Recruiting now for foster carers in Hertfordshire

We love our busy home. It’s good fun”

Could you make a big difference to a child’s life?

There are approximately 1,000 children and young people in care in Hertfordshire and many of these children need the love and support of a foster family.

If you are aged over 21, have a spare room at home, and space in your heart, then fostering could be for you.

When you choose to foster with us, you’ll receive generous pay and allowances for each child, exceptional training and 24/7 local support right from the very start.

Get in touch with our friendly team today and we’ll help you decide if fostering is right for you.

CONTACT US:

To find out more about fostering, please call our team on 0800 917 0925 for an informal chat or email us on fostering.recruitment@hertfordshire.gov.uk

Relief as Nazeing New Road opens after four months

There was relief for motorists last month when Nazeing New Road in Broxbourne re-opened after a four-month closure put in place while Network Rail replaced the bridge over the railway line close to Broxbourne Station.

The closure between the beginning of January and 1st May saw traffic sent on a 17-mile diversion through Hoddesdon, Harlow and Nazeing. Rail passengers were also affected in January when Greater Anglia trains were unable to run under the bridge for six days.

The road bridge sits over the main line between London, Hertfordshire, Essex and Cambridge. It needed to be replaced having reached the end of its useful life. The good news is that Network Rail expects the new structure to have a lifespan of some 120 years.

Government confirms new Harlow hospital

The Government has confirmed that a new hospital for Harlow will be built, and fully funded by the Government, by 2030.

Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay MP told the House of Commons on Thursday 25th May that a replacement for the ageing Princess Alexandra Hospital (pictured above) in Harlow town centre would be built as part of the Government’s New Hospital Programme. The trust that runs the hospital will now proceed with buying land on the site it has identified for the hospital, which is close to the new junction 7a of the M11. Along with other new hospitals being built, it will be constructed using a standardised, modular approach called Hospital 2.0.

The news was welcomed by trust bosses as well as Harlow MP Robert Halfon, who has campaigned for a new hospital, and Hertford and Stortford MP Julie Marson, many of whose constituents also use the Princess Alexandra. In separate statements both talked of work beginning as soon as 2025 with Mrs Marson mentioning a completion date in 2028.

Coopers building next to Old River Lane for sale

The prominent retail site on the corner of Bridge Street and Old River Lane in Bishop’s Stortford, currently home to Coopers of Stortford, is on the market for an asking price in excess of £5.5million.

Local chartered surveyors Coke Gearing are marketing the property, which is made up of a number of buildings including a 16th century timber framed building and a 19th century malthouse, and is part listed.

Coopers of Stortford is primarily a mail-order company but has a retail showroom in the town where Neil and Kate Cooper founded the business in 1995. The premises also currently serve as a garden centre and offices for the business which was sold to French clothing distributor Damartex in 2013.

Coke Gearing say the existing lease expires at the end of 2024. It says lease renewal conversations have commenced but also says the site has long-term development potential. It is adjacent to East Herts Council’s Old River Lane site comprising the former Causeway car park and Charringtons House offices, which is earmarked to provide new homes, shops and a cinema.

A new recycling centre replacing the former one at Cole Green near Hertford has opened in Welwyn Garden City.

The multi-million pound facility has been created by Hertfordshire County Council and is a vast improvement on the old Cole Green site which closed in March.

The new Welwyn site is split level, making servicing the containers easier, which should mean less site closures during opening hours. It includes a Reuse Shop, the fourth in the county, where you can donate or buy good quality unwanted items.

The centre, at Tewin Road AL7 1BD, is open between 10am and 6pm seven days a week.

A new bus service between Stevenage and the Brookfield Centre in Cheshunt, running through Hertford, Ware and Hoddesdon, has been launched by Hertfordshire County Council and Centrebus.

The 907, which was launched on Sunday 16th April, is an hourly service that operates seven days a week between 7am and 8pm.

The timetable has been designed alongside existing route 390 to provide a bus up to every 30 minutes on weekdays between Stevenage and Hertford, a commitment that Hertfordshire County Council made in its Bus Service Improvement Plan.

It will provide a new regular service between the towns, with connections to important destinations such as the Lister Hospital.

The new service will also serve Watton at Stone and the Pinehurst Estate in Hertford, and provide a faster link between Hoddesdon and Hertford.