The following summary of planned new and ongoing road improvements over the coming week is correct as of Friday 31 March and could be subject to change due to weather conditions or unforeseen circumstances. All our improvement work is carried out with the aim of causing as little disruption as possible.

M1 junction 32 Thurcroft to junction 35a Stocksbridge

The northbound exit slip road at junction 32 will be closed overnight for two nights from Saturday 8 April. The southbound entry at junction 34 will be closed overnight on Monday 3 April. The southbound entry at junction 33 will be closed overnight on Tuesday 4 April. The works are for the smart motorway scheme. The closures will take place between 8pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

M62 junction 27 Gildersome

The eastbound entry slip road will be fully closed overnight on Wednesday 5 April for technology works. The closures will take place between 8pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

M18 junction 4 Armthorpe

The southbound exit slip road will be closed overnight for two nights from Saturday 8 April for bridge works. The closures will take place between 8pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

M180 junction 1 to junction 3 Midmoor

The eastbound carriageway will be fully closed overnight for five nights from Monday 3 April for carriageway repairs. The closures will take place between 8pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

M621 junction 2 Elland Road

The entry slip road at junction 2 will be fully closed overnight on Monday 3 April for electrical works. The exit slip road at junction 2 will be fully closed overnight on Wednesday 5 April for electrical works. The closures will take place between 8pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

A64 Scagglethorpe to West Knapton

The carriageway will be fully closed overnight for five nights from Monday 3 April for carriageway repairs. The closures will take place between 8pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

A64 Pickering Interchange

The eastbound carriageway will be fully closed between the slip roads overnight for five nights from Monday 27 March for carriageway repairs. The closures will take place between 9pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

A64 Hopgrove to Stockton

The eastbound and westbound carriageway will be fully closed overnight for five nights from Monday 3 April for carriageway repairs. The closures will take place between 9pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

A64 Musley Bank

The eastbound exit slip road will be fully closed overnight for five nights from Monday 3 April for carriageway repairs. The closures will take place between 10pm and 6am, and drivers will be able to follow clearly signed diversion routes.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.

The following summary of planned new and ongoing road improvements over the coming week is correct as of Friday 31 March and could be subject to change due to weather conditions or unforeseen circumstances. All our improvement work is carried out with the aim of causing as little disruption as possible. Drivers looking for roadworks information (such as overnight carriageway closures) for individual schemes should now visit Traffic England. Some of our larger schemes have project pages giving other information. These can now be accessed from a dedicated regional page.

M53 junctions 1 to 2 (Wallasey to Upton)

Work to upgrade the safety barrier in the central reservation between junctions 1 and 2 on the M53 started on Monday 6 February. Lane closures will be in place overnight, with some full carriageway closures later in the project.

M56 junctions 10 to 11 (Stretton to Preston Brook)

Work to upgrade the safety barrier and paint new road markings on the M56 near Warrington started on Monday 30 January. Lane closures will be in place overnight between 8pm and 5am, Monday to Friday.

M6 junctions 16 to 19 (Cheshire smart motorway)

Work is underway to upgrade the M6 to a smart motorway between Crewe and Knutsford, converting the hard shoulder to an extra lane and introducing new variable speed limits. Narrow lanes and a temporary 50mph speed limit are in place for the safety of drivers and workers. Overnight lane closures are in place this week on both carriageways.

M6 junction 21a/M62 junction 10 (Croft Interchange)

Construction work is taking place on a major project to tackle congestion and improve the flow of traffic between the M6 and M62 at Croft Interchange. A 50mph speed limit, backed by average speed cameras, will be in place along main carriageways of both the M6 and M62 and interchange link roads. Some overnight slip road closures will also take place.

M6 junctions 29 to 30 (M65 to M61 interchanges)

Overnight resurfacing work is taking place on the M6 between 8pm and 5am, Monday to Friday. Clearly signed diversions will be in place, and the scheme is due to be completed in May.

M6 junction 38 Tebay

Night time single lane running 8pm to 6am with 2 lanes open during the day with a temp speed limit of 50mph Southbound. Works are for resurfacing and will be complete by the 9 of April

M60 junction 8 to M62 junction 20 (Sale to Rochdale)

A major smart motorway scheme is taking place to cut congestion and improve journey times on parts of the M60 and the M62 in Greater Manchester. The scheme involves overnight slip road and carriageway closures, with narrow lanes and a temporary 50mph speed limit in place for the safety of drivers and road workers.

A556 Knutsford to Bowden

The following closures are in place:

• overnight closures 9pm to 5am on Thursday 6 April and Friday 7 April.
• A556 in both directions from Bowdon roundabout to M6 junction 19
• M56 junction 7 exit slips in both directions
• M56 junction 7 eastbound access slip
• M6 junction 19 southbound exit slip

A56 Lymm Rd to Dunham Rd- will be controlled by traffic signals allowing access from Lymm to Altrincham and vice versa.

A56 Haslingden Bypass between M66 Junction 1 and A680 Bent Gate roundabout

Work is due to start 27 March for approximately two weeks to include the replacement of traffic sensors and cables and renewal of road markings.. Road closures on the northbound and southbound carriageways, between 8pm and 5am (by 7am at weekends), Monday to Friday, will be in place on the A56 Haslingden Bypass between M66 Junction 1 and A680 Bent Gate roundabout.

A585 Amounderness Way, Thornton

Temporary traffic lights will be in place between West Drive and Bourne Way until the end of May for maintenance and inspection work.

A66 Bassenthwaite Lake

A contraflow system is in place while work is carried out on the embankment in the central reservation next to Bass Lake. The scheme is due to be completed in the spring.

A66 Keswick

Work started on Monday (20 March) on a 6 week bridge repairs project on the bridge over the River Greta. This is a dual carriageway stretch of the road and 1 lane will be closed in each direction during the work – between Crosthwaite roundabout and Brierley Interchange – with a 40mph speed limit in place. Work will take place between 6am and 8pm each day. Laybys in the area and a footpath under the bridge will be closed throughout the scheme. There will also be a ban on vehicles over 44 tonnes using the bridge, again for the duration of the work.

A66 Thornthwaite (Osprey Site)

Flood resilience work is continuing with overnight carriageway closures in place between 8pm and 6am until the end of March. Clearly-signed diversions are in place. During the day, temporary traffic lights are in use along with a 40mph speed limit.

A66 Marron Bridge

Maintenance is underway on Marron Bridge, between Broughton Cross and Bridgefoot. Overnight closures are in place between 9pm and 5am, with a clearly-signed diversion. Due to the temporary bridging plates, a 30mph speed limit backed by speed cameras is required during the day.

B6167 Lancashire Hill (M60 junction 1 to 27 Cycleway improvement scheme)

A 24 hour lane closure and footpath closure will be place on the B6167 Lancashire Hill between the junctions of Nicholson Street and Knightsbridge from 8 March for ten weeks for a cycle improvement scheme.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.

From 1 April 2017, the fees for applying to register lasting powers of attorney (LPA) and enduring powers of attorney (EPA) reduce from £110 to £82, with the fee for resubmitting an LPA for registration reducing from £55 to £41.

The Biomechanical Associations and Efficacy of Injectable Therapies in Tendinopathy (BEFIT) study is funded with a grant from the Higher Education Funding Council for England and brings together university academics and MOD collaborators to investigate risk factors and treatment of tendon pain in our regular armed forces.

The main focus of the project is a randomised controlled trial investigating the effect of high volume injection therapy in Achilles and patellar tendinopathy. There have been some encouraging results from other centres but currently there is no controlled study to provide evidence for the use of these injections in military personnel.
Commenting on the importance of this programme the Director of Defence Rehabilitation, Col John Etherington, said:

Reducing musculoskeletal injuries (MSKI) remains our main effort in improving the health and operational readiness of our personnel. We know that approximately 60% of medical downgradings and 60% of medical discharges are associated with MSKI. Getting the very best treatment at the right place and at the right time is key to us helping our personnel fulfil their potential. I am delighted that we have been able to pool resources in this type of project to drive forward best practice.

The research has made good use of the Help for Heroes motion tracking laboratory at Headley Court together with Loughborough University biomechanics. Factors which may predict tendon pain and its response to treatment are also being analysed.

BEFIT study clinic. Crown Copyright. All rights reserved

Gp Capt Alex Bennett the Head of Research at Headley Court and Defence Professor for Rehabilitation described the need for this research within defence:

This well designed clinical trial has been approved not only by the MOD Research Ethics Committee but also the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and gives us the best opportunity to test fully whether these injections can benefit our patients.

Professor Mark Lewis, Dean of the School of Sport Exercise and Health Sciences at Loughborough University said:

The relationship between Loughborough University and the Academic Department of Military Rehabilitation at Headley Court via the National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine is of critical importance to the university. This project not only cements that relationship but, more importantly, has the potential to deliver huge benefits to tendinopathy sufferers in the UK military and more widely to the general public. We are grateful to the HEFCE for supporting this project through a Catalyst fund.

A dedicated BEFIT study clinic has been established at DMRC Headley Court. Anyone with questions about the research programme should email Sqn Ldr Robert Barker-Davies at DMRC-SEM3@mod.uk or phone 95238 ext 7497 or 01372371310.

Instead of paying in advance, a new ‘Pay on Invoice’ process will streamline the way we manage a range of applications.

We are committed to reducing the regulatory burden and improving the process for licence applications.

From 1 April those making applications will no longer need to attach proof of payment making the end-to-end process simpler, easier and quicker.

The benefits of the new process include removing the need to work out complex fees and reducing the chance of applications being rejected for incorrect payment details.

Additionally the simplified payment process should result in fewer delays and make it easier for companies to reconcile financial records and accounts.

Overall the process is aimed at saving companies time and money.

Richard Humphreys, MHRA’s Deputy Director of Finance said:

We have listened to our customers and launched this new project in order to make the process of payment much easier and quicker.

We hope the new process will reduce the regulatory burden and reduce unnecessary delays.

As with everything we do, we welcome your feedback.

If you have any questions please get in touch by emailing sales.invoices@mhra.gsi.gov.uk

There have been no changes to our payment terms and invoices must be settled on receipt of invoice. Penalty fees can be incurred for non-payment, details of the penalties are set out in the Fees Regulations. Non-payment may also result in suspension of any licence or authorisation, followed by legal proceedings for unpaid amounts, as a debt due to the Crown.

More information can be found here