The Community Hub
East Cambridgeshire District Council, working in partnership with the Parish Council, are now running a monthly community drop-in event on the first Thursday of every month between 10am and 1pm in the Village Hall. If you need to talk to someone/need advice on debt, alcohol misuse, drug dependency, housing/homelessness, benefits, mental health, domestic violence etc representatives are there for you to talk to. No need to make an appointment, just drop in. Hot drinks and food are also freely available.
Paddocks
At long last, after many years, the transfer documents have now been signed by the Parish Council and ECDC so work can start on bringing them into use as a Green Open Space for all residents of the village. We will be producing a short consultation document with ideas for what could be created there and we would really welcome as many responses as possible so that plans can be drawn up.
Cemetery
At the current cemetery, our head groundsman and members of the Amenities Sub-Committee have identified areas that can be used to extend the current provision to allow time for the new cemetery to be created and opened.
We have started work on the new cemetery site, levelling the site, setting the grass and green hedging to allow this to mature for a few years. The hard landscaping, access and building are unlikely to start for a couple of years but the Parish Council have already started planning this stage.
Local Plan
The Local Plan is now in its final stages and we await the Planning Inspectorate’s comments on whether the plan is “sound”. We are pleased that ECDC have agreed with our proposals and included them within the final draft which is currently with the Inspectors.
Local Highway Initiative Bid
We again this year put in a bid to the County Council for funding to provide some traffic calming measures, this time on Parsons Lane. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we have been unsuccessful in this round but we will be applying again next year.
Local Polising and CCTV Cameras
Cambridgeshire Police have changed from community policing to reactive policing across the county. We are still working closely with our local policing team and have extended our CCTV coverage giving the police access to our system.
Also looking to extend the Neighbourhood Watch scheme throughout the village and would like to hear from anyone that may be interested in setting up a group in their road.
Tourism
The Littleport Town Team services have now moved to the Parish Council (from ECDC) and we will be looking to actively promote the village and the business opportunities in the village. Other tourism activities are now administered from the City of Ely Council and there are plans to create a Food Blog Trail which will incorporate the Rioter’s Trail and Habis. Habis are also featuring in the Eel Festival Weekend in the Eel Food Safari and as a demonstrator in the Cookery Theatre which is a great advertisement for our village. For further information about the festival visit www.elyeelfestival.co.uk. Also, please don’t forget the monthly community market at Adam’s Centre – you can always find further information on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/littleportadamscommunitymarket/).
Village Centre
Last year the Community PayBack team painted the street furniture and will be back this year to continue working their way through the list of projects proposed by the Parish Council.
At a recent meeting, the Highways Agency confirmed that they will be refreshing the white and yellow lines helping to lift the appearance of the village centre.
Old Toilet Block, Ely Road
Last year the first stage of the Urban Art Project was completed. Members of the Parish Council, ThePort Youth Group and members of the local community assisted in the transformation of the old toilet block and surrounding green space. The project combines both street art and the provision of areas to help the local wildlife (“Bug Hotel”). The project was led by the Local Policing Team and funding came from ECDC and the Police.
We are looking forward to seeing the new planting this spring and hope to be doing further works to the fencing/railings shortly to further enhance the area. If you’d like to be involved in the project please contact Su, the Parish Clerk.
Working Groups
Transport and Access: These groups are meeting regularly and have produced some really detailed work, which will be put into the Littleport Transport Plan setting out a clear vision for the village.
Parish Council/Village Hall: Work is underway to enable people to book the village hall online via the Parish Council website along with putting in place a formal working relationship agreement where one has not existed before.
Parish Council Office
Lynda has now decided that the time is right for her to step back from the Parish Council and will be retiring from her role as Clerk Emeritus as soon as a new Deputy Clerk has been appointed (advertisement will be coming out very soon). Lynda has provided an invaluable service to the village over many many years and her wealth of knowledge will be sorely missed. She will continue to be the Clerk to The Littleport Town Lands Charity and the Marshalls Charity so will not be disappearing completely!
Summing Up …
With two big projects starting and others in the pipeline we will have a very busy period ahead of us but I believe that we are starting to reap the benefits of being a proactive Council.
Having non-councillors on working groups is working really well and I look forward to other groups being set up for our new projects.
The Parish Council is constantly trying to improve and are always happy to hear your views on our performance. Please take the opportunity to make contact direct or via our contact page on the Parish Council website should you wish to comment, require our help or want to work with the Parish Council.