13 minute read
Fields in Trust update see
resident from the High Street, who is actively encouraging the relief pipe to be laid under his property.
This scheme is well under way in the planning stages and is expected to be completed later this year.
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Another initiative is to collect the large volume of rainwater that comes from London Way as it meets Back Lane and direct it to a ditch running parallel to Royston Road, thus preventing surface water from entering the drainage, and relieving pressure on the system.
The Parish Council have also been in discussion with the current owners of the Old Police site in the High Street, an area that has often seen some of the worst flooding as a result of surface water in the village.
The plan, which has been agreed in principle with the County Highways, the owners of the Police site and the Village College, is to place a relief drain pipe across the site into the school playing fields, where it would eventually meet the brook near the old library building. This drainage plan has the potential for storm relief at the most vulnerable point in the drainage system. Work is expected to start in November.
Traffic problems
Speeding traffic has been an ongoing problem for residents for many years. Discussions are taking place with County Highways to see what measures can be put in place and what budgets are likely to be required.
Many possible solutions have been pursued in the past, but we have been fortunate that the County Highways have considered the potential of each suggestion we have put forward. It would be fair to say, in partnership with the Parish Council they will help put favourable ones into action.
New Recreation ground play areas
An ongoing request from younger members of the village has resulted in the upgrade of the skateboard ramp in The Moor play area. This was precepted for a number of years, and this year has seen the work come to fruition.
The new ramp is a great addition to the play area and is well used by young people. Following some graffiti damage on the existing ramp, it has now had a makeover and some damaged areas repaired. A new landing balcony will be incorporated, joining the two ramps together.
The Parish Council is delighted to see the One-on-One basketball arena remains popular and widely used by young people. The shelter (mushroom) has also had a new coat of paint.
There have been a number of suggestions, that we incorporate a proper BBQ area with additional picnic benches in the QEII New Recreation ground. We would appreciate your thoughts on this.
The pavilion has also had a face-lift to the front (painted and re-rendered due to graffiti and fire damage). The inside has been cleaned and has had a complete electrical upgrade including hand driers, new cooker, and better shower facilities for football clubs. The Parish Council now also employs a regular cleaner for this facility.
The ‘free’ walls to the side of the pavilion are still available to be used as ‘graffiti’ walls. We are also looking for a new display project to be shown on the back wall.
The pavilion, recently painted, has yet again become the focus of vandalism. The front of the building has had graffiti sprayed on the newly painted area. A number of brick pillars at the front of the building have also been painted. It seems, not content with the two walls given specifically for graffiti, these vandals also feel the need to damage the front of the building as well.
The Parish Council is considering various options to prevent this sort of situation in the future.
And sadly, not everyone in the village appreciates the work carried out in QEII New Recreation ground. The ‘mushroom’, which was recently painted as mentioned earlier, was been damaged within days of its makeover. Someone took a knife and scraped away the new paint.
The QEII Fields in Trust update
In the last issue of the magazine we mentioned the Queen Elizabeth II Fields in Trust. We are delighted to tell you that four of the sites mentioned in the article are now officially QEII Fields. These are: The New Recreation Ground, Stockbridge Meadows, Clear Crescent and The BMX site.
A number of questions from residents have been raised since the article, including: • What is the QEII Fields in Trust? • Why are we putting our open spaces into a trust? • Which open spaces can be protected? • Who owns the land once it is protected and how much is it costing the village? In answer, here is a brief history The Fields in Trust was founded in 1925 by King George V, as the National Playing Fields Association. The aim was to ensure that ‘Everyone – young or old, able or disabled and wherever they live – should have access to free, local outdoor space for sport, play and recreation.’
In 2012, in order to celebrate Her Majesty The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, the Queen Elizabeth II Fields Challenge was set up, operated by Fields in Trust. As a permanent living legacy of this great event, the QEII challenge will help protect 2012 outdoor recreational spaces, such as sports pitches, woodlands, children’s play areas, gardens, bicycle trails and parks.
Access to outdoor space is vital for the village and plays an important role in providing a place for relaxation and physical activity. The Queen Elizabeth II Fields Challenge presented us with an opportunity to safeguard the community facilities in Melbourn for generations to come.
These safeguards for our open spaces are through legal means, by placing covenants on the land, meaning they have to remain in recreational use forever. Once lost, recreational space cannot be reinstated.
Deeds (commonly called Deeds of Dedication) have been entered into for each site in Melbourn and are legally binding contracts, which will ensure the protection of the site in perpetuity. Is the land really protected forever? On rare occasions communities change and land use changes accordingly. Parts of sites, or very rarely, whole sites can be disposed of provided the disposal is of clear advantage to the village, and in the best interests of the community, from a recreational perspective.
The criteria for replacement facilities which the Fields in Trust applies are:
Land should be of at least equal size, better quality and serve the same community in terms of catchment area. Additionally, and very importantly, the entire proceeds of any disposal should be re-applied to new sport, recreation and/or play facilities, with priority given to outdoor prior to indoor facilities. Fields in Trust would also need to be consulted about any building works on the site that lie outside the agreed use of the site.
The QEII Fields Challenge is open to everybody including private landowners who might want to get involved with the initiative.
Which open spaces can be dedicated? Any open space in the village that is approximately half an acre. We have looked at all open spaces within the boundaries of Melbourn, which are owned by the Parish and currently there are seven sites we are able to work on. We will look at other sites to see if these can also be protected. How much does it cost? The cost to the village to help protect these open spaces is £100 per dedication, as the site has to be re-registered with the Land Registry. Who will own the land? These open spaces will continue to be owned by the Parish Council, and will remain a green space indefinitely.
From your County Councillor
Practical Solutions Group and Basketball
The Practical Solutions Group had a visit from outgoing MVC student Sam Robinson at its June meeting to tell us about the success of the MVC Year 9 (now Year 10!) Basketball team, which has been running with PSG support for the past two years. We’d forgotten that the team had gone from a complete losing season in its first year to being crowned District Champions in the second, beating the legendary St Bede’s squad. Sam and his co-coach Matt Davis are off to Sixth Form in September but will be back to MVC whenever possible to help coax a new generation of student coaches who in turn will be encouraging up-and-coming younger players to take up this apparently very addictive sport! The PSG continues to supply the necessary volunteer adult supervisors for the weekly practice sessions, a very enjoyable task.
Bike Bank
Meanwhile a new venture, the Bike Bank, is running successfully and by the end of the six weeks a small group of young people will have acquired employable bicycle maintenance skills. This project has been piloted with grant funding and Melbourn was chosen on the basis of its proactive approach to exploring a range of new activities for young people, in the wake of county council cuts to youth services.
More training and skills opportunities for young people
Our Rail User Group has been able to offer well-supported volunteering opportunities to young people looking to build up skills and training. A young note-taker attended the group’s June meeting and took an excellent set of minutes; we’re delighted that she will be returning for our September 11th meeting, 7:30 at MVC. The Tuesday after-school gardening club at Meldreth Station has welcomed Duke of Edinburgh student volunteers from MVC. Various opportunities for young people are there for the taking so please get in touch if you’re looking to build up a bank of experience.
Transport Strategy at last
At last the county council is preparing a transport strategy for South Cambridgeshire (together with Cambridge City). An integrated policy across the city and rural areas makes sense. This comes at a time when population around the city fringes is set to increase by 10,000 people, and when the county council is removing its bus subsidies and building a new rail station at Chesterton. If you are interested in contributing your views, please take a look at the consultation documents at www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/tscsc.
As a regular visitor to Melbourn Parish Council meetings it is hard not to be impressed by the hard work and dedication of parish councillors, and also, the regular interest taken by keen visitors to the parish council, including Ray Pritchard, who has encouraged all of us to think about environmental issues under the auspices of the Meldreth, Shepreth and Melbourn Sustainable Parish Energy Project – a mouthful to say out loud but a wonderful initiative that seeks to share ideas and information on sustainable energy for very local purposes. Not forgetting Ray’s Re-Use Old Envelopes campaign!
‘Meldreth and Melbourn Station?’ Next year a new train operating company will take over our train service, and the Department for Transport is asking what this should encompass.
The Meldreth, Shepreth and Foxton Rail User Group has compiled its priorities and these include full disabled access at Meldreth Station, and a reverting back to the historic ‘Meldreth and Melbourn’ station name, which would reflect the station’s service to the two villages and also, increase footfall through internet plotted journeys.
We continue to enjoy space on the Melbourn Village website – and our website is now supported in first class style by a new member of the group, Paul Hollinghurst, who commutes from Cambridge to Melbourn Science Park by train. So Melbourn’s volunteer force includes all sorts of people from outside the village! Pippins Children’s Centre
It was great to be at the children’s centre opening Melbourn Children’s Centre opening 16 June and to see so many young children and families there. I’ve found the centre a very useful resource in tackling new case work; for example a Job Centre Plus advisor attends board meetings on a regular basis and has been very helpful about work placements for young people. Are you satisfied with your broadband speed?
It goes without saying that the internet has become an important service upon which people and businesses rely. But in our rural area, broadband speeds are variable and often very poor. In some cases the service is so poor as to be practically useless.
The county and district councils are running a project to encourage private telecoms companies to upgrade broadband speeds. It has also committed to supplementing the work of private companies to ensure that everyone in Cambridgeshire has a minimum level of service. The essential first step is to map out usage and need, and for this it is necessary for people to register their interest.
So if you are keen to see improvements to broadband speeds, please can you register at www.connectingcambridgeshire.co.uk. You will simply be asked for your postcode and landline number. If you have no internet access but would like to register please let us know and we’ll get a paper copy to you. There is more information on the county council’s main website, www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk.
Thank you and please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions.
Drop-in surgeries
District Councillor Jose Hales and I are holding drop-in surgeries at Melbourn Library Access Point on the first Monday of the month, 2:30-3:30 –September 3, October 1 and November 5. Please get in touch if these times are not convenient, to make an appointment. Cllr Susan van de Ven Telephone 261833 - www.susanvandeven.com Jose Hales, District Councillor Telephone 221058 - jose@josehales.me.uk
Tenant Participation
South Cambridgeshire District Council in conjunction with its Tenant Participation Group (TPG) is running 3 tenant led Open Days in the Autumn of 2012.
If you are a TENANT or LEASEHOLDER of SOUTH CAMBS DISTRICT COUNCIL please come along and meet your local housing team, local Councillors, and get advice on Housing, Benefits, Employment, young people’s initiatives, ageing well initiatives, plus enjoy stands from contractors such as MEARS, Morrisons and Mitie. Get involved in your housing service and help us to help you After all it’s Your Home – Your Service, so come along and share your views with your fellow tenants and your landlord FREE RAFFLE entry to all attendees Juggling and circus skills and bouncy castle for the youngsters amongst us! DATES FOR YOUR DIARY » Saturday 8th September: 12 noon – 4pm at Impington Village College » Saturday 29th September: 12 noon -4pm at Melbourn Village College » Saturday 20th October: 12 noon – 4pm at Sawston Village College
Helping our communities celebrate together
Find out more about a new website to help people plan events to bring communities together.
The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and Olympic celebrations have inspired a new website to make it easier to bring communities across Cambridgeshire together for events.
The new website – www.startnow.org. uk – provides information ranging from how to get started with organising an event, including budgeting and grants, to publicity and helpful tips on whether a license and insurance may be needed.
Cambridgeshire Councils and their partners have teamed up to develop the new easy-to-navigate pages which aims to help increase the number of community events taking place by providing a step-by-step guide to turning an idea into a reality.
The information on the new online guide builds upon a booklet launched by South Cambridgeshire District Council and stART, a partnership with the village colleges in the district. Cllr Mac McGuire, Deputy Leader at Cambridgeshire County Council, said: This summer we are seeing two great events that bring communities across Cambridgeshire together, from the street parties to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee to the excitement of the Olympic Games in London and the Olympic Torch Relay coming to our county. In each case, local residents have come together for the benefit of the place they live – this is a fantastic thing and we hope this new website will be a focal point of advice, help and information.
The website also includes case studies from across the county to demonstrate the type of events volunteers have made a success in their areas. This includes the challenges they faced, and the benefits they brought to the whole community. Tony Taylorson – visit www.startnow.org. uk to find out more.
