Author: Clerk

Coronavirus

The Parish Council are aware of the concern about news reports on the spread of Covid-19 – or Coronavirus. This continues to be a fast moving issue, which is being carefully monitored by Public Health England (PHE). 

However, there are some really simple steps we can all take to get into good habits to protect ourselves and others to stop the spread of viruses and germs including Coronavirus.

These include:

  • Wash your hands more often than usual, for 20 seconds, and use soap and hot water.
  • Particularly remember to wash your hands after coughing, sneezing and blowing your nose, or after being in public areas or travelling on public transport.
  • We can all reduce the spread of all germs when we cough or sneeze, by covering mouths and noses with a tissue, or a sleeve (not your hands) if you don’t have a tissue, and throw the tissue away immediately in a closed bin
  • Keep up to date with information from trusted sources – like these:

This information was received from Cambs County Council on the 10th March. The Parish Council would advise parishioners to continue to check with the Government, Public Health England and NHS advice pages for the latest guidance

Power Outages

We have been advised today by UK Power Networks that the outages last week were due to a transformer fault at the Schole Road substation.  All residents on that substation are currently on a generator whilst repairs are carried out.  It is anticipated that power will be switched back to the main supply on Wednesday morning.  Please note there will be a brief outage whilst this is taking place.

Highways Events

3-MarDownload

Welcome to March’s Highway Events Diary which highlights all known events that will have an impact or take place upon the public highway. The diary features events across Cambridgeshire and you are able to sort and filter the diary to show events in your immediate area by using the down arrow in the title bar.

Upcoming Highlights:

8th March, Cambridge Half Marathon. The popular running event returns, taking in the scenery of central Cambridge. Please note that the route has changed slightly this year. Road closures will be in place for the event, so please bear this in mind if you are planning on visiting Cambridge.

28th & 29th March, Thriplow Daffodil Festival. The annual festival returns, originally set up in 1969 to raise money for major repairs to the church roof. Nowadays, the festival has evolved in to a traditional country fair offering entertainment for the whole family, as well as food and drink. Road closures will be in place for the event so please bear this in mind.

5th April, Cambourne 10K and Fun Run. The annual running event returns where a donation is made to a local charity in return for help on race day. Road closures will be in place for the event so please bear this is mind when planning your journey.

*Please remember details of all highway events can be found on https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/travel-roads-and-parking/roads-and-pathways/highway-events/

Cambridgeshire Constabulary To Consult on New Proposals To Replace Outdated Parkside Police Station

Throughout February Cambridgeshire Constabulary are consulting the public on proposals to enhance our service for the south of Cambridgeshire.

As you will know, the nature of policing and crime in Cambridgeshire is changing. Our population is growing, and many of you will be aware that our current police facilities at Parkside in Cambridge city centre do not provide our officers and staff with the tools they need to fully respond to today’s demands.

New facilities are needed to improve our response and service to the public – without them, tackling crime will become more difficult. We are therefore consulting on the principle of proposals to replace the outdated facilities at Parkside with both a new city centre police station and a police hub on the outskirts of Cambridge to meet the area’s growth and to respond to the challenges of modern-day policing.

It is important we secure as much feedback from the public and wider stakeholders as possible. For your information and should you receive any enquiries, I have outlined below the ways in which people can get involved in the consultation:

Website: We have launched a consultation website which includes a video, FAQs and more information about why we’re making this proposal. An electronic version of the questionnaire is also available for comments to be submitted.

Public drop-in events: We have two remaining public drop-in events to let people know what we are proposing and to ask questions. We have chosen public places in order to be able to catch passing members of the public who might not otherwise choose to engage with the consultation process. We will be handing out flyers, taking feedback, and providing hard copies of the questionnaire at the events.

Dates, times and locations of the drop-ins are as follows:

Wednesday 12th February 2020 – 4pm to 7pm
Sainsbury’s Superstore, Huntingdon

Saturday 22nd February 2020 – 10am to 2pm
The Lion Yard Shopping Centre, Cambridge

Hard copy questionnaire: Hard copies of the questionnaire will be available in Parkside, Histon, Sawston, St Neots, Cambourne or Ely police stations until Saturday 29th February.

Telephone and email: Members of the public will be able to call our consultation team on 01223 827 124 or email info@cambspoliceconsultation.co.uk.

Social media: We will be publishing information and details about our consultation, and how the public can find out more, via our social media accounts. Feel free to share any of these details via your own channels if you would like. These can be found at:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/cambscops
Twitter: @CambsCops
Instagram: @CambsCops

If you have any questions or comments on our consultation, please contact the consultation team via info@cambspoliceconsultation.co.uk for more information.

Best wishes,

James Sutherland
Superintendent, Cambridgeshire Constabulary

Newsletter – February 2020

Community Warden Scheme

The first Parish Council meeting of the year got off to a lively start with members of the public raising several issues that they felt strongly about. High on the agenda was the proposal previously raised at the December meeting to join the Community Warden Scheme. There was general support for the aim of the scheme which is to help tackle loneliness and undertake some small practical tasks for elderly residents that can speed their return from a hospital stay or delay transfer into a care environment.

The main reservation that was raised was whether this should be the responsibility of the Parish Council or other bodies, such as the NHS. It has been apparent for some time that more and more tasks are being devolved to parish councils by national, county or district authorities, very often to save them money. But someone has to pay and although this scheme will be funded centrally for two years, in the long run the parish, which is you as rate payers, takes on the funding responsibility in whole or in part. After some debate the Council decided that the merits of the scheme could not be ignored and gave its support.

Buses

Another hot topic raised in the public forum session in January was the lack of good public transport linking the village with the guided busway. The suggestion was raised of providing a minibus which could operate a shuttle service with help from volunteers. It was agreed that this would have to be an agenda item for a future meeting when more detail was available, including the long-term funding requirement it would place on Willingham residents.

Speeding

Yet another subject high on the list of priorities. Work continues on a number of fronts including the bid for a 40 mph buffer zone before the Earith Road entrance to the village, a legacy grant for a footpath to the orchard and a privately funded highways initiative for warning signage of ‘Children Playing’ on West Fen Road. The Council also agreed at the January meeting to fund an additional speed indicator device. The type chosen will have messaging and recording facilities. It will be semi-portable and located in the coming months at the speeding hot spots.

Keeping Warm

We have had a relatively mild winter so far but it may not last and keeping warm at home, particularly for older folk or anyone that is ill, is very important. Depending on your circumstances, you may be eligible for a grant to make your home more energy efficient. For more information please contact the Cambridgeshire Home Improvement Agency at HIA@CambsHIA.org or phone them on 01954 713330.

Fly Tipping

This has become more of a problem in recent times. It’s a sad fact that some people are prepared to mess up the environment for their own convenience. Courts are getting tougher on this and can issue fines of up to £20 000. If you see anyone dumping rubbish please give us the details of time, place and vehicle registration number and we can pursue it.

Communication

Members of the public are most welcome at all Parish Council meetings and are free to speak on any subject but to be fair to everyone the comments must be kept brief. There is also an annual meeting in May open to all residents and from January a member of the parish council will be joining the district councillors at their regular surgeries. For issues outside of these forums contact details are listed below for the parish clerk and key councillors.

The Parish Council website carries a lot of information on council activities and shortly that information will also be made available on a non-interactive Facebook page.

Exciting and unique opportunity for your community: Environment Agency Waterways Volunteers


See below from the Environment Agency

I am writing to tell you about a new and unique lock volunteering role available to residents of Parishes and Towns near to Houghton, St Ives, Godmanchester and Eaton Socon locks on the River Ouse. The role will involve volunteering with the Environment Agency to assist boaters at  lock sides and attending waterways festivals. Volunteers will be trained by the Environment Agency and will be given a uniform and ID badge.  
 
The scheme is managed by Cambridgeshire ACRE on behalf of the Environment Agency. You can contact the scheme co-ordinator, Rachael Brown on 01353 865037  or email her at rachael.brown@cambsacre.org.uk.

Rachael is also happy to take any general inquiries about the scheme, what the role involves and how to apply.  In addition there is an Anglian Waterways Volunteer scheme website which gives more details about the scheme and how to apply, the link for this is here: https://anglianwaterwaysvolunteerscheme.wordpress.com/