The Hamlets’ Voice , Duloe, , Upper Staploe, Bushmead and

Issue 21 – March 2017 Welcome to the Spring edition of your local parish newsletter ………………………………………………………………………

In this issue: the latest news about the A1, the next instalment of Frankenfowl news and a brief encounter… ………………………………………………………………………

Just for Fun…

At a very well attended and enjoyable Curry Night in early February, the Hamlets Quiz was won by Jane Paveley, from Duloe.

For those who weren’t there on the night, here’s a copy of the quiz questions, just for fun. Answers in the next issue!

1. In which decade did the Gospel Hall in Staploe cease to be used as a religious meeting place - 1970s, 1980s or 1990s? 2. Name one of the charities that the BegFest music festival has supported. 3. Which family was associated with Upper Goodwick Farm in Honeydon for most of the 20th Century - Sheard family, Spencer- Thomas family or Bath family? 4. Which of our hamlet names (or very similar names) can also be found elsewhere in the country… 5. … and where in the country are they? 6. When did the Parish Council first register the land around the Duloe village sign as a Common - 1964, 1970 or 1975? 7. On which day of the week does the public bus pass through the hamlets? 8. What used to exist at Mount Pleasant - cottages, duck pond or barn? 9. Roughly how old is the round barrow near Hail Weston - 1,000 years, 1 year or 3,500 years? 10. After which type of tree is the barrow named?

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Brief Encounter

A few days ago I was driving up Shakers Way, a narrow lane one car width but with wide verges and dense hedges on either side and beyond arable fields. An attractive ancient road. I love the wide open spaces. Driving along I came across a battered old Golf parked on the verge with its back door open and a man dumping rubbish from the car into the ditch alongside the hedgerow. As I drove past I slowed right down and our eyes met. We both knew what was going on. In my Squtopia littering is the only offence that carries the death penalty and in my mind’s eye he was already standing beneath the gallows with the rope around his neck. I think a lot of people feel like that. Is it because littering expresses a degree of alienation, not just a lack of belonging but a frightening indifference to the environment, to the world, to the rest of us? I did not stop and did not even have the presence of mind to take the registration number.

The next day I returned on my bicycle to inspect the ditch and to examine its contents. There was plenty of rubbish lining the bottom of the ditch and clinging to the brambles hanging into the deep dark ditch – coke cans, a Becks beer bottle, greasy KFC wrappers, empty fizzy drinks cans including many cans of Red Bull, the energy drink that gives you wings. Also an empty blister pack of Tramodol which is an opiate for relieving severe pain and available only on prescription.

What does one glean from these items? If it was a murder enquiry there would be enough here to identify him: DNA from the cans; local doctors would have been ordered to supply details of patients prescribed with Tramodol; tyre prints from the verge; CCTV evidence not from Shakers Way but from roads in the neighbourhood; DVLA records of old black Golfs; an identity parade. A fine mesh of information would have netted our man. There would be no hiding place.

If you live in a house or flat you have access to a dustbin so perhaps this is a man who sleeps in his car; alleviates his loneliness with alcohol; feeds on Kentucky Fried Chicken; sleeps badly in the cold confines of his small car; uses Red Bull to keep himself awake during the day; and eases his pain with opiates. A man unhoused, disappointed and alienated.

Frank Squire ………………………………………………………………………

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Parish Council News

A1 Update The A1 East of Strategic Study was commissioned by Highways England and overseen by the Department for Transport to identify potential improvements to the A1, between the M25 (Junction 1) and Peterborough (Junction 17). Most of this section is of motorway standard but our 26 mile middle section of the A1 is not and has five roundabouts, numerous unnumbered junctions and accesses, and is of variable layout and quality, with settlements and housing in close proximity.

A Stage 3 Report on this study has been published and is available on the Staploe Parish Council website or a hard copy is available in the Hamlets Exchange phone box in Staploe (please do not remove).

The report identifies the following key issues: poor journey time reliability with variable speed and congestion, long delays, constrained road and restricted free traffic flow, collisions, capacity, poor conditions for public transport, noise and poor air quality, impact on landscape and townscape, impact on biodiversity, contributing to undermining growth potential and anticipated pressure on existing road network as a result of estimated population growth.

An initial list of more than fifty options was generated to address these problems and meet the study objectives and this was then shortlisted to five options which were formed into three packages and appraised. A Strategic Outline Business Case is being prepared for these Packages.

A proposal which involved upgrading the existing A1 non-motorway section to online motorway was not taken forward. The scale and impact of property demolition on established communities was deemed unacceptable, particularly as most of the properties to be demolished would be residential. Additionally, the option increases severance, public acceptability is likely to be low and issues with the practical feasibility of the option were anticipated.

The three packages which have been proposed are Package A, which would come west through the middle of our parish probably somewhere between Staploe and Duloe; Package B, which would improve the road in situ and get rid of the roundabouts and build smaller local bypasses and Package C, which would do nothing to improve the non-motorway section of the A1 but focus on Jn 3 and 4 of the motorway section near Hatfield to the south of us. Package C might be combined with Packages A or B. See the tables and diagram on the following pages.

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At the moment progress is slow because and Borough Councils do not have adopted local plans yet. Bedford Borough Council has received 4 applications to build “super sites” with large housing developments in (which would affect the A1), , Clapham and . They are likely to choose one of these but the decision is currently scheduled for 2018.

In addition, they are having to work closely with the new A14 development and the A428.

What are the Parish Council doing about it?

We will be writing to our MP Alistair Burt, Borough Councillor Tom Wootton and Madeline Russell of Association of Town and Parish Councils (BATPC) in support of Package B. Madeline is representing all the Bedfordshire Parishes on the Stakeholder Committee. We are not able to have a Parish Council representative on the Committee at this stage (we have asked and been turned down as they are not going down to parish level yet).

We have complained to BATPC about being informed so late about this report.

We are also making sure other Parish Councils in the area who may be affected are aware eg. Roxton, Wyboston and Hail Weston.

We will be forming a sub-committee (Parish Councillors only) or a working group (can include members of the public who are not Councillors) to focus on the A1 at the next Parish Council

7 meeting on 21st March. If you would like to be involved with this, please contact the Parish Clerk, Lucy Crawford.

We are investigating the possibility of employing a road consultant to help us campaign effectively.

We may set up a protest group but we are not at that stage yet.

We have large maps of the area with overlays which show:

 the 1994 route for the A1 through the parish  the proposed route for the A428  the route for the new section of A14  proposed housing developments etc.  a very rough idea of where the Package A new motorway might go.

These will be available to view at Parish Councils meetings or by appointment with the Parish Clerk.

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PARISH COUNCIL CONTACT DETAILS Parish Clerk Lucy Crawford 33 Staploe St Neots PE19 5JA Email: [email protected] Tel: 01480 471526 Website www.staploeduloehoneydonparishcouncil.bedsparishes.gov.uk

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Reflections on My Time in This District

I first came to Staploe in the spring of 1982. Back then it was just to look at the site that my late husband John and I bought subsequently from Peter Squire. To the unknowing eye, the place probably looks as if it has not changed much in many more years than those during which we lived here. But, the details are immensely changed. A few residents have lived here longer than we have. Some date from around the time we arrived. Most have come to live here much more recently.

There have been changes in the occupants of the houses. At one time - before I came to Staploe - all the houses were lived in by farmers or farm workers. Until the 1930s, there were old, more picturesque houses with thatched roofs in the part between Falling Water House and Old Farm Cottage. Nearly all these had gone by the time I moved here. But they were still a vivid memory for many of the people I first knew in Staploe.

Cottages and bread oven: view from My next but one neighbours were Mr and Fisher’s Lane, Staploe. (N Cutts) Mrs Farrer. Very pleasant, retired couple. I recall a conversation- 'Have you always lived here?', 'No, not always'. Puzzled by this, I left the subject for a few minutes. Then: 'Where did you live before?' 'Oh, Duloe. I was born in Staploe, then moved away (to Duloe), for some years. Then I moved back here'. It is easy to forget how most people now live in such different ways than in even the quite recent past.

Few people remember when Noel Bates grew potatoes and brussels sprouts along with peas in the fields to the right of Fisher's Lane. Picked and stacked by hand. By people wrapped in plastic feed sacks as well as many layers of clothes and two pairs of gloves. Because the winters were real then and seriously cold, even in the daytime.

I recall the day that I was asked by another farmer- 'how many people work at Noel's new brussel picker?'. Soon after that, the pickers mostly left, leaving only a memory!

There are other differences. As well as colder winters, there was more of a tendency for the brook to fill up, spilling out onto the road by 'The Falls'- the original name of 'Falling Water House'. This made for a tricky drive through a moving river of water! Especially difficult in the dark. 9

Walking or riding up Fisher's Lane and around the tracks that join it, was more likely to be a solitary experience. You rarely saw anyone and during the week- nobody at all- because everybody worked back then.

At least you were less likely to get run over! There was significantly less traffic. Not only people driving through were more scarce, but fewer households had Three Horse Shoes pub, Staploe c1930 (N Cutts) cars, or only had one which would go out to work with the man of the house, and return in the evening. As a result, there were no multiple journeys being made from each house as happens today. One could, in all seriousness, stand in the middle of the road for long periods of time with no danger from any traffic.

One result of the lack of traffic was much more use of the Thursday bus. Quite a gaggle of mostly housewives and pensioners would take the bus. And it was nearly full before you got on it, as this was the last of many stops - well, next to last - before it reached St.Neots.

Margaret Smith

……………………………………………………………………… Community Litter Pick

Sunday 19th March 3pm – 5pm, starting at Duloe Village Hall

Parishioners are welcome to litter pick in whichever area of the parish they prefer and equipment (litter pickers, high vis vests, gloves, bin bags and hoops) will be provided at the Village Hall.

Rubbish bags are to be left in one of three locations (one in each village) for the Borough Council to collect on Monday 20th March.

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More Parish Council Updates

A428

The A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibett Forum report has recently been published and can be viewed on the parish website. The preferred route will be announced in summer 2017.

Speeding

Speeding continues to be a problem in the parish and we have received complaints from a number of parishioners including the postman. We requested extra speed checks and the police did attend on 8th February 2017 in Staploe 07:52 to 08:20 and Duloe 08:23 to 08:40. Unfortunately, they were highly visible (apparently, they have to be) and so they didn’t see anyone speeding in Staploe and only one of 13 in Duloe (who will receive a warning letter).

At a recent Parish Council meeting a parishioner complained about the speed of vehicles including taxis in Staploe between midday and 1am. Richard Squire will be writing to the manager of the wedding venue to remind staff and guests to abide by speed limits and the Clerk will write to local taxi companies.

The Clerk will also request that the Highways department install a data cable / cables in order to build a better body of evidence of speeding in the parish.

Meanwhile you may have noticed that our Vehicle Activated Sign in Duloe is not working. Callout fees to service these signs are exorbitant so we had to do some negotiating to find someone prepared to look at it and we hope to be replacing the solar batteries soon.

Alan Potts has done a lot of work with Andrew Prigmore of Bedford Borough Council to investigate different speed reduction measures for Duloe in particular and received some ball park costs but Bedford Borough Council have no budget to introduce any of these measures in our villages so they would need to be funded by the parish.

 Pinch Point. One road narrowing point located at the entrance to Duloe travelling west somewhere between house number 1 and 5. New signage, road marking, lighting and a small amount of design would be needed. Cost estimated at +£10,000. There are reservations due to a non-continuous flow of traffic because it works better with a continuous flow but it might help to calm traffic to some extent.  Chicanes. A better option but more work and higher costs. Would need to be located at the entrance to Duloe travelling west between house number 1 and 5. There would be a need to avoid a clash with the entrance to house number 5. 11

 Speed Bumps. These would ideally be located between the entrance to Duloe and between house number one and Daniels Farm. Additional lighting would be needed, and there would be an increase in noise so consultation with all residents would be required. Cost around +£50,000.  Spot Speed Camera. This would be a much better solution but was not discussed further due to the estimated cost of +£50,000.  Average Speed Camera. This was briefly mentioned as the best option. Bedford Borough Council have a very limited budget which is thought to be enough for one or two to cover all the villages in North Bedfordshire. Cost +£40,000. At present our speeding problem has not been shown to be as significant as many other villages in North Bedfordshire.

One of the most effective deterrents is the local Community Speedwatch Scheme who are able to use a laser gun and camera to capture information on speeding motorists and send it to the police. The police then send a warning letter to the motorist but they do not fine them or add points.

The Parish Council can only do speedwatch if there are three trained volunteers available and we urgently need more volunteers so if you care about speeding vehicles please contact the Clerk to volunteer.

Meanwhile we recommend that anyone who sees a vehicle speeding in the village calls the police on 101. Even if you don’t have the number plate it will be logged and it all helps build evidence of a problem and makes it more likely that the police will do further checks and the Council will consider us for future engineering projects to reduce speeding.

If anyone has any ideas of measures which might help reduce speeding, is willing to organise fund raising activities towards speed reduction measures, or has any thoughts or objections to any of the above measures please contact the Parish Clerk.

Traveller Site, Upper Staploe.

On 6th December, The Borough Council took out another injunction against Mrs Rooney as she was proposing to move onto the field again. The Council received a planning application 16/03661/FUL on 19th December 2016 to bring mobile homes onto the site and live in them again. The Borough Council returned the planning application and advised the agent on 12th January 2017 that it would not be considered because it would constitute a breach of the pre- existing enforcement notice.

There will be a court hearing regarding the injunction on 20th February. The Parish Council agreed that the Clerk should write to the Council explaining that:

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1. If, as explained in the planning application, Mrs Rooney needs an operation then a field with no sewerage, or electricity is not a suitable location for her recovery. 2. As Mrs Rooney and the children have been in a refuge for protection from domestic violence the field would not be a safe, secure or anonymous location for her or her children from those in her domestic circle who may present a risk to them. There were two arson attacks on the caravans / mobile homes when they were last on site. 3. There is an enforcement notice on the field and £50 000 debt has been incurred by the Borough Council in meeting the terms of the enforcement notice to remove hard standings, septic tanks etc and return it to its previous status as a field. The debt has not yet been settled. Mrs Rooney states that alternative accommodation is not affordable for her and therefore the Parish Council believe she is unlikely to be able to repay this debt. 4. The reasons previously given that this is not a suitable location for a traveller site still apply: ie. that it is classified as open countryside, there is no public transport, no pavements or 30mph zones to allow safe access to public services such as schools, shops, and doctors’ surgeries and the access onto the main road has poor visibility.

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Frankenfowl News

Here is the Frankenfowl news. Readers will recall that Frankenfowl 1 (FF 1) roamed the fields, copses and thickets in these parts, uttering his harsh love call as he quested for a female companion. Sadly his lonely calls went unheeded because FF 1, unbeknown to him, was the last surviving guinea fowl in this neighbourhood and so his quest for love was doomed to failure.

Then my nephew Richard acquired two new guinea fowl and it was hoped that these would be female. Sadly because the sexing of guinea fowl is an esoteric skill known only to a handful of oriental sexologists, and of course to guinea fowls, this was not the case and one of the new guinea fowl turned out to be male. Conflict ensued in the course of which FF 1 was defeated and driven away. Occasionally I would see him dashing about lonelier and more frantic than ever, battered and dishevelled. Soon he was seen no more and I assume he must have gone to dinner with Mr and Mrs Fox. In the meantime the two newcomers could be seen from time to time smugly enjoying a honeymoon in the late summer sun.

Then there was only one, a pale silvery bird Frankenfowl 2 (FF 2) which would scuttle frantically away on the rare occasions that I saw it. Then FF 2 was seen no more and I assumed that FF 2 had also succumbed to a dinner invitation. However coming home the other evening as I turned into my drive, there caught in the headlights like a low flying grey wraith was FF 2 and what’s more he was accompanied by a bevy of female pheasants.

I am hoping that FF 2 has taken up residence in my garden. I am leaving out food for him but I have not seen him since that evening. Perhaps he has learnt the primary rule for wild bird survival here in England: Avoid humans. This is not a rule that applies all over the world. Long ago I took my wife on holiday to Calcutta, not perhaps the ideal holiday destination. Worse, after a few days I decided to take the train to Delhi, a mere thousand miles away. Worse, I insisted on travelling third class for the authentic Indian experience. (Name drop alert: I was expressly advised in person by the then Indian foreign secretary not to undertake this journey as being too dangerous.)

We eventually did arrive in Delhi about ten days later and after we had recovered I decided to visit an Indian village to observe an Indian farm. I hired an Indian taxi with driver and assistant driver and asked him to drive into the remote countryside. After three hours we arrived at a little village and the driver located a farm and introduced us to the farmer and his family and we were made welcome and taken on a tour. After the tour we were offered drinks of lassi a 14 cold drink made of fermented yoghurt. Our driver, ever solicitous, carefully monitored these drinks to make sure that they were suitable for what he referred to as our delicate European stomachs.

At the end of the visit I asked if we could take a photograph of the farmer and his family. This was readily agreed and I arranged the group in front of the wall of the compound. I instructed the taxi driver’s assistant on how to take the photograph. All seemed ready but I was asked to wait. It seems that our visit was now regarded as a big event in the lives of the farmer and his family, and the grandmother had been despatched to get the children home early from school in order to be in the photograph so we were waiting for them to arrive from school. As we waited a bird, predominantly blue, resembling an English kingfisher, but a bit larger, came to hop about on the wall behind us. I pointed out the bird to the driver explaining that we had a very similar bird in England but the English version would not dream of coming so close to a group of noisy humans. The driver looked at me for a moment and then wagging his finger at me said, “In India nobody harms a bird.” In India it seems FF 1 and FF 2 would not have run about so frantically at the sight of a human.

Frank Squire ……………………………………………………………………… Recommended Recipe

Emma’s “posh flapjacks”

(honey granola bars)

1. Melt together in a pan 100g of butter, 3 tbsp honey and 100g of light muscovado sugar. Take the pan off the heat. 2. Mix together in a bowl 300g of dried fruit/cranberries/seeds/chopped nuts of your choice, 200g of porridge oats and 1tsp of cinnamon. 3. Add the dry ingredients to the pan of melted syrup and mix well. 4. Press the mixture into a lined, buttered square tin (20cm square works well). 5. Bake for 30 mins at 150°C 6. Leave to cool then lift from tin and cut into squares.

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Better Broadband Scheme

The Government has committed to giving access to 2Mbps download speed to every premises in the UK from the end of 2015. As part of this commitment, local partnerships in conjunction with Broadband Delivery UK are making available the option of a subsidised satellite broadband installation for eligible premises (those who do not have access to speeds of more than 2Mbps). Details can be found at: http://www.bedford.gov.uk/business/projects__infrastructure/broadband/basic_broadband.as px Duloe and Staploe Village Hall

The Village Hall can seat around 80 people. Hire: £7 per hour. To book, call: 07768 303373.

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The Hamlets Voice | Issue 21 | March 2017 Editors: Emma Thompson, Margaret Smith and Frank Squire | Email: [email protected]

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