County councillor for ten Cambridgeshire villages: Pampisford, Ickleton, Duxford, Fowlmere, Gt Abington, Thriplow, Whittlesford, Little Abington, Babraham, Hinxton.
District councillor for the communities of Whittlesford, Heathfield and Thriplow.
I was on the road outside the station this morning for an hour handing out leaflets and talking to London commuters, to parents dropping their children off to take the train into Cambridge for school, and to the man who sells the excellent coffee from a van. Was finding out people's views about CCTV for the station - 99% positive about wanting CCTV, and unhappy about the disruption from not having a ticket machine - because it's been robbed again. The vets across the way agreed to take a pile of leaflets to get people to sign the petition too! Someone reminded me there used to be a shop at the station selling papers and coffee, but that closed down a few years back after the stock was stolen a few times over. Asking National Express to have another think about CCTV.
Forgot to post this last week - went along to the Sawston sector neighbourhood policing meeting - a quarterly meeting between the police, headed by local inspector Chris Savage, and various parish councillors, district and county councillors. One key point is that this is a pretty safe area, in terms types and level of crime. Issues raised for Whittlesford and Thriplow: - recreation ground at Whittlesford being regularly patrolled but the youths hanging around seem to have moved into the Lettice Martin Croft/Butts Green area near the garages. Police agree to broaden their patrols; - track between Whittlesford and Thriplow. Youngsters on trial bikes tearing up and down. Police (aka e-coppers Chris and Gary) collared a few recently and marched them back to their parents for a few well-chosen words of advice - quiet since then say the police; - break ins at the village shop storage in Thriplow and a farm in Whittlesford and on the recreation ground at Whittlesford. Police crime prevention people agree to visit to give some advice. Thriplow also hoping to get South Cambs to help with the costs of the anti-theft devices.
OK, so sometimes local government is about things like congestion charging, and the future economic shape of Cambridgeshire, and sometimes it is about the stuff that you stand in when you go for a walk along some of the footpaths around the village.
The footpath between the church and down to the rail track and across to Sawston is being flagged up as a particularly messy one as it is popular with dog-walkers from both Whittlesford and Sawston. One issue is that there aren't any red dog waste bins along the route. As an ex-dog owner who always picked up afterwards, I know the feeling of carrying the little treat for miles in search of a dog bin! Another point is whether dog waste bags could be supplied by the council as apparently is the case in the City, and people could pick them up from various locations. Massey's, our village store, say they could have them available if they were produced by the council.
I've got in touch with the environmental services manager for SCDC to see what is possible in terms of dog bins out towards the rail line, and I've asked the environmental services portfolio holder, why not see what can be done about dog poop bags. I know when Pedigree Foods used to sponsor various things one could get any number of bags from them, but that was a few years back.
I'll report back when I hear more, but this is a local health issue that requires a push especially with the warm weather coming and kids out on bikes. Duxford are having a similar problem.I guess in part when the weather is good, more people are out and about, and the stuff gets noticed more.
Met up with the housing officer who looks after the properties in Maynards, Whittlesford, that are rented from CHS. We had a good walk round and we agreed that many of the fences and gates could do with a coat of paint and a bit of TLC to keep the area looking good, and CHS will follow up with their contractors. The rubbish under some bushes which the gardening services contractor is supposed to clear away was noted too! CHS are trying to find a local person who lives in one of the properties that can act as a liasion point on some of these issues.
Also talked about the credit crunch and the impact it has on people's lives - in this case, when someone has a mortgage and is also paying rent to the housing association, if the money is not paid, then if the building society repossesses the house, that is one less house for rent!
The SCambs planning committee had a difficult decision to make this afternoon. Proposals to redevelop part of the Sawston Business Park (near the Spicers buildings and the rail crossing)were before us. Some councillors were concerned that road traffic on the Sawston bypass (the A1301) would increase as a result, making it more dangerous for people to use the footpaths from Whittlesford to Sawston. This was one reason for a previous application to be rejected.
However, traffic projections based on the numbers of vehicles likely to be visiting the site (and possibly fewer HGVs) suggest that the traffic would not be any busier than previously. In addition, the developers propose to pay for better footpaths to Whittlesford, and to improve the crossing facilities for cyclists and pedestrians across the bypass. This would be under a section 106 agreement. The planning application was eventually approved.
Clearly anyone crossing the A1301 on foot or bike has to very careful, but that tends to be the nature of busy bypass roads. The task in the future will be to make sure that the footpaths and the crossing facility proposals prove effective. This is something that I will keep a keen eye on, just as I keep an eye on the traffic when I cross over to Sawston by bike!
"I have continued to serve on the Parish Council and I think this has helped to forge links between the district council and the parish council on, for example, planning decisions. I have attended the Duxford Airfield Liaison Committee, and have recently asked the Duxford museum director for more information about its proposed “Masterplan” for future development.
I have taken up issues and problems as people have asked me to. I have:
worked with British Transport Police to improve security and safety at Whittlesford station: there is now better lighting, more late night police patrols and bicycle security posters. I continue to campaign for CCTV there;
persuaded Cambridge Housing Association to improve the standard of maintenance of their properties in Maynards, and kept in contact with their area manager;
acted on concerns about road safety along Whippletree Road: the Highways team have cut back the greenery so improving visibility for cyclists and riders;
used the expertise of the South Cambs drainage manager to get Anglia Water to sort out the underlying drain overflow problems at the bottom of Mill Lane;
taken up individual village planning concerns with the District Council’s planning department and attended the Planning Chairman’s meeting to represent residents;
worked with South Cambs planning enforcement officers to secure a High Court injunction to prevent traveller caravans being moved onto a field next to the A505;
campaigned to improve the service of the C7 bus route, and spoken out on the impact a “Cambridge congestion charge” would have for people living outside the City but having to go there to work.
I am also a member of the South Cambridgeshire District Council Planning Committee, and I chair the Corporate Governance Committee. This ensures that risk management and auditing are properly carried out by the council. In these uncertain financial times, I see this as an important check, and I am happy to report that South Cambs had no money invested in any Icelandic banks! I am also vice-chairman of the climate change working group. As I work full-time as a civil servant all this keeps me pretty busy, but a lot of these meetings are in the evenings.
The issue that demanded most of my attention during 2008 was the threat from developers to build an “eco-town” of ten thousand houses at Hanley Grange. I worked closely with the affected parish councils on opposing Hanley Grange: getting people signed up to the huge petition that was part of the campaign, speaking at meetings and writing to the press. I challenged the poorly worked up assumptions put forward by the developers at meetings held with them at South Cambridgeshire District Council, and used my past experience of public relations to work with our local MP, Andrew Lansley and his advisers on the media efforts to see off the Tesco backed plan. I was very pleased that the developers eventually withdrew their proposals.
If you would like to contact me please call me on 07825 876582, or email me at cllr.topping@scambs.gov.uk. If you want to read about what I am doing, I post regularly blogs online at www.petertopping@blogspot.com"
I was on the road outside the station this morning for an hour handing out leaflets and talking to London commuters, to parents dropping their children off to take the train into Cambridge for school, and to the man who sells the excellent coffee from a van. Was finding out people's views about CCTV for the station - 99% positive about wanting CCTV, and unhappy about the disruption from not having a ticket machine - because it's been robbed again.
