Tim Stone

The Cambridge Chord Company has a well-earned reputation as probably the finest close harmony men’s choir in Europe. The international awards it has won go to prove it. And it’s local. You can find out more from the website:

http://www.cambridgechordcompany.co.uk/

Cambridge Chord will be coming to Whittlesford for a performance at 7.30 pm on Saturday 27^th February. And what a performance! Their shows usually sell out and are much more than just a concert. As well as being a superb choir, their enthusiasm, wit and verve really make you feel good about life.

Great News!  There has been faster than expected progress on getting the Little Abington traffic island redesign and safety improvement started. Because EDF were able to move buried kit sooner than anyone thought, the works have started today.  They will take some six weeks to complete.

In a letter to local residents, Cambridgeshire Highways have explained what is happening:

Work to be carried out

The scheme will include the following works

· Replacement of the existing island with a more traditional type of island.

Works to the northern carriageway

· Widening of the carriageway at the island point by approximately 500mm

· Lay new kerbing and drainage

· Reconstruct the failed carriageway

· Plane out and resurface carriageway.

Traffic Management

A temporary 30mph speed limit will be in place covering the limits of the scheme for the duration of the works.

During the working day manually operated traffic light will be in operation. 24-hour traffic lights will be in place when required to protect from excavations.

There has been good consultation with the the parish council and residents on the scope of the scheme.  The County has done a good job in explaining why these particular measures have been chosen, even when some others might have been preferred.  This is a great improvement on the confrontational situations which sometimes exist.  Where professionals take the trouble to explain what they’re up to  and answer challenges, most reasonable people remain happy.

Now let’s hope we see no more accidents after the improvements have gone in.

Just as you’ve got over Christmas it’s coming up to spending time again. The shops are urging us to get equipped for Pancake Day and indulge ourselves and partners on Valentines Day.  And then it will be Easter.

Meanwhile the economic downturn continues to take its toll. The Tickell Arms in Whittlesford has closed its doors and Fowlmere Village Hall is in financial crisis. I see that Skivers in Sawston has gone, too. Masseys in Whittlesford still needs support, as do all our pubs and restaurants.

In fact pubs across the country are closing at an alarming rate. People have discovered the merits of saving and, for those still spending, the supermarkets continue to make it attractive for people to drink at home. It all adds to the pressure.

So why not go out and spend a bit locally? You can’t expect the government to do it for you. And then our shops, pubs and restaurants will still be around when the economic picture improves – which eventually it will. But not a good idea to go into debt to pay for your indulgences, all the same.

Making Cambridgeshire Count is a joint venture of local authorities in Cambridgeshire combined with other organisations such as Cambridgeshire Constabulary, Cambridgeshire NHS, the Fire Service and Cambridgeshire Horizons. It meets in private and is engaged on eight projects which overlap the boundaries of any particular organisation.The projects and their lead officers are:

· Public Service Redesign – Mark Lloyd (Chief Executive of Cambridgeshire County Council, Tim Pilsbury (Chief Executive Fenland District Council)

· Inequalities Charter – Alex Plant (Chief Executive of Cambridgeshire Horizons) & Antoinette Jackson (Chief Executive Cambridge City Council)

· Sharing Services – Julie Spence (Chief Constable of Cambridgeshire) & Mark Lloyd · Making Assets Count – Graham Stagg (Chief Fire Officer of Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service) & Alex Plant

· Community co-production – Paul Zollinger-Read (Chief Executive of NHS Cambridgeshire)

· Domestic Violence – Julie Spence

· Gypsies and Travellers – Tim Pilsbury

· Places Pilot – Antoinette Jackson

There is very little information available about Making Cambridgeshire Count or its projects.  But there is a website: http://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/council/partnerships/LAA/MakingCambsCount.htm

Cambridgeshire is adopting a Local Transport Plan. Every household in Cambridgeshire should receive a leaflet so that everyone can participate in a consultation. The consultation runs from 11^th January to 9^th April. There are also two opportunities to go and see what is proposed and talk to staff involved. They are:

13^th February at the Grafton Centre from 9 am to 6 pm

9^th March at Sawston Village College from 4 to 8 pm.

17th March at the Lion Yard Cambridge from 9am to 8 pm

You can find more details at www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/ltp

Potholes everywhere and a lot of cross people around.

Just to remind you that the place to report potholes is:

http://www2.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/db/CCCForms.nsf/highway_defect

A new reporting website has recently been created at www.fixmystreet.com.  I can’t really see that it is going to get things done more quickly but at least the website name is a bit more catchy.

Meanwhile, back from a trip to Switzerland, I can report the discovery of two potholes there.  Both in the same village.  For Switzerland that amounts to a national scandal.  The Swiss don’t do potholes; they maintain their roads properly.

The Household Recycling Centre is now open again.

As you know, like last year, we are seeing and expect more potholes to
form due to the extreme cold conditions.

The County Council is asking people to let them know of any problems in their area.  You can notify County Highways via the county website http://www2.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/db/CCCForms.nsf/highway_defect
or via the contact centre on 0345 045 5212 (contact centre is open 8.00
am-8.00 pm, Monday to Saturday).

County Highways promises to repair potholes as soon as resources and weather conditions allow.

I’ve noticed that patching which has been done using the new “hot box” system is much more effective than the old “man with a bucket of asphalt.”  The “hot box” melts the road surface around the patch to form  a seamless repair.  That means that water can’t infiltrate, freeze and pull out the patch.

Mind you it would still be a better system to have properly resilient road surfaces in the first place.  But Highways has always been the Cinderella of council budgets.  We may soon see arts and culture going the same way.

While you’re at it you could have a go at the Community Transport Plan.  You could help design ”effective, appropriate, sustainable and affordable community transport.” Wow!

See www.scambs.gov.uk?communitytransport

This consultation ends on 25th January

Or while you’re at it, how about the advisory freight route map?  You can help decide where lorry drivers (That’s heavy commercial vehicle drivers) are encouraged to drive their vehicles.

lorries@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

This consultation ends on 29th January.

Before anyone thinks I’m cynical, I should perhaps insist that these are important matters.  The problem I have is that the amount of information given in these consultations is far too little for amateurs to be able to get a grip on the issues.  We’re being driven into unhelpful consultation by the Audit Commission, who judge local authorities on their community engagement.  And when people give their opinions, as often as not they feel they are ignored because the “experts” discount what they are saying as unworkable.  A recipe for frustration all round.

I’m getting a bit worked up about the number and quality of consultations going on.  South Cambridgeshire want us to comment of their budget for next year, which they say will take “a few moments.”  Budget setting is a vastly complex area; it takes weeks to get to grips with all the issues. How do you answer the question:  ”How should staffing and spending in areas such as arts, economic development and tourism be balanced against other statutory services such as environmental health?”  This isn’t a job for amateurs who as likely as not don’t understand what the different priorities mean in practice.  That’s why we elect councillors to do the job for us.  You can find the South Cambridgeshire consultation on:

 http://www.scambs.gov.uk/CouncilTaxAndBenefits/Finance/budgetconsultation.htm

The police authority is also engaged on a consultation, though there is scant information about it on the website:  

http://www.cambs-pa.gov.uk/consultation.cfm

We are supposed to judge what priorities to give the police.  I suspect most people will choose priorities they can see:  anti-social behaviour and burglary.  But what do we know about the risk of terrorist activities in Cambridgeshire?  Could a major terrorist atrocity be planned here?  And what about domestic violence?  Children brought up in families where violence is normal must surely have all the cards stacked against them.  Should we not have professional views on whether efforts to curb domestic violence wouldn’t cut future criminal activity?

Tony Blair talked about being tough on the causes of crime.  We seem to have made no progress and just want to be tough on criminals, many of whom re-offend as soon as they leave jail.