January 2024

5 Buckden Roundabout January 2024 From your District Councillor Dear Residents, As we turn the page to welcome 2024, my sincere hope is that it unfolds as a year of renewed hope, growth, and prosperity. Let's look forward to a brighter future, filled with opportunities for personal and professional success. Wishing you and your loved ones a festive holiday season and a Happy New Year filled with positivity, good health, and the fulfilment of your aspirations. Cheers to new beginnings and a year that brings villagers together in both spirit and accom- plishment. EARLY BIRD SIGN - UP DISCOUNT FROM DECEMBER TO 31 st JANUARY The new garden waste subscription service will begin on 1st April 2024. The Standard Subscription Price is £57.50 for one garden waste bin to be collected for the whole year, and £30 for any additional bin up to four bins. Residents will be able to sign up for the garden waste subscrip- tion service in December 2023 and January 2024 and take ad- vantage of the Early Bird Discount, with plenty of time for April 2024, when the subscription service comes into effect. Details below: Early Bird Discount from December to 31 st January HDC will be offering a reduced price of £50 for your first bin (additional bins remain at £30 each). If you choose to pay for the service by: Direct Debit Payments: the reduced price of £50 per year will be locked in for 3 years. One Card Payment: the reduced price of £50 will be for the first year only, followed by £57.50 next year. You can find out more information about the forthcoming Gar- den Waste Subscription Service, as well as sign up to catch the Early Bird on the council ’ s website: https://www.huntingdonshire.gov.uk/bins - waste/garden - waste - subscription - service Those who subscribe to the fortnightly service will receive a sticker to put on their bin and collection crews will have devic- es to check the collection service has been paid for. Only bins displaying the sticker will be emptied. It's an entirely optional service and this is not a compulsory charge, but from April HDC ’ s garden waste collection will only be available to residents that register and subscribe. If you do not have a garden or do not want to pay for the collections, you do not need to do anything. For those who choose not to join the subscription service can dispose of their garden waste by taking it to their nearest Cam- bridgeshire County Council Household Waste Recycling Centre or compost at home instead. Residents can also purchase discounted compost bins via the council ’ s website: https://www.huntingdonshire.gov.uk/bins - waste/manage - your - bin - collections/additional - garden - waste - bin - and - composting/ COUNCIL TACKLES ANTI - SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR IN HUNTINGDON Huntingdonshire District Council (HDC) has collaborated with BID Huntingdon First and Huntingdonshire Business Against Crime (HBAC) to tackle anti - social behaviour in Huntingdon by installing a new deployable camera. This collaboration signifies a collective initiative to enhance the overall safeguarding of Huntingdon, particularly of the Com- memorative Hall and the surrounding murals. The implementa- tion of deployable cameras, along with related endeavours, marks a progression in establishing a community space that is both safer and more secure. The new camera is connected to the CCTV Shared Service Mon- itoring Centre. This shared service monitors cameras across Cambridgeshire, 24/7 from a central shared control room based in Huntingdon. This is not a particularly well - known ser- vice provided by HDC, but can be used to protect other com- munities and businesses outside of Huntingdon if there is a need. Happy New Year, Martin Martin Hassall District Councillor for Buckden, Diddington and Southoe Executive Councillor for Corporate & Shared Services - Phone: 07480 798 342 Email: martin.hassall@huntingdonshire.gov.uk The Heron Family The Heron is probably one of the easiest of UK birds to identify with its long legs and S - shaped neck, standing patiently on the water ’ s edge or flying languidly along a river, its neck folded double and broad wings barely flapping. This most ancient of birds (fossil records indicate its possible presence some 34 million years ago) has colonised the world but has only 72 recognised species. Only absent from desert areas and the coldest regions of the planet, the family also includes Bitterns and Egrets. Classification of individual species has been, and still is, difficult but the distinctive neck, long, pointed bill and long legs define the family. Plumage can range from white to flecked dark brown to many vibrant colours, particularly in the tropical species. This diversity can also apply to the size of the bird, with the Goli- ath Heron standing 1.5m tall whereas the Dwarf Bittern is no bigger than Wood Pigeon. Wholly carnivorous most species favour wetlands, rivers, streams and coastal areas as hunting grounds. Food is limited to the size of animal that the bird can swallow whole, but all is grist to the mill with insects, fish, amphibians and reptiles, small mammals and young and even adult birds being on the menu. Various tactics are (Continued on page 8) Grey heron