THE persistence of Middlewich town councillors in calling for blocked gullies to be cleared could be about to pay off.

On Monday, Cllr Dave Latham urged his fellow councillors to get behind plans to put pressure on Cheshire East Council to sort highways issues across town.

He told members he had been reporting the same problems over and over again since becoming a councillor in 2015, and that this was 'not fair on the Middlewich people'.

After the Guardian reported Cllr Latham's concerns, CEC has now confirmed it will be carrying out work to clear gullies in Middlewich next January.

A CEC spokesman said: "As part of our ongoing gully maintenance programme, Middlewich works are due to start in January 2021.

Northwich Guardian:

"All additional reported issues are assessed for priority and actioned, as appropriate, with priority given to those locations affecting property or danger to highway users.

"We are aware of an issue at Sutton Lane/Long Lane crossroads and this is on our list of sites for further works."

As well as the Sutton Lane crossroads, Cllr Latham says there are issues at Croxton Lane, Finney's Lane, and near the Golden Lion and Morrisons, while Cllr Graham Orme also raised concerns about Southway.

Cllr Latham has given CEC's announcement a cautious welcome.

He told the Guardian: "Five years I have been reporting some of these items and despite several promises, actions have not been taken.

Northwich Guardian:

"It's good to hear that they have now got a schedule of work that they are going to do, and I will be watching very closely to see what they do.

"The amount of hours that councillors spend chasing up this work that needs doing is ridiculous.

"I know there are a lot of towns that CEC needs to look after but as always Middlewich is right at the bottom of the pile, and we have to make a stand before anything is carried out."

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On Monday, town councillors agreed to regularly provide updates on highways issues they have reported, while Middlewich Town Council will write to CEC putting the 'highest pressure available' on borough chiefs to sort the problems out.

Middlewich's CEC members – Cllr Mike Hunter, Cllr Carol Bulman and Cllr Jonathan Parry – will also push the borough's highways team to resolve the issues.