Kingston Parish Council

Parish Council News

As reported in the April village magazine:

Corona virus Pandemic – Kingston’s Plan: No infections yet in Kingston as I type this, but all communities are encouraged to plan ahead, so the Parish Council discussed and formulated the following plan for providing support if a number of people in Kingston either become infected or for other reasons need to self-isolate. This may be modified or added to in the light of the developing situation:

As Parish Clerk and holder of the village-wide email list, I will act as the hub for communications. I have a list of those households not on the emailing list, and where appropriate these will receive a printed note through the letterbox. 
If infections arrive in Kingston, or a volunteer is needed, I will keep everyone informed by circular emails/letterbox notes. Please let me know if you have the infection in your household and/or are self-isolating.
If you are self-isolating and need shopping or other errands carrying out, please let me know and I will find a volunteer to help.
If you are willing and able to help as in 3. above, thank you, particularly those who have already volunteered. For the present I am not compiling a list of volunteers. I will look for volunteers as needed, using the email circulation list.
Please think of elderly or vulnerable neighbours – they have been advised to self-isolate for their own safety. Ask them for a shopping list next time you go to the supermarket!

Communications: those of you on my emailing list should have received an email from me with the above message. For those who are not, I think I know who you are and hopefully you have received a letter through your letterbox with the text of the email, encouraging you to join the emailing list. To join the list if you are not already on it (or are not sure) please email me at kingstonpc.cambridge@gmail.com. If you start receiving circular emails from me and don’t want them, please let me know and I will delete your details from my list.

East West Rail: the route of the new railway in this area has been decided as somewhere within a broad band passing in a North-West to South-East direction, with the southern edge of the band uncomfortably close to Kingston. The final route within this band has not yet been decided, and the East West Rail Company is now carrying out detailed surveys and other studies in order to decide the final route. There will be consultation at several stages. However please note that the six remaining Community events have been put on hold for the time being in view of the corona virus outbreak.

It has been agreed that for the present, KPC’s response to the threat that the chosen route for the new railway could run close to Kingston would be as follows. Further activity may be agreed when we know more clearly the exact route, which it appears will pass either between Kingston and Toft, or between Toft and Comberton.

Sue Dalgleish has been appointed to be Kingston’s Parish Councillor representative at any relevant meetings.
Kingston will join a ‘coalition of parish councils’ in the area being organized by Bourn Parish Council to work together for the mutual benefit of the represented parishes.

Paul Wright reports that the Wildlife Trust is pushing for a northern route between Cambourne and Cambridge. There is an opportunity here for people to support this:

www.wildlifebcn.org/news/beds-cambs-rail-route-track-protecting-key-wildlife-habitats

See the East West Railway Company website for further information: www.eastwestrail.co.uk.

Playground: You may have noticed an overgrown area in the top left-hand corner. The idea was to let the grass grow long here, to give an area for children to play and find hiding places. In recent years it had become an impenetrable thicket, so needed some management. Volunteers have been at work, and have cut a winding path through the area, hopefully to restore its original purpose. We will try and keep it better maintained in future.

An oak tree, paid for by South Cambs District Council, has been planted, in the top right hand corner, hopefully to be appreciated by our grandchildren and great-grand-children.

Planning

S0127/20/FL application for 3 wildlife ponds at New Farm, Old Wimpole Road: KPC responded ‘support’.
20/01142/HFUL application for construction of a garden building at Wychwood, Cranes Lane: KPC responded ‘no comment’.

Peter Stokes, Parish Clerk

Playground

The goal nets at the playground are replaced from time to time by the Parish Council at some expense. It is disappointing to find the nets with large holes in them that cannot have happened in normal use. We can only conclude that the damage has occurred through abuse or vandalism. Please keep your eyes open for any such behaviour at the playground and if possible discourage it. If you are aware of misbehaviour and know the culprits, please let the Parish Clerk know.

Flooding

Fortunately flooding is not a major problem in the village, but there are some documents available from the County Council everyone should be aware of:

Riparian Owners Factsheet - Do you have a watercourse running through or adjacent to your land? Click here
Emergency Contacts - Do you know how to get help in an emergency? Click here

Blue bins

South Cambs District Council has changed its guidance regarding what to do with blue bin overflow. They now advise as follows:

If the blue bin is full, excess recyclable material will be collected if placed in one transparent sack next to the blue bin. Please put any glass in your blue bin, not in the sack for safety reasons. One bundle of cardboard may be left next to your bin if it is of a size which would fit inside the bin if there were space. Please tape or tie into a bundle to assist collection. Please do not use other colour wheeled bins for your excess recycling. You can get an additional blue bin free of charge. Contact: email refuse@scambs.gov.uk, tel 03450 450 063.

Noisy Neighbours

If noise from your neighbours becomes a regular nuisance, you should first approach the neighbours to try and reach a reasonable solution. If this fails, you need to contact South Cambs District Council Environmental Health department. There is some useful information on this page: https://www.scambs.gov.uk/environment/pollution/noise-nuisance/

They have a statutory duty to take action where appropriate, but will expect you to have approached the offending party first, and to keep a log of occurrences for a period of time.

Parking

We have had several complaints about inconsiderate parking in the village. We know that parking space is at a premium, but please consider your neighbours when you or your guests park. In particular we ask that vehicles are not parked on village greens, which are a pleasant visual feature of our village, intended as a public amenity. If you do not have space on your own premises, the village hall car park can be used as a temporary parking place.

For more parking advice, and an advisory map: click here

Audit of Accounts 2018-19

The external auditors have completed their work on Kingston's Parish Council Annual Return and have found everything to be in order. A copy of the Return including the internal and external audit reports can be downloaded: click here

Previous years: 2017-18

2016-17

2015-16

2014-15

Kingston Community Plan

To download a copy of the plan: click here

South Cambridgeshire Local Plan

The new Local Plan to cover the period up to 2031 has been found to be "sound" by the inspector and accordingly has been adopted. More information is available on the SCDC website https://www.scambs.gov.uk/localplan

What is a Local Plan?

A Local Plan is a statutory document that local planning authorities must prepare that sets out the Council's vision for its area and includes policies and proposals that set out a framework for new development, the use of land and conservation of key assets. It should look forward over a 15 year period from the date it is adopted.

Under the Government's new Localism approach that will see the abolition of regional plans, the District Council's plan making responsibilities have been enhanced and it is now, for the first time, for the Council to set the overall development strategy for the area, as well as sites for development, working with neighbouring authorities under the 'duty to cooperate'. - From SCDC Briefing Paper

Kingston Oil Club

A reminder that Kingston has a group purchasing scheme in operation to save hassle and achieve good prices for prices for heating oil. We use our local broker Agricole Oil.

For more information: click here

Junction of Church Lane and the B1046

There have been complaints from time to time about long grass at this junction resulting in poor visibility for drivers turning towards Cambridge. The Highways Department is responsible for cutting grass verges, and has a programme to cut them. Unfortunately weather variations can result in growth of the grass between scheduled cuts.

The Highways people can carry out additional cuts, but they need to be requested to do so. Please therefore report to Peter Stokes any problems in this area, and he will pass on a request to the Highways Department.

Meeting Dates (subject to confirmation nearer the time)

Parish Council meetings in 2019 will be held on 8 January, 5 February (Extraordinary), 18 February (Extraordinary), 12 March, 14 May, 9 July, 10 September, 22 October (Extraordinary), 12 November

The Annual Parish Meeting is held in May.