Bemusement in Dereham over mishmash market place paving

A £10,000 project to pave over the crumbling open space in the centre of Dereham has been met with bemusement after it left large areas untouched. 

People have described the work - which has seen the parking and market area in the middle resurfaced but the surrounding road left bumpy and potholed - as a "job half done".

The resurfacing has left the area looking like a paving patchwork (Image: Newsquest)

The patchwork effect is down to the fact that the town council, which carried out the £9,700 work, is only responsible for the space in the middle of the market place. 

The adjoining roads are maintained by Norfolk County Council. 

The town council informed County Hall it would be carrying out works and invited it do to the same for the nearby roads at the same time, but NCC declined the suggestion.

One of the potholes in the car park which as now been filled (Image: Denise Bradley) READ MORE: Webcam overlooking vandalised toilets to be installed for £2,500

The lack of joined-up thinking has been criticised by some in the town.

Shirley Lovewell said: "They could have done the job all in one go and it would've meant less disruption to the traffic and it would've been less expensive.

Shirley Lovewell believes the added disruption will also be more expensive (Image: Newsquest) Another person, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: "It looks half done and the fact that it has not been done completely makes the difference even more obvious."

Paul Adolpho said: "It's still a hazard for old people who could fall over the uneven area."

Contractors for the town council carried out the work over two days last week to fill the potholes, which have been a long-standing issue for the town.

Paul Adolpho said the road is still a hazard (Image: Newsquest) READ MORE: Spending a penny in market town is now much easier thanks to new loo scheme

Last year, there were complaints about the danger they posed on market days when some traders had to ensure customers did not hurt themselves when tripping in the crevices.

Harry Clarke, a Dereham Town Councillor who has long campaigned for the road to be resurfaced, said: "Great job by the council on resurfacing much of the market place area, which is used by traders and shoppers.

"The work was needed to fill in the nasty deep ruts and uneven surfaces to avoid trips, which has delighted some traders."

Harry Clarke has applauded the town council's work to resurface the car park (Image: Newsquest) READ MORE: Police probe into husky abduction ends without any charges made

He added: "We just need County Council to crack on with the roadway itself."

Tony Needham, Dereham Town Council's clerk, said: "Norfolk County Council has been aware of the works since January and knew there was scope to utilise our road closure notice to complete additional works on the areas they are responsible for."

The adjoining roads which have not been resurfaced have been criticised by locals (Image: Newsquest) He added: "The cost of the road closure is £1,400, in addition to the cost, there is also the disruption to bus passengers and businesses around the market place.

"It therefore made sense to give NCC the opportunity to use the same road closure to carry out repair works."

A spokeswoman for Norfolk County Council said there are no immediate plans carry to out any resurfacing.

The cost to resurface the road came to £8,300 (Image: Newsquest) READ MORE: Norfolk's longest village eyed up for solar farm bid

This is because the council is considering the delivery of improvements to the bus stops in Dereham's Market Place.

If this work goes ahead, only then would the council consider resurfacing the roads there. 

She said: "This work would be funded through the Bus Service Improvement Plan and if it happens then some resurfacing could form part of that.

"However the scheme is in the very early stages and we are working with stakeholders on this."