Councillor fills Jacksdale pothole himself to make road safe ahead of funeral

A county councillor has decided to take matters into his own hands and fix a major pothole himself after a mum's "desperate" plea for help. Cllr David Martin, a county councillor for Selston in Nottinghamshire, repaired the pothole on Church Hill, Jacksdale, after a grieving mother bought eight bags of stone to desperately try to fill the crater just hours before her son's funeral.

Cllr Martin had tried for six weeks to get the pothole fixed by Nottinghamshire County Council. He described council bosses as "utterly shameful" and "bereft of compassion". The pothole is at the main entrance to Jacksdale Primary and Nursery School and the access road to St Mary’s Church and the local Welfare Club, where around 300 mourners held a wake.

Cllr Martin, an Ashfield Independent councillor, said: "The Conservatives, who run Nottinghamshire County Council, should be utterly ashamed of themselves. Multiple residents including local district councillor Julie Gregory and I have reported and reported this to the county council but the Conservatives simply don’t care.

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"I know this isn’t a perfect job but I made it safe because I care. In the run-up to her son’s funeral, the man’s mother and her grandson bought eight bags of stone from a local garden centre.

"After our pleas for an urgent fix fell on deaf ears, I went to B&Q and filled it myself. The Conservatives should hang their heads in shame.

"One department of the council, famous for potholes, were blaming each other. The council have had weeks to fill this pothole and failed yet again. I am fed up of being let down by the Conservative establishment at the county council. They are utterly shameful and bereft of compassion."