Central Beds Budget

Central beds set its budget tonight. I attended.


Cut in spending £20 million
Cut in staffing (before the end of March) 66
Cut in pay for staff (over £21,000) 2%
Cut in allowances for councillors - two per cent
Council tax frozen

Lodge Road

Carried out a site visit this morning following reports about damage and nuisance from lorries. The place is very muddy. I had assumed that Lodge Road would be widened before trucks started going  up and down it from the site but that appears not to be the case. 

Letter to Central Beds and Bedford Borough

Letter sent jointly from the Parish Council and Cranfield University to Central Beds and Bedford Borough about Sunday buses. Central Beds budget meeting is Thursday night.

Noticeboard

We are planning new/replacement notice boards. The clerk has been checking out the market and most come in at about £800.  Big fat ouch!!

Village directory

Parish Council's Village Directory with last minute fiddly corrections to telephone numbers finally passed for press. It will go out with Cranfield Express in April.

Street names

Street names for Home Farm being recommended by the Parish Council.


Thillans

Arpins Pightle

Ramsey Abbey Close or Road

Crow Close

Home Close or Road (close to the Home Farmhouse itself)

Does the village have an opinion?

Cranfield buses

I'm trying to find out about the fate of the Sunday (V2) Bedford to Cranfield service jointly supported by Central Beds (along with Bedford Borough). It was earmarked for the axe last December and things still look bleak. 

CBC identified a saving of  £9,000 and a report commented: “Moderate impact on Cranfield Uni, Cranfield, the Sheltons and Marston Moretaine.”

Last week Central Beds sent  a notice stating: “Following recent reports in the local and national press about changes to bus services, we thought that it would be beneficial for you to receive a breakdown of all the services within Central Bedfordshire that will be affected. These changes were agreed as part of a savings package that was discussed at the 7 December Executive meeting.

The current list did not include the V2. But a council officer  couldn't enlighten me and was taking further advice. And a source at Bedford Borough said the service would continue for the immediate future after 28 March.

Cranfield Parish Council and Cranfield University are drafting a joint letter appealing to both councils to keep the service going. At the same time they are pledging to work with councils and bus service providers to find innovative ways of plugging the growing public transport gaps in the area.

Evening services from Milton Keynes are also under threat. In addition it is reported that those on free passes such as older people will not be able to travel before 10.30

Home Farm community building

After loads of frustration that the community building had to fit into a badminton court template there has been some loosening of the strait jacket.  A Central Beds planning officer came to the meeting on Wednesday to discuss  having  another look at the design. Pigs were spotted taking off over Marston Thrift but it was all true.


It would appear that Persimmon have requested that  the ‘trigger’ (number of houses) at which construction of the community building starts, could be moved back. This would allow time to think again about  the design  and a further consultation with the village. The building does not have to be specifically sports focused we have been told. In the meantime, Persimmon will seek permission for the building as it currently has been designed as  a fall back if discussions on another design don't bear fruit.


My own opinion - which I think is pretty common - is that we need a building like a modern family car that can be opened up or folded down into 72 different configurations - everything from little nooks for private meetings and committees to whole hall meetings and play and recreation areas. We also need standard height ceilings as opposed to badminton hall which are easier to keep warm. 


I am also pressing for excellent 'Breeam' standards for environmental quality - this would include PV panels (photovoltaic - generating and selling electricity), solar thermal (heating water) and rain water harvest (used in the toilets). 

Quiet Lane

After years of cajoling, arguments about cost and responsibility and, to be absolutely blunt, some foot dragging in the old Beds County Council there is a small 'Quiet Lane' sign at the junction of Wood End Road and Lodge Road and at the end of the houses near Villa Park. I can't say how many hours of meetings and megabytes of emails went into having those two signs erected. But believe me it was a lot. At one time Amey said it would cost £10,000.

The funny thing is the breach in the hedge which Persimmon has driven into Home Farm is within the quiet lane area. So how is that compatible with earth movers, cement lorries and loads of bricks going in an out? 'Not' is the answer I think.

Council meeting Wednesday 16 February

Full council meetings (see this Wednesday's agenda)  can be pretty routine but interested parishioners should note two items below. First a Central Beds Planning officer will be coming  at 7 pm to talk about the design for the community building. Secondly we have the discussion about street names for Home Farm. 

7.00pm. Hanna Pattinson (CBC Planning) to discuss options relating to the design of the community building.

8.00pm,  MEETING OF THE FULL PARISH COUNCIL

1.     TO RECEIVE APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE:  CB/PCllrs. D Allan, Peter Meadows, Jo Stannage

2.     TO RECEIVE DECLARATIONS OF PERSONAL AND/OR PREJUDICIAL INTERESTS IN ANY MATTER

3.     TO CONFIRM THE MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING[S] [copy herewith]

4.     CLERKS REPORT

5.     Health & Safety

6.     REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES

6.1.  General Purposes Committee

6.2.  Burial Grounds Committee

6.3.  Environment Committee

6.4.  Planning Committee

6.4.1.         Consideration of General Planning Matters

6.4.2.         Street naming – Home Farm

7.     CORRESPONDENCE

8.     FINANCIAL MATTERS AND ACCOUNTS FOR PAYMENT

9.     REPORTS FROM CENTRAL BEDS COUNCILLORS (and any other representative)

10.  HIGHWAY MATTERS

A result?

The power of the Parish Council clerk! She has contacted the fly posters who have  promised not to do it again! With four hot food takeaways in Cranfield (some used by this blogger!)  the war on obesity in the village is not for the faint hearted. But there are limits. 

Fly posting

I have just removed adverts for a health and fitness company tacked onto telephone poles on Mill Road. Not the first time this company has stuck stuff all over the village and then abandoned it. A local sports club has also been guilty in the past  but they have not been offending lately. I have asked the PC clerk to contact and request the health company not to treat our streets as sort of linear billboards. There is Cranfield Express if they want to do legit advertising. 

Wind strength

Cranfield battered for the last 24 hours by continuous high winds. Not gale force but non-stop with fence panels banging all through the night. Residents in Lodge Road, I suspect in the brunt of it. 

Cemetery works

I visited as Malcolm Sargent was putting up the first memorial plaques in the cemetery. The idea is that people who have had an association with the village and died and who are buried elsewhere can have their links commemorated in this way. Its a nice development.

Malcolm is also sorting out the left hand gate. The retaining rod won't go down far enough making it hard to padlock when it is opened for a hearse to enter.

Street names

We didn't get round to these last night. Coming up for decision on 16 February at full council. Some parishioners would like to see RAF WWII planes commemorated. Spitfire is always popular but I'm not sure if someone wants to live in Mosquito Gardens or Hurricane Avenue.

Bus service cuts

In Cranfield we lost our evening buses two years ago and now we are threatened with loss of our Sunday buses - to save £9000.  Services to Milton Keynes are also under threat. See below.

From the BBC

More than two-thirds of councils in England are planning major cuts to their bus budgets, it is claimed.

According to the Campaign for Better Transport, which is launching the Save our Buses campaign, some councils intend to end all subsidised services. The Local Government Association also warned many bus routes would disappear as a result of government cutbacks.

But the government said nearly 80% of services outside London were commercially run and so not affected. As part of the Save our Buses campaign, data was collected from every local authority in England. It found 13 county councils were planning cutbacks of more than £1m, including Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Devon.Many rural, hospital, evening and weekend bus services were at risk.

Low incomes

The Local Government Association said bus routes would disappear as a result of government cuts to council budgets, and warned changes to the way concessionary travel is funded would also see services scaled back.

County councils will take over responsibility this year for funding concessionary travel.

This will mean a cut in funding earmarked for other services, and concessionary travel will be scaled back to off-peak hours in order for county councils to be able to meet their statutory duty, the LGA added.

Campaigners warn many rural, hospital, evening and weekend bus services are now under threat

Stephen Joseph, Campaign for Better Transport's chief executive, said the cuts to bus services would hit the poorest and most vulnerable hardest.

"We believe any short-term savings will be outweighed by the long-term cost of a vastly depleted bus network.

"These unprecedented cuts will be especially disastrous for people on low incomes and could effectively mean the death of rural bus services.

"Politicians must consider the social, economic and environmental consequences of failing to protect our bus services."

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "If the government really wants people to get off welfare and into work they are going to need transport for it."

Home Farm and Denison

The Parish Council agreed tonight (subject to full council ratification) to write to Persimmon asking for their plans (in writing) if they they do not buy the Denison Land on Home Farm (in red see above).  The Community Hall is due to go on the Denison land. They reported to us that Denison are not selling - but I understand they say they will still buy the land needed for the community hall. We need some hard facts about what happens next.

Please note 1.3 above: "The site is in three separate ownerships. It is therefore crucial to plan for the development in a comprehensive way."

Exactly.

Home Farm street names

Some interesting ideas for names for the new streets from parishioner Margaret Rooney: Thanks Margaret

Summary of suggested street names for the Home Farm Development

Five new streets need to be named.

Recommendations are:

• Bullen
• Bradshaw
• The Bury
• Thillians
• Ramsey Abbey

Bullen

Bullen Road, Close or Way. The name of the family living at Home Farm, Cranfield Court, in the 1911 census – a 100 anniversary commemoration of Home Farm. William Bullen, a farmer, his wife and one daughter.

Bradshaw

Bradshaw Road, Close or Way. The name of the family living at Bury Farm, (also known as The Bury or Home farm), in the 1881 census. Benjamin Bradshaw, a farmer, his wife, six children and a servant.

Bury

Suggest the street is named The Bury. The Bury, in the 1880s, was also known as Bury Farm or Home Farm. A way to commemorate a 19^th century name for the farm.

.

Thillians

One of eight fields in The Bury, in the 1880s, was known as ”Thillian’s” - pasture. Suggest, for simplicty, that the apostrophe is dropped. A charming, simple name. Similar single names appear elsewhere in the village – Simdims, Lordsmead, Lincroft.

Ramsey Abbey

Suggest Ramsey Abbey Close or Road, depending on house layout. Owner of Cranfield for over 500 years from 998 until the dissolution of the monastries in 1536. A good opportunity to mark this significant historical link with Cranfield. Ailwyn’s Acre marks another Ramsey Abbey link, and is on Lodge Road, very close to the Home Farm development..

Further names that could be considered

• Capell
• McFalone
• Corner Piece

Capell

Name of the family at Home Farm, in the 1901 census. Richard Capell, a Farm Bailiff and widower, three children and a boarder, (Louisa Spray, National School Teacher).

McFalone

Name of the family at Farm House, Cranfield Court, in the 1891 census. John McFalone, Farm Bailiff and widower, originally from Roxborough, Scotland. One daughter and a housekeeper.

The family name is not an immediately recognisable one in this part of the UK.

Also, I am assuming “Farm House, Cranfield Court” is Home Farm, as this is a farm bailiff’s house, (Home Farm in 1901 was a farm bailiff’s house). Although there are no references to Home or Bury in the 1891 census, I am not sure we can be 100% certain this is Home Farm - unless someone with better local knowledge can verify.

Corner Piece

Another of the eight fields that formed The Bury in the 1880s. Corner Piece was arable. “Piece” has a charming ring about it..…like Partridge Piece.