Kirklees faced heavy snow, prompting questions about the council’s winter response and whether more could have been done to support residents during the crisis
Kirklees: The recent snowstorm really hit hard. Roads were a mess, and people were stuck. Schools closed, and bin collections were missed. It was chaos.
At a council meeting, members were buzzing with questions. They wanted to know if the council did enough to handle the situation. Cuts to the winter maintenance budget were a hot topic.
Grit bins were only filled once at the start of winter. Now, they were scrambling to refill them after the snow hit. Councillor Tony McGrath wanted a debate on the council’s response, but it was turned down.
Still, the issue came up during the meeting. Councillor John Taylor asked if the council’s efforts were good enough. He praised the teams working hard but pointed out the challenges they faced.
He mentioned school closures and unfilled grit bins. It was clear that budget cuts were causing problems. Councillor Moses Crook defended the council, saying they did everything possible with the resources available.
He highlighted that 5,470 tonnes of grit were used in just eight days. That’s a lot! Gritters were out from 5am, covering the main roads first. They did their best under tough conditions.
Councillor David Hall talked about the ripple effect of the snow. Kids couldn’t get to school, and parents couldn’t get to work. He urged the council to rethink their winter maintenance policy.
Councillor Amanda Pinnock mentioned the support available for schools during the storm. She stressed the need to review their response for future events. With climate change, these situations might happen again.
She promised a debriefing meeting to discuss improvements. It’s crucial to learn from this experience and be better prepared next time. Schools showed great resilience, and that’s worth acknowledging.
