverley at www.wearewaverley.com.
