I have been approached by the Surgery to help in identifying how a Community Car Service could be put together to help with the problems that many of our elderly are having when they need to visit the Doctor for an appointment, treatment or just to collect medication.

My immediate thoughts are a number of volunteers with time and a car also a co-ordinator to identify available volunteers would be needed.

I am at the present time trying to identify those authorities who are willing to make grants available to such a scheme as I have in mind. I perceive at the moment no charge being made for transport but a donation would be made by the client being transported. In the meantime may I ask if there are members of the Community who would help to get the scheme launched.

It is NOT intended that the Doctor will cease visits, nor the Community Nurse.

Please telephone or write to me if you are interested and have any thoughts which will help to proceed with this initiative.

Latest News - Scheme to start April 2nd

Clive informs us that 8 volunteers have come forward and the scheme will now start on April 2nd. More volunteers are welcome so if you wish to join the scheme please contact Clive, on:- (details above).

Any elderly resident who needs help to get to the doctors surgery in Swavesey or Over should ring Clive on:-
01954 232428
or ring:-
01954 231623.

Parish Council News

STRUCTURE PLAN

In February 2001, Cambridgeshire County Council and Peterborough City Council started a review of the Structure Plan with an extensive consultation on the issues affecting the area over the next 15 years. The Plan will establish the framework for major new development and infrastructure investment over the next 15 years and beyond. It aims to achieve a sustainable pattern of development that significantly improves the quality of life for the
people of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.

Key components of the new Plan will include providing for new jobs and economic development, more affordable housing, securing infrastructure provision and improving the design of new development and protection of the countryside.

The draft Structure Plan will have a formal period of consultation for 6 weeks between Monday 11 March and Monday 22 April 2002. The Plan could have significant implications for your area and this is your chance to support or object to the policies that have been drawn up. Copies of the Plan will be available to view at local council offices and all
libraries. It will also appear on the Cambridgeshire County Council website (www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk) and the
Peterborough City Council website (www.peterborough.gov.uk). Copies will also be available for purchase at a cost of £15 by phoning 01223 717791.

In addition, a number of exhibitions and presentations will be held around Cambridgeshire and Peterborough during March and April, where local people will be able to come and find out more about the Plan. A leaflet will be distributed to all households in Cambridgeshire in February advertising the dates and times of the exhibitions. Alternatively, please look on the website for details of dates and times.

The Thomas Galon Charity

In the year 1528, Thomas Galon left land for the benefit of the community of Swavesey. A charity was set up enabling Trustees to distribute the income from this land to people in need.

Today people who have lived in Swavesey for more than two years and who are over 70 years of age, together with widows and widowers and those in need, receive support from this charity. Donations are also made to other organisations that provide services from which villagers benefit.

Further information on donations available from the Thomas Galon Charity may be obtained from:
The Clerk to the Charity: Mrs Linda Miller. (10 Carters Way, Swavesey. (202982)
or from Trustees as follows:
Mr J Shepperson (Chairman 230313) Mr A R Parish (231678)
Mr A Clayton (230425) Mr JW Chowings (230612)
Mr D Morgan (230249) Mr G Hendry (230278)
Mr K Wilderspin (230083) Mr S Amner (201863)
Rev Dr J D Yule (231903)

SuperCAM in Cambridgeshire

What is SuperCAM? It is a proposal to use the old Cambridge to St Ives rail line route as a guided bus system. It is all part of the CHUMMS report and it is also being linked into the possible development at Oakington. How can we know more about it? There will be a public exhibition for the Cambridge Area Metro during March, in various locations along the route which runs St Ives-Cambridge-Trumpington. At present the timetable is tentative, there is an exhibition currently booked to be in Swavesey College Hall on 13 March. We will probably have the exhibition open during from mid-afternoon to about 8.00 pm in the evening. Members of the project team will be available to answer questions. We would like to know what people think about the proposals before finalising details of the scheme and making an application under the Transport and Works Act. The exhibition will be advertised nearer the time in the Cambridge Evening News, and we hope to be doing a leaflet drop. Information on the proposals and exhibition can be obtained from the developer's website at: www.supercam.co.uk

Golden Jubilee - Prize on Offer

Everyone will know that next year is the golden jubilee of the Queen coming to the throne. For many, the coronation was the first time that they watched a national event on television - remembering the televisions of the early 1950s with their small black and white pictures. It was a time when many gathered together in their neighbour's house to watch the event together. So how can we make this occasion in the life of our nation? One thing we could do is to decorate, dress our houses over the Jubilee weekend.

Remember that the late Spring Bank Holiday has been moved back a week to 03 June to tie in with Coronation Day which is Sunday 02 June. So why not dress your house for the celebration and the Parish Council will be giving a prize for the best-dressed house. The judging would be done by an independent person, so get thinking about how to dress your house for the prize and the enjoyment of marking this occasion.

Posts - in or out

Is this to do with Consignia? No, it is posts in verges. Recently some posts were put in to try to stop vehicles driving onto the verges and killing the grass, turning the verges into muddy tracks. The posts were put in when the ground was hard, so some have come out of the ground or have perhaps been knocked out. If this has happened near you, then do knock the post back in - the ground is a lot easier now than when they were first put in!

New Housing in Swavesey

Recently we all had forms to fill in about possible new housing in Swavesey. Here are some facts from the forms:
Forms sent out 995
Forms returned 409 (41%)

123 (30%) felt that there is a need in Swavesey for new housing to meet local needs
82 wanted more low-cost housing
57 wanted smaller starter homes
15 felt larger family properties were needed

275 (67%) felt that there was NOT a need for new housing in Swavesey to meet local needs

183 (45%) objected to new housing being put in Swavesey because:
182 did not want an increase in traffic
144 pointed to the lack of facilities in the village
140 said the infrastructure was unable to cope with any increase.

Memorial Hall Refurbishment

It is still planned that the Memorial Hall will begin its refurbishment at the beginning of March, and it will be necessary to have it out of action from the beginning of March for an anticipated period of approximately 20 weeks, taking us up to August/September time.

But what about Parish Council meetings? These will take place in the Village College and the Annual Parish Meeting on 7 May will also take place at the Village College.

Notices confirming the change of venue for these meetings will be posted up around the village nearer the time.

Crime Prevention Tips...........

Garden sheds are often an easy target for burglars who will steal tools, lawnmowers and electrical goods. Even if you don't keep anything of value in your shed, burglars can use garden tools to break into your home. Sheds are not designed for safe storage.Think about the security of your property from the point of view of a burglar who will not want to steal identifiable property
It's worth marking your gardening tools and equipment permanently with your postcode followed by the number of your house. This will help the police identify your property even if it is found in another part of the country. You could also consider purchasing an alarm. These can be purchased for as little as £10 from local DIY stores.
(Copied from The Histon Sector Police Newsletter)

FORTHCOMING MEETINGS

Monday 28th January 2002 7.30pm, Memorial Hall
Monday 25th February 2002 7.30pm, Memorial Hall
Monday 25th March 2002 7.30pm, Village College*

• See notices nearer the time to confirm the move to the Village College.

As the New Year starts we are about to consult on the annual increase in council tax. As usual the government announces at the end of November how much it is giving each authority in what is called the Standard Spending Assessment (SSA) - in other words, what it thinks each authority needs to run individual services.

As usual, Cambridgeshire received the lowest SSA of any shire county and yes, I have made this statement every year for the past four years. I know someone has to be bottom, but I still fail to understand why it is always us. The council's budget comes from three sources - from government in the form of direct grant, via the uniform business rate and from council tax. Council tax contributes only about a third of the total budget. The effect of this is that if we want to spend more in a particular area (for example services to the elderly) than the government thinks we need, then all the additional expenditure has to come from council tax.

In Cambridgeshire we have two particular problems which means that the rise in council tax is likely to be high. First, is that we continue to be the fastest growing county in the country. The population is continuing to grow (and that of the over 80 age group is growing at three times the national average) and therefore the demands on the services we provide is growing. But we only get back from this growing population in council tax one third of the cost of providing the services which they need and the government's calculations do not take this into account. Our second problem is inflation. When the government produces its monthly inflation figures it is based on a basket of goods which we can buy in the shops. What it doesn't include is items such as the cost of tarmac, or subsidizing bus services, or salaries for teachers and home care assistants, all of which are well above the standard inflation figures. Inflation for highway maintenance is currently running at somewhere near 10% per annum so in order to be able to continue to provide the same level of service our council tax has to rise too. That is why we are suggesting a rise in council tax of 9.3%. It sounds very high, and indeed, for those on fixed incomes based on the government's inflation figures it is very high. But our only other option is to cut services and this would inevitably mean cutting services to those most in need. Community transport schemes, for example, can be a lifeline to those communities where there is no bus service; providing home care assistants for the elderly can be a vital way of helping them maintain their independence; if we cannot recruit teachers then our education system will suffer - the list is endless. What we are seeking to achieve in the proposed increase is a balance between maintaining services and keeping the level of the increase to an absolute minimum - and if that sounds familiar, it is because I made similar comments last year (and probably the year before if I checked back far enough).

The only crumb of comfort I can offer is that we are still almost at the bottom of league for the level of council tax and that most other authorities are considering similar if not greater increases in their council tax. I will leave you with one other thought - if we received the same level of funding as Norfolk, we would be able to maintain our current level of expenditure AND reduce the council tax by a considerable amount!

I am always available for consultation, either in person or by phone, letter or e-mail. I can be reached at the new address or telephone number below.

Shona Johnstone
Highfield
5 Lowburyholme Road
Over
CB4 5NP
Tel: 01954 230565
e-mail: shona.johnstone@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

Parish Council Members