DECEMBER 2017 A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to All! IN THIS ISSUE 2. From the Editors 8. The Avenue – a Village Resource Parish Council Notes The West End Development Appeal 3. Community Speedwatch 9. News from Madingley Hall Madingley History Group News from our MP, Heidi Allen 2017 Poppy Appeal 10. Report from our County Councillor, 4. Dates for your diary Lina Joseph Royal Mail Collection Times From our District Councillor, Village Contacts Francis Burkitt 5. Church News 11. QTSQ Oil Club 6. Rev’d John Mullett – a Tribute 12. Bus Times 7. News from the American Cemetery 13. Bin Collections FROM THE EDITORS reviewing planning applications and ensuring the Welcome to this Winter issue of Madingley playground is maintained – but it is also a News – and thanks to everyone who has powerful vehicle for trying to make Village life contributed material for inclusion. better for everyone, in whatever guise that might be. This issue carries details of the many activities taking place in the Village over the next few November meeting months. It is in this context that it was a great pleasure to Traffic concerns remain at the top of the agenda be able to welcome so many people along to our in our Village – both the A14 Improvement most recent Parish Council meeting in Scheme and the Greater Cambridge Partnership November. This was an ‘extraordinary’ meeting with its busway and Park and Ride proposals. with a large part devoted to discussing the potential permanent closure of The Avenue and The next issue of Madingley News will be the possible impact of a new Park and Ride published on 10th March 2018 and the copy (P&R) site on the edge of the Village. We’d like deadline for receipt of articles, photographs to thank everyone who took part and actively (jpeg attachments 1MB or more in size please) encourage more of the same – the more and advertisements is 10th February. We look feedback we can get at Council meetings and forward to receiving your news and illustrations the more debate we can engender, the better. and in the meantime we wish everyone a Merry So please do take every opportunity to make Christmas and a Happy New Year. your views and concerns known. You may also Roger and Lesley Buckley want to consider more active involvement in our Email: [email protected] local politics: the whole Parish Council is up for Telephone: 01954 211276 re-election in May 2018, so that’s an opportunity people may wish to think about pursuing. PARISH COUNCIL NOTES Traffic and transport It was at this time last year that I introduced Traffic and transport continue to be the ‘big myself as the new Chairman of the Parish ticket’ items. Regarding The Avenue, I’d like to Council. The year has certainly flown by. I’d thank everyone who completed the consultation like to hope that it’s been a positive start, survey form. The response was very helpful and although I seem to have spent much of my time we’ll let people know the outcome shortly. I am finding my feet. To a significant degree this also conscious that some felt the tone of the applies to the Parish Council in general; we are document to be unduly in favour of a permanent quite a ‘new’ Council, in the sense that three- closure, but this was never the intention. The fifths of the Councillors are newcomers and that goal was only ever to kick off an open debate on during the year we also welcomed Sarah, our the question and to capture feedback. The new (and very experienced) Parish Clerk, who’s document did reflect the results of traffic got off to a flying start. Further afield, we got a modelling by Highways England that suggests new County Councillor and next year we’ll get a the re-opening of The Avenue would lead to a new District Councillor. significant increase in traffic through the Village. I do believe this has helped reinvigorate the The challenge is that this is a highly complex Council and allowed us to achieve some positive issue that’s difficult to summarise briefly. Traffic things during the year. Some of these are is rising generally and it’s inevitable that relatively small victories, such as getting new Madingley will see a significant increase. We dog waste bins installed or a new 40mph buffer must acknowledge that. The question is zone on Church Lane – and I use the word whether we are going to experience a ‘victories’ because it’s hard to overstate how disproportionate increase because of local much time-consuming bureaucracy can be developments and whether there’s anything we involved with getting even seemingly simple can do about that. things done! Unfortunately, there are no easy fixes. There But what has become clear to me is that the are legal and regulatory restrictions around what Parish Council should very much be a living and we can do (for example, around banning HGV evolving body; new blood brings new ideas and traffic), we are a very low-priority for County renewal contributes to success. The Council Council funding for traffic calming measures (not should be an integral part of Village life, a force a high enough accident rate), and we are a for good and not some meaningless or aloof small Parish Council with very limited budget to organisation. Some of the Council’s work is fund measure ourselves – the Council Tax necessarily routine – such as managing budgets, generates a Parish precept of £66.88 per annum 2 per household and if, after covering all our as being safer, slower vehicle speeds generate committed expenditure, we could generate a less traffic noise and less pollution. surplus of, say, £1,000 it would take us 20 years Our Community Speedwatch team is always to afford one speed hump! pleased to hear from potential new volunteers. That’s why we are keen to explore opportunities If you may be able to help during our team such as The Avenue when they arise. We have survey sessions then do let us know – if you’re taken on board all the very welcome feedback reliable, organised, aged 18 or over and with an we’ve had and will be acting on it. We’ll also hour to spare per survey. Volunteering for as continue to explore as many other options and little as an hour per month can help us to make solutions as we can identify. a difference by reducing traffic speeds in the Busway Village. Surveys are undertaken in teams and training is provided. If interested, please send a The other ‘big ticket’ item continues to be the brief message outlining your interest together Cambourne to Cambridge busway and with your contact details, c/o the Editors, who associated P&R scheme. As mentioned in the will pass this on. letter we circulated around the Village, this is shortly due to be subject to a public consultation Our team of Speedwatch volunteers continues exercise and we would encourage everyone to to do a great job helping to remind drivers of the take an active interest. As I said in the letter, the Village speed limit – thank you for your on-going Greater Cambridge Partnership is likely to put a support. very positive spin on the scheme, but we need Speedwatch Secretariat to be mindful that there may be very negative impacts on our Village. This is not only the MADINGLEY HISTORY GROUP sheer scale of the proposed P&R just outside the Village – 2,000 parking spaces covering in We are very grateful to those who gave their excess of 22 acres of very visible countryside – time, knowledge and enthusiasm via their but the fact that a car park here relies on lectures to the History Group over the past year funnelling P&R traffic on to Madingley Mulch – to Richard Gant for speaking about Capability roundabout, the very same section of road that Brown and his legacy at Madingley Hall; to Dr the scheme is intended to remove traffic from! Gabriel Glickman for his talk about the Politics, Conspiracy and Career of Sir John Hynde Playground Cotton of Madingley Hall and to Peter On a lighter note, you may have noticed that Teversham who shared his memories of life in we’ve installed a new goal in the playground, Madingley throughout the past 70 years. We replacing the previous one which had also looked at the 1939 Register listing everyone deteriorated. We’re hoping its replacement will living in Madingley at the beginning of WW2. give many years of pleasure. As always, we’d The 2018 programme of talks and events will be love to hear any views on anything else you’d published in the New Year. In the meantime, if like to see in the playground. you have photographs or other archive material Finally, on behalf of the Parish Council I’d like to about your family, home or events in Madingley wish everyone a very Happy Christmas and best and are able to share them with the Group wishes for 2018. please contact us. Stuart Hawkins Meetings are publicised on the notice board by Chairman, Madingley Parish Council the church gate and via email. Annual membership costs £8. Visitors are welcome to COMMUNITY SPEEDWATCH attend individual meetings but are asked to contribute £3 to History Group funds. Further information is available from Sue Baldwin (01954 210766; [email protected]). 2017 POPPY APPEAL Speedwatch surveys remind drivers to drive The total amount collected in Madingley was within the local speed limit, helping to make our £497.03.