Part of borrowed £7m used to fix highway structures

Initial estimates to fix Redcar's Dundas Street slipway were significant, the council said

A council will use some of £7.1m previously borrowed to carry out repairs to highways structures and those in coastal areas.

Redcar and Cleveland Council said it needed to restore the effects of a landslip near the village of Easington, a sink hole at Eston Recreation Ground and storm damage to a slipway in Redcar.

A report said external funding it was allocated was insufficient to maintain all the assets it was responsible for.

The council added that "unforeseen failures" had impacted its budgeting and explained the borrowing was to "ensure the safety and longevity" of assets belonging to it.

The Labour-led council warned that without any additional internal or external funding, it may have to reduce the work being undertaken in future years, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Cabinet member for highways and transport, Carl Quartermain, said the prudential borrowing worth £7.1m was agreed under a previous administration.

It is expected to be spent by the end of 2026/27, having been agreed in 2022.

Of the £7.1m figure, it said £500,000 was being put towards the costs of a landslip in Grinkle Lane and a further £150,000 allocated to manage a sink hole which appeared on Eston Recreation Ground in 2024.

Storm damage to the Dundas Street slipway, on Redcar seafront, had also undermined that particular structure, causing concrete pads to lift and drop.

The council said it had been given government funding of about £17m for works undertaken on highways over a five-year period between 2022/23 and 2026/27.

Rising costs

The figure pays for the likes of road resurfacing, maintaining footpaths and public rights of way, traffic claiming measures where needed to create safer streets, road markings and inspections of council-owned assets.

But the council said the funding had no "inflationary indexation" and was impacted by rising operational and material costs.

The report said there was a need for further funding to ensure a range of structures maintained across the borough were fit for purpose, safe and compliant.

"We are working with the TVCA to ensure the authority is provided with the correct level of funding to maintain our existing infrastructure," the report added.