In a meeting on Friday 21 November 2025, Warwickshire Council's Portfolio Holder for Finance and Property, Councillor Stephen Shaw, deferred a decision on the HS2 Road Safety Fund and approved a debt write-off report. The meeting also included a resolution to exclude the public while discussing confidential information.

Debt Write-Off Report

Councillor Stephen Shaw approved the recommendations outlined in the debt write-off report. The details of this report are exempt from public disclosure as defined in paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A of Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1972.

HS2 Road Safety Fund

A decision regarding the allocation of the final £3.3 million from the HS2 Road Safety Fund was deferred until 1 December 2025 to allow for further investigation.

The fund, provided by the Department for Transport (DfT) and administered by HS2 Limited¹, aims to facilitate road safety improvements in areas affected by the HS2 route². To date, £4.745 million has been allocated to 37 schemes and programmes across the county. The council must allocate the remaining £3.3 million to schemes by the end of 2026 to comply with HS2's requirements.

The report recommended allocating the remaining funds as follows:

• £2.5 million to the A446 Birmingham Road, Coleshill Junction scheme, a casualty reduction and capacity improvement project. The project aims to reduce accidents, increase capacity, and improve cycle and pedestrian connectivity.
• £0.5 million for retaining temporary lighting on the Fosse Way, installed by HS2 during construction, to provide a lasting road safety benefit.
• £0.3 million for investigating small-scale capital schemes along the HS2 track in Warwickshire, with any unspent funds reallocated to the A446 Birmingham Road, Coleshill Junction scheme.

According to the Public Reports Pack, the council is seeking approval from HS2 to amend the timescales for the A446 Birmingham Road, Coleshill Junction scheme and the Fosse Way lighting, as these projects cannot be delivered before the end of 2026 due to HS2's ongoing construction work.

The Public Reports Pack notes the environmental implications of the road safety schemes:

Many of the proposed schemes will result in lower speeds, or improve facilities for modal shift, which can reduce fuel consumption and air and noise pollution as well as encouraging the confidence of walkers and cyclists. Where schemes will improve road safety by means other than speed reduction, there will be an environmental cost to the works and materials involved but this is considered to be justified by the likely reductions in death and injury and damage to property.

Exclusion of Public

The meeting included a resolution to exclude members of the public while discussing exempt information, as defined in paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A of Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1972.