Published 5/10/2026 By William Turtle-Clark

A senior Herefordshire politician has voiced frustration over the local authority’s repeated delays in delivering agreed community infrastructure projects.

Councillor Terry James, leader of the Liberal Democrats group on Herefordshire Council and a former council leader, raised concerns over long-standing backlogs affecting small-scale schemes across the county.

Focusing on a long-delayed project in his own Kington ward, Councillor James highlighted a planned pedestrian crossing for Kington Primary School that has remained unbuilt for 14 years. The safety improvement was intended to be funded using Section 106 contributions secured from local housing developers.

Councillor James criticized the council's handling of developer contributions, stating that "S106 money just goes into a pile and doesn't get spent". He estimated that while £60,000 would have covered the scheme's original cost 14 years ago, inflation and delays mean the project will likely cost double to deliver today.

While noting that the school crossing "may yet come to fruition," Councillor James warned that repeated stallings leave residents feeling "fatalistic" about local infrastructure delivery.
A spokesperson for Kington Primary School confirmed that "the hope is that the crossing will still go ahead".

Kington Town Council’s Planning and Environment Committee are scheduled to discuss this during a meeting on Monday.