The Hamlets’ Voice Staploe, Duloe, Honeydon, Upper Staploe, Bushmead and Begwary ……………………………………………………………………… Issue 29 – June/July 2020 In times of a pandemic Our last Parish Newsletter was published in February 2020, in a time of blissful ignorance of what was to come. The Parish Council was planning a curry night, a community litter pick and a Fathers’ Day picnic and advertising Begfest, East West Rail consultations and Open Gardens. Little did we know that, due to the global outbreak of the virus causing COVID-19, we would be in lockdown a month later and most of these events would be cancelled. The curry night did go ahead at the beginning of March and raised £425.50 for the Village Hall rebuilding fund. The money is being held in reserve by the Parish Council. Our thanks go to Jane Thomson and Ged Meola for their organisation and to Jane Arnold and her family team for the delicious food. The event was well attended; it appears that the word has spread about Jane’s delicious curries because a good number of Colmworth residents also joined us, which helped increase the takings. We held our first virtual Parish Council meeting on 17th March on Skype. The link was published on the agenda and we were delighted that two members of the public joined us. We use audio but not video as some residents and councillors still have very slow broadband connections and a video session would be impossible for them. The pandemic has affected each and every one of us - in many different ways. In this issue of Hamlets’ Voice, we include contributions from parishioners describing their experiences, along with our regular updates. News from Bedford Borough Council Coronavirus Bedford Borough has the highest rate of coronavirus infection in the East of England. We need your help to slow the spread of the virus and save lives. You can do this by: 1. Staying at home as much as possible 2. Wearing a face mask when you go on public transport 3. Staying 2m away from others when outdoors 4. Continuing to regularly wash your hands with soap and water, or using hand sanitiser when that’s not available. Anyone with symptoms, including a new persistent cough, high temperature or a change or loss of taste or smell should immediately self-isolate and arrange a test via www.nhs.uk/coronavirus or by calling 111. 2 Council urges residents to look after their wellbeing in Bedford Borough With the infection rate remaining high in the Borough and residents advised to continue to stay home where possible, Bedford Borough Council is reminding everyone of the support and advice available to look after your mind and body. In April, the council created a new webpage, www.bedford.gov.uk/wellbeing, offering advice to Bedford Borough residents on how to look after themselves whilst at home during the coronavirus outbreak and beyond. With regular updates, the site offers advice and signposting to help residents stay healthy such as this Sunday’s free online yoga sessions, as part of International Yoga Day. This page also includes a range of materials, such as: • Exercise tips including indoor games for kids, live fitness classes, and seated exercises • Mental health advice and links to services that can provide help • Food and nutritional guidance including Change4Life resources, recipes and cooking videos • Further Public Health advice including sexual health, stop smoking, drugs and alcohol, health checks and emotional wellbeing Cllr Louise Jackson, portfolio holder for public health said, “It remains vitally important that people can continue to look after their health and wellbeing while staying safe at home. “For all of us, where possible, this means keeping active, eating healthily and looking after our mental health. To help this we set up our webpage www.bedford.gov.uk/wellbeing. It’s full of useful advice, information and links to help you stay on top of things and offer support through this difficult time.” “Local Offer” Website The Local Offer website is the first port of call for anyone seeking information about SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) services. It provides signposting and guidance as well as support. If you know of useful services that are not on the Local Offer, but perhaps should be, or if you have any suggestions for how the site can be improved, the Local Offer team would love to hear from you. To access the website please visit https://localoffer.bedford.gov.uk/kb5/bedford/directory/home.page 3 Bedford Borough Local Plan Review Local Plans set out where growth and development will take place - everything from houses and jobs to schools and infrastructure. Bedford Borough Council already has a Local Plan in place up to 2030, and is now looking beyond that period. Next week’s Executive meeting is set to discuss a Local Plan Review. Government requires councils to plan for a certain level of housing growth in their local plans. As part of the next Local Plan, allocations may need to be made for between 5,000 and 15,000 additional new dwellings over a plan period up to 2040. The exact number will depend on forthcoming revisions to the Government’s housing-need formula. If approved by Executive, the ‘Local Plan Review - Issues & Options’ paper will go out for consultation this summer asking people for their views. This review and consultation will mainly focus on developing a strategy to guide housing and employment growth and identify the infrastructure needed to support it. It will also look at policies around climate change, protecting the natural environment, quality of development, self and custom build homes, open space in new developments, and policies around the town centre. The town centre was the subject of a separate consultation last year, which has led to the development of a draft Town Centre Plan. This will form part of the background to the Local Plan review and people will have another chance to have their say in this consultation. This process will also open a ‘call for sites’ where people can put forward land to be allocated as a site for development in the next local plan. Mayor Dave Hodgson said “This report going to Executive sets out the possible scope of our Local Plan review and, if approved, the consultation this summer will be a great opportunity for the public to have their say right at the start of this process. This ‘Issues & Options’ consultation really is looking at the very basics – how long a time period should the next local plan cover, what do you want us to look at as part of the plan, and more.” 4 VE Day Celebrations On Friday 8th May, with the village still in lockdown, parishioners celebrated the 75th Anniversary of VE Day with flags, bunting, woodfired pizza, and a poetic scarecrow: We are living in ISOLATION And some days it feels like SUFFOCATION I drank the wine before FERMENTATION And ate all the sweets in DESPERATION They've cancelled the kids EXAMINATIONS But it is fine as we are all 'high on MEDITATION' V.E. Day is an inter-nation CELEBRATION War 6 years, us 6 weeks so no EXCLAMATION Let's show emotion and MOTIVATION Stay safe and well. 5 Woodfired Pizza Van The woodfired pizza van visited for VE Day and was a great success. It will visit again on Saturday 11th July. 10-inch pizzas • margherita: £8 • pepperoni, ham & mushroom, Hawaiian: £9 • chicken, chorizo and roquito peppers £9.50 • red onion, pesto and chilli flakes: £9.50 12-inch pizzas, all £2 extra. Please call Janet and Dave with your order and payment on 07976 223584. Highways Update In February, Staploe Parish Council and Borough Councillor Tom Wootton convened a meeting with Bedford Borough Council Highways Department and three other parishes to raise the issue of the condition of Bushmead Road and the need for a 50mph speed limit. The Borough spent £70,000 patching Bushmead Road shortly before the meeting. The Parish Council thanked them for the work done and asked why some areas had not been repaired. They explained that there was no money in the budget for further improvements. It was last top-dressed more than 5 years ago and will be top-dressed again in the next 3 years. This 6 should help seal the surface. The road will then be resurfaced (at a cost of approx. £500K) about 10 years later. The Borough have agreed to install data recorders once traffic returns to normal to assess the need for a speed limit on the road. They agreed to meet with Cambridgeshire County Council regarding new developments at Little Staughton and Staughton Moor Industrial Park and the potential development of Moor Road as an alternative access route. In September 2019, speed limits were reviewed and new limits proposed, to include a 20mph zone in the narrower part of Staploe and 40mph limit in Gypsy Lane and between Duloe and Staploe. Bedford Borough Council Highways Department have advised that the proposed limits need to go out for consultation but they are seeking new ways to consult with the public while many newspapers are not publishing. We have suggested a number of publications that they could use. Defibrillator The Parish Council received a grant from Borough Cllr. T. Wootton’s Ward Fund to purchase a defibrillator. This has been purchased and we are currently assessing options for installation. Blueline Security Blueline Security operate a private security service called 3 Shires Patrols for the deterrence and displacement of crime in rural villages in our area. They are currently covering the villages of Kimbolton, Stonely, Hail Weston, Great Staughton, Little Staughton, and Keysoe (plus others further afield).