Councillor Peter Atherton

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Councillor Peter Atherton This is the personal page of Councillor Peter Atherton. Views expressed are my own. This is not an official page of Upton & North Elmsall Parish Council.

01/10/2026

šŸŒŸ Could YOU be our next Parish Councillor? šŸŒŸ

Do you care about Upton & North Elmsall?
Have ideas about how our community could be improved?
Would you like the opportunity to get involved, have your say and help shape local projects and priorities?

Upton & North Elmsall Parish Council currently has a vacancy for a Parish Councillor, and weā€™d love to hear from local people who may be interested in joining us.

You donā€™t need to be an expert in local government - what matters is an interest in your community and a willingness to get involved.

The vacancy will be filled by co-option at the Council meeting on Tuesday 20th October 2026.

šŸ’» Application documents and further information are now available on our website.

āœØ Maybe youā€™ve considered becoming a Councillor beforeā€¦ or maybe youā€™ve never thought about it until now. Either way, why not take a look?

Please share this post - our next Parish Councillor might be someone you know!

Following my report regarding the overgrown vegetation obstructing the road sign on Doncaster Road (A638), I have now re...
25/09/2026

Following my report regarding the overgrown vegetation obstructing the road sign on Doncaster Road (A638), I have now received a response from the highways team.

The vegetation has been logged for attention under case number CAS-779131, with a current target date of 07/10/2026.

Thank you to everyone who continues to highlight issues around the village. I will provide any further updates if I receive them.

Cllr Peter Atherton
Upton and North Elmsall (Personal Capacity)
Email: [email protected]

Good morning,I hope you are all having a good week.I've reported an overgrown roadside sign on Doncaster Road (A638) aft...
23/09/2026

Good morning,
I hope you are all having a good week.

I've reported an overgrown roadside sign on Doncaster Road (A638) after noticing that vegetation has grown around it and is now obscuring much of the sign.

The issue has been reported to the relevant highways team, with the location provided as ///beads.install.grow, and I've asked for the vegetation to be cut back so the sign is clearly visible to road users once again.

Keeping signs visible helps drivers and visitors navigate safely and easily around the area.

Cllr Peter Atherton
Upton and North Elmsall (Personal Capacity)
Email: [email protected]

Looks like I won't be getting anything I was suppose to done this evening..
22/09/2026

Looks like I won't be getting anything I was suppose to done this evening..

20/09/2026

5 things you might not know about meā€¦ šŸ‘‹

Most people know me as their local councillor, but some might know me as the cheerful, dancing, slightly bonkers lollipop man! šŸ˜‚

So, here are five things you might not know about me:

šŸ“š 1. I love books.
Thereā€™s something special about a good book. It can make you laugh, make you think, transport you somewhere completely different or sometimes put into words something youā€™ve never quite been able to say yourself.

āœļø 2. Iā€™m an author.
I wrote *The Inventory of Silence*, a poetry collection exploring the things we often leave unsaid, including emotions, memories, relationships and the experiences we carry with us.

The book is particularly close to my heart because **all proceeds are donated to Andyā€™s Man Club**, supporting their work around menā€™s mental health and encouraging men to talk.

šŸ“– 3. Iā€™m about to send five copies of my book out into the community.
Iā€™ve just ordered five author copies, which should arrive by the 2nd. Rather than keeping them all on my bookshelf, Iā€™m going to leave them in five little community libraries.

Hopefully, someone will discover one completely by chance, read it, and perhaps pass it on again.

šŸšø 4. Iā€™m a lollipop man.
Yes, alongside being a councillor and an author, youā€™ll often find me out with my lollipop stick helping children safely across the road.

And if youā€™ve seen me dancing while doing it, no, you werenā€™t imagining it! šŸ˜‚

šŸ˜„ 5. I donā€™t take myself too seriously.
Life can be serious enough, so I think thereā€™s always room for a bit of laughter. Iā€™m quite happy to have a dance, have a laugh, make a fool of myself and enjoy the moment.

After all, being a councillor is an important job, but Iā€™m still just me.

So there you have it.

Councillor, author, lollipop manā€¦ and apparently slightly bonkers! šŸ˜‚ā¤ļø

Whatā€™s one thing people might be surprised to learn about you?

18/09/2026

Following a parish walk last week with a resident who uses a mobility scooter, I have reported a concern to Wakefield Council regarding a dropped kerb at what3words:///influencing.nodded.graph.

During the walk, the resident highlighted difficulties at this location and advised that he had previously come off his mobility scooter there, although the incident was not formally reported at the time.

Photographs were submitted with the report. The images appear to show a difference in height between sections of the dropped kerb, including an area where weeds are present. I have asked the council to inspect the location and determine whether any work may be required.

I will provide a further update if I receive a response.

Cllr Peter Atherton
Upton and North Elmsall (Personal Capacity)
Email: [email protected]

17/09/2026

Good evening,

I wanted to share a quick update regarding the access road off Waggon Lane.

Yesterday evening, I received a response from Wakefield Council after raising concerns about the worn road surface and faded markings affecting those accessing the local school, library and country park.

The Council explained that, under the Section 38 process, adoption would need to be progressed by the landowner or developer submitting the road to the Council for consideration under the relevant Highways Act provisions. Consequently, my next step is to establish who owns and originally developed this stretch of road.

I will begin with a Land Registry search. If the land turns out to be unregistered, I will also:

ā€¢ Contact the Highways Asset Team.
ā€¢ Review historic deeds and developer records.
ā€¢ Establish who fronts the road.
ā€¢ Check previous planning applications for information about original ownership and maintenance responsibilities.

Before my shift started, the schoolā€™s headteacher stopped by my crossing to see how things were. I mentioned the faded road markings and the zebra crossing near the library, both of which I have also brought to Wakefield Councilā€™s attention.

While the headteacher kindly suggested the school might be able to assist, I want to clarify that I havenā€™t asked them to take any action at this stage. My priority is to establish who actually owns or originally developed this stretch of road and see whether they are willing to pursue its adoption with the Council through the appropriate highways process. We want to ensure the school isnā€™t left paying for infrastructure that isnā€™t their responsibility.

Can you help?

If any local residents have historical knowledge about who built or owns this specific stretch of road, please get in touch. I will provide another update as soon as I know more.

For clarity, I am pursuing this matter entirely in my own personal capacity and not on behalf of Upton and North Elmsall Parish Council.

Cllr Peter Atherton
Upton and North Elmsall (Personal Capacity)
Email: [email protected]

Address

The Village Hall, Harewood Lane, Upton
Pontefract
WF91JB

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