Barrington Parish Council Monthly Report: August 2021
Dear All
As our young people return to education, we wish them all a good start to the Academic year and for those moving Schools or beginning College or University the very best in the new environment.
Parish Council Meetings
These are now in person. The venue and dates altered as we along with all parish Councils have struggled with venues and changing guidelines and with the pingdemic.
2021 BPC meetings are moving to the second Thursday in the month as below:
Full Parish Council – 9th September in Barrington Hall with future venue tbc
Full Parish Council – 14th October
Full Parish Council – 11th November
Full Parish Council – 9th December
106-Redrow
There have been some significant developments and progress.
a.Village Hall, Sports Pavilion and recreational facilities
An initial Survey report has been received and once we have met with the Village Hall Trustee and Sports Groups we will move to a Tender Competition for an Architect or Architects to develop plans to refurbish or replace the buildings and consider options for recreational facilities.
We do want your views. We will be consulting with the Village on all the proposals with representatives from each aspect on hand to hear your views and explain the ideas. It will be helpful to have the Architects available and we shall endeavour to arrange this.
We are presently aiming to hold this consultation on 14th November 2021 in the Village Hall. It will be “a drop-in session” during the afternoon.
We are keen to HEAR FROM AS MANY OF YOU AS POSSIBLE.
In order to accommodate those who struggle to travel or are wary of attending a public event we shall also be presenting this via ZOOM. We will sort out a way for involving anyone who can not attend in person or remotely.
Once te consultation has taken place we can update South Cambs District Council (SCDC) and seek approval to appoint Contractors to do the work.
- Open Space
We are working still with Redrow on ideas for a facility on this site. Once we have a better idea of what may be possible, we shall include information in the Consultation in November.
c.Traffic Calming
The first payment of £82,500.00 has been paid to SCDC by Redrow for traffic calming in the village. Tender Documents have gone out and have chosen and an engineering company has been engaged to prepare a traffic calming Plan. If ready in time this will also form part of the Consultation in November.
We are also meeting with Highways, Cllr Kindersley, the School Head Teacher and Redrow’s Site Manager regarding the area outside the school which is badly in need of improvement. We need to reduce the speed of approaching vehicles both those coming down Chapel Hill and especially those accelerating out of the village in excess of the speed limit and right outside the school.
New Parish Council Website
This is pretty much ready to go and will be launched soon.
Foxton Travel Hub / Car Park
We have now received the following information which we also be putting on our web site for your convenience so you can access the electronic links from there:
GREATER CAMBRIDGE PARTNERSHIP will be hosting an engagement period for the proposed Foxton Travel Hub in September to show current plans, discuss how previous engagement has informed the current designs and take on additional comments to inform the design ahead of submission of planning application.
The engagement period will run from the 6th – 17th September, with events held online on the Zoom meeting platform.
If you wish to attend you will need to register in advance for the event. Once registered you will be provided with an access code which you will need to use in order to enter the zoom event. We would appreciate your thoughts on the current design and a survey will be published on 06/09/2021 when the engagement period has begun.
A further update will be sent out with details of the survey. Your feedback will allow us to further develop the design. All relevant documents can be found on our website -Foxton Travel Hub – Greater Cambridge Partnership
Thank you
BPC has previously given a resounding “no thanks” to these proposals but they are clearly pushing ahead with this further consultation from 6th to 17th September 2021.
BPC’s view remains that this would be a disaster for Barrington as it will cause a huge increase in traffic through the village. We estimate anywhere up to 2000 car movements a day at the present proposed site – which is likely to increase in size.
This is not a travel Hub. It is a car park for station users / London Commuters with buses into Cambridge. We have no footpath or cycle links to Foxton (Redrow have delayed the proposed cycle route along the Cemex rail line). Just imagine the amount of traffic that will be cutting through Barrington via Shepreth Road, especially Orwell Road, and Haslingfield Road – and out via Foxton Road to get to this free car park. And the speeds they will travel at to make sure they don’t miss their connections or their favourite supper / team on the Telly coming home!
PLEASE CONTACT OUR MP and LOCAL DISTRICT AND COUNTY COUNCILLORS to make your own views known. Please do not sit back and let them do this unchallenged.
BPC is working with Cllr McDonald at Foxton to resist this proposal. We would really appreciate your help in galvanizing support to help in the fight against this unnecessary and very damaging car park.
The Local Plan
And that is not all. The Greater Cambridge Partnership continue to demand our attention. This time in relation to the “Greater Cambridge Local Plan”. Everything is being re-branded it seems. Confusing isn’t it? What was the South Cambridgeshire Local Plan is now absorbed into the Greater Cambridge Local Plan (though the Parish Council does not recall being asked about that).
You may remember that the last Local Plan took ages to get approved because the projected housing supply provided by South Cambs Planners was inadequate (or the methodology they used was dodgy). That opened the door for the Redrow development. So there is a potential worry in that if some things like the City’s housing supply can’t be met, then it will fall on the Districts to provide it. Of course there is some sense in getting the infrastructure elements co-ordinated – roads schools etc… but our experience of the Foxton Hub (Car Park) is that the GCL planners do not listen to what we have to say.
For example, East West Rail southern route, the Foxton Hub – supported by the City but not the local Parishes. To date we haven’t been impressed by GCP’s ability to listen to us so far.
Be that as it may, we have now received the following information about the Local Plan consultation which we also be putting on our web site for your convenience so you can access the electronic links from there.
So you will be pleased to hear that GPC are in their words “reaching out” to us! This is what they have said:
As you are aware, the preferred options for the Greater Cambridge Local Plan will be published for public consultation later this autumn. We know this will be of great interest to our communities and hence we wanted to send you an advance email to make you aware of the key dates.
Prior to consultation, the proposals must go through the full scrutiny processes of both Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire District Councils. The first Council committee is the Joint Local Plan Advisory Group on 8 September, and the committee papers will be published on the 31 August. These will include the draft preferred options for the Plan, which we are calling the First Proposals, as well as a wide range of evidence base studies, topic papers and other supporting documents.
The First Proposals will include our suggestions for sites which we feel are suitable for development, as well as proposals for policies ranging from climate change to biodiversity, social inclusion and infrastructure.
To make this information more accessible and transparent, we will be publishing the draft proposals on our new digital plan platform, including interactive mapping and the full document library. This will go live at the same time as the formal committee papers will be published on the Councils’ websites.
Any revisions made by members during the committee process will be included in updated web pages for the launch of the public consultation.
We will also be holding a public webinar about the First Proposals on:
Tuesday 7 September 2021 at 6pm
At the webinar we will talk you through the First Proposals and the evidence published alongside, and you will be able to ask the team any questions that you have.
At this point the proposals are not open for public consultation so please do not send us any feedback yet. It is likely that there will be changes made to the proposals through the Councils’ scrutiny processes and, therefore, the consultation version will differ from the committee stage version.
We aim to start full public consultation on 1 November and, at this stage, we will welcome comments from anyone interested in the future of our area.
We plan to consult from 1 November-13 December and will be reaching out to our communities in many ways, to gain feedback that is as wide and representative as we can. We will be in touch with further details nearer the time.
In summary:
- 31 August 2021: First Proposals (committee stage version) and evidence base published online
- 7 September 2021: public webinar on the committee stage proposals and evidence
- 1 November-13 December 2021: Full public consultation on the First Proposals
BPC is a “statutory consultee” and will be looking very hard at the “First Proposals” – especially GCP’s suggestions for sites suitable for development, and infrastructure. We will be developing a formal response and we welcome your help / views / input. Contact Cllr Ray Kemp who is taking the lead on this if you feel you can help or have ideas and information that we can draw upon.
Please do look at what GCP is proposing and respond yourselves individually. Let the District Councillors know your views.
How the Local plan turns out is very important. It sets the framework for what is and what is not allowed to develop in our area for the next 30 years. It is the first defence against unwanted development. Large housing developers such as Thakeham and others have to comply with the Local Plan and where major roads and other important facilities are also guided by it. Help us respond on your behalf and do get involved.
Challis Pond Refurbishment
As previously reported the Rugby Benevolent Fund has kindly donated £10,000 to this project and we are looking for further funds. We have had generous donations taking us to over £13,000 and so we are getting there.
A further Grant application has been submitted.
If you feel you can donate anything at all to this fund can you please contact myself or Jacquie McBride.
Work is planned for the end of 2021 so the clock is ticking loudly.
Thanks to all those who have offered support so far.
Vandalism
This is an ongoing issue. We are calling on local police support in dealing with the problem. It cannot go on.
Damage this month includes the Scouts and Guides storage facilities, ripping out of plants from the wooden containers at the bottom of Glebe Road, swings and the orange safety net on the Play Area and yet again tables in the Woodland.
Repairing this needless damage costs money which has to be paid for by all of us from the Precept. And we are going to keep a tally of what this is all costing.
If you know who is involved please explain this to them or tell one of the Parish Council. Parents: please check on what your youngsters are doing – talk to them about how needless damage spoils it for everyone and has to be paid for.
Speedwatch
Good news as we will soon be able to reinstate our speed panel ‘Richard’
Gathering on the Green
An event on The Green is planned for 12th September 2021 to include Games and Competitions,Music,Bar and Food.
So please save the date. More information will be circulated by the organisers soon.
Thank you
A huge thank you to all our Village Volunteers who do so much to improve the village. There will be-Covid permitting- a thank you event in early December.
And thank you to all my colleagues on the Parish Council and our Clerk and RFO who have been and continue to work flat out to deliver the 106 whilst continuing all our statutory and usual responsibilities/initiatives as well as campaigning against threats to the village like Thakeham and Foxton.
Comments and suggestions
Please do continue to get in touch with us direct or via the Website. Our Contact details are below.
Rosamund Rhodes-Kemp
Chair, Barrington Parish Council
August 2021
Contact Details
Parish Clerk:
parishclerk@barringtonparishcouncil.gov.uk
Green Charity Secretary: