Parish Councils - you can't do without them!

For one reason and another I've been to three parish council meetings this week - Thriplow on Monday, Whittlesford on Tuesday, and because of some"cross-border" business, Duxford this evening.

In all three you find knowledgeable people prepared to spend two to three hours in an evening, month in, month out, plus all the reading and the various sub-groups, to transact the essential business of keeping local communities running. And they don't get paid a shilling!

Thriplow are making progress towards getting the Heathfield drains sorted out, using the S.106 money from the developers, and are also planning a footpath linking the two communities - which will be good for both sides - more people coming into the village store, more children to the school. One of the parish councillors had the brilliant idea of asking the children what equipment they want on their playground - in the hope that if they chose it, they will care more about its upkeep. I reported on the week-end developments on the field on the A505, and that the district council has given some money to the village store to get some better security, after it was burgled a few months back.

Whittlesford had a few planning applications to go through - the indications are that the southern end of the village, along the A505 may face a great deal of development over the next few years. The parish council resolved to put some benches along the route to Sawston, to encourage people to use the paths rather than always drive round, and considered how to keep the Lawn from becoming a giant car-park. And the tennis courts are going to be resurfaced after a lot of fund-raising and application-filling. I'm pleased to say that South Cambs chipped in.

Duxford were going through their planning applications this evening while I was there - even though the district is the planning authority, the parish council view is important, and I saw them dealing with a flow of applications, from large developments to tree applications, sensibly and with a good sense of local opinion and issues.

And then I came home and watched Question Time and some national politicians wriggling in front of a decidedly hacked off and forthright audience in Grimsby!