Frequently asked questions - Picket Twenty

There will eventually be a total of 4 children's play areas at Picket Twenty, one within each of the informal recreation areas / public open spaces and another, designed for older children, located within the Urban Park.

Following an extremely competitive tender process, HAGS were appointed as the Council's preferred supplier for all play facilities across the Picket Twenty development with the exception of the climbing apparatus at the Urban Park which has been supplied by Proludic. The public open space at Quicksilver Way was the first to be transferred to the Council and the Pirate’s Shipwreck themed children’s play area, known as ‘Quicksilver Cove’ was installed and opened in 2015.  This was followed by a Castle themed playpark at Picket Twenty Way public open space and Kanope Towers at the Urban Park. There is one final play park due to be installed in the public open space at Halter Way. There will be a public consultation in early 2020 to gain views on which play equipment will be installed.

Street names can identify themes which have some reference to a site, its characteristics and history. Following research and having regard to the existing street names in Andover, the following themes were considered for Picket Twenty - coaching / transport, horse racing, Harewood Forest and farming.

Royal Mail have plans to install a new post box on the corner of the road between the new retail store and the public car park. It will be installed once the retail shop has been completed.

Picket Twenty Way is currently the only road within the development which is routinely gritted during icy conditions, ahead of it being adopted by Hampshire County Council. This is as a result of it being the official bus route for the two major bus service providers, which therefore justifies it as being included as a Priority 1 gritting route, despite not yet being officially adopted by Hampshire County Council. None of the roads within the development have been adopted by Hampshire County Council yet, therefore gritting of all other roads remains the responsibility of the developer until they are adopted.

Once the roads at Picket Twenty are adopted, the County Council’s Winter Maintenance policy would apply. This would be to concentrate gritting resources on Priority 1 routes. An explanation of priority routes is explained in the document attached.  The roads on Picket Twenty will need to be assessed as to whether they are considered a priority route according to the HCC Winter Maintenance Policy (attached)

Bad weather leading to icy conditions can result in challenging conditions for both drivers and pedestrians and people must assess the risks to themselves and take precautionary steps. Drivers should also exercise caution and reduce their speed.  This applies to all Hampshire residents who live in areas where gritting of footpaths does not routinely take place unless there is a prolonged period of icy conditions which is expected to continue (see paragraph 1.8 of the attached). Residents may be interested in how they can take precautions themselves by reading the following link https://www.gov.uk/clear-snow-road-path-cycleway

If it is felt that footpaths on Picket Twenty should be gritted, currently residents would need to raise this with Persimmons and Remus, the management company.

Central crossing points have been installed at the new roundabout at the entrance to Picket Twenty Way and a footbridge links Picket Twenty with Ladies Walk. Pedestrians and cyclists can also use the bus underpass linking Picket Twenty and the Urban Park with London Road which provides a direct route into the town centre.

The underpass leading to London Road is open to pedestrians, cyclists and buses only. This will shorten the bus journey times into town. Art work in the underpass is by David Dixon, a local artist, working with ideas from children at Vigo School.

The bridge over the A3093 has a 5.7 metre clearance for any vehicles travelling below, which is as per the current standards for footbridges over highway and so this bridge does not require signage. Bridge signs are only provided when a bridge has a clearance of less than 5.03m (16’ 6”).

Test Valley Borough Council collects kerbside rubbish from Picket Twenty properties every Friday, alternating between household waste (black bin) and recycling (brown bin). Please leave your bin at the edge of your property by 7am each Friday and please bring all bins back onto your property as soon as possible once emptied.

Rubbish can also be taken to the Household Waste Recycling Centre at Scott Close on Walworth Business Park. Some types of bulky waste can be collected from your property by the council by contacting our Customer Service Unit on 01264 368000

This is a common problem in Test Valley and indeed across the country. The Environmental Protection Act 1990 states that householders should not store their bins on public rights of way as it acknowledges that they can cause disruption to people in wheelchairs and people moving push chairs etc. Instead they should be left out the day before and collected within a day of a collection. There are other reasons why bins on pavements are a problem ~ they are an eye sore and can be damaged, lost or filled up by people going past them. Test Valley Borough Council contacts households not complying in this way, but unfortunately there is no enforcement action the Council can take so we aim to encourage people to comply with this request by appealing to their better nature. We are aware that some householders have nowhere to store their bins (i.e. no useable space in their front garden and no access to a back garden) and there is little that the Council can do to help in such circumstances. This is a very small number of properties and it is important that other householders do not use this as an excuse to not put their bins away either - please act considerately and try to be a good neighbour whenever possible. Where changes can be made, some households have put slabs in their front garden to create a storage area for their bins and this works well.

The developers have provided signage and bins around the development to encourage dog owners to be responsible and clean up after their dogs. It is actually an offence not to clear up after your dog and you can be fined. To report any issues call 01264 368000 or visit the Council website at www.testvalley.gov.uk.

The amount of off-street parking provided meets the current maximum car parking standard for residential development. We understand that it is sometimes more convenient to park a car on the road than in the space(s) provided for each property but request that all residents use their allotted car parking spaces/garages to park their car in.

Cars parked on roads and pavements make it difficult for pedestrians to walk safely and can be dangerous, especially for children. Buses and emergency vehicles such as fire engines could also find it difficult to access some roads/houses, where residents have parked inconsiderately.
Parked vehicles which are causing an obstruction at road junctions should be reported to the Police using the 101 number.

Stagecoach provide a bus service throughout the development. A timetable can be viewed at  https://www.stagecoachbus.com/timetables.

The developers have funded subsidised bus passes for residents at Picket Twenty for up to a year. Only residents who are the first occupants of their address qualify for the subsidised passes. The passes cost £10 (for a three month pass) and are issued quarterly from Beech Hurst Council Offices, Weyhill Road, Andover.

The cycle discount vouchers are available to those who are first occupants of their

homes only and are limited to 1 per household. They are issued on a first come, first

served basis, until the available funds are depleted. The discount voucher can be put towards the cost of a bicycle, bicycle accessories or bicycle repairs/ servicing at Just Bikes. To apply please send an email titled ‘Picket Twenty Cycle Discount Voucher Scheme’ with your full name and full address with postcode to: Community&leisure@testvalley.gov.uk

Unfortunately Open Reach has decided not to offer super fast fibre-optics to the development. The developers are currently in discussion with other providers.

The Urban Park, provides a tennis court, 7 football pitches, a cricket pitch and a woodland area. There is also be a play area for older children at the Urban Park and the Council has aspirations to provide an all-weather sports pitch in the future. A Sports Pavilion has also been built as part of the Urban Park facilities and work towards establishing the best method of management of this facility is underway.

For more information, contact Mandie Taylor, Community Engagement Officer for Picket Twenty. Email ataylor@testvalley.gov.uk or telephone 01264 368069