November 2023

4 Buckden Roundabout November 2023 Buckden Parish Council Buckden Parish Council News... Council Website For more information, please visit the Buckden Parish Council (BPC) website at www.buckdenpc.org.uk. To automatically find out what is going on subscribe to our Newsletter service using your email address. Buckden to Brampton Cycleway We are pleased to report that construction works were com- pleted by the end of September. The footway is fully open, and the street lighting, and most important of all the con- trolled crossing, are installed and working. Further works will be carried out at a future date including the planting of re- placement trees. Highways reported that overall the scheme went smoothly and the team had been well supported by the Garage, resi- dents and Golf club who, whilst inconvenienced, had been extremely accommodating. Most of the funds to pay for the scheme came from Active Travel England. BPC applied for and received funds from the HDC strategic community infrastructure levy and Buckden and Brampton Parish Councils both provided funds. BPC would like to thank Daniel Crawshaw from Cambridge- shire County Council, for overseeing the works and keeping us regularly informed of progress and ex Councillors Amy Bur- bidge and Elaine Scott who were instrumental in kick starting the whole scheme. ACT Multi Academy Trust Buckden Church of England Primary Academy is an important and vibrant party of our community. It has been judged out- standing by Ofsted and has for several years shared its excel- lent practice with other schools in the area. It was established in 2011 as a stand - alone academy. Government Policy has changed over the last couple of years and there is a requirement for schools to become part of mul- ti academy trusts (MATs) where several schools join together under the leadership of a single trustee body which oversees and manages each school ’ s finances, employees, and curricu- lum. ensuring consistent standards are met across all mem- ber schools. The Governors and leadership team of Buckden School agreed that Buckden Primary Academy should consider setting up their own MAT to enable it to retain autonomy over its future development and to enable it to share its expertise with other schools. Working with the Diocese of Ely, Buckden was awarded MAT status, and the ACT Multi - Academy Trust was established. Currently the trust has two schools, Buckden and Great Wil- braham. More schools hope to join the Trust in the near fu- ture. Buckden School will continue as before, with just a few changes such as, Ms Heather becoming the Headteacher of Buckden School and Ms Anderson the CEO of ACT Multi - Academy Trust. Cllr Underwood who has been a community Governor on the Governing Body, will become a Trustee of the MAT with responsibil- ity for special educational needs. Tommy Silhouettes in Buckden A Buckden resident, Simon Leggate, asked BPC to consider installing Tommy Silhouettes in the village as a way of remem- bering those who have died in conflicts past and present. BPC agreed to the purchase of three silhouettes, a pair of Tom- mies and a Woman at War. They will be located on the Vil- lage Green where they will be most visible, and close to the school. If in future more silhouettes are purchased these can be sited at some of the other suggested sites which might include the war memorial. The Council has discussed the pur- chase with British Legion representatives and there is addi- tional information from them on page 8. Christmas Lights A road closure has now been agreed for the Christmas Lights event in the High Street on Sunday 26 th November. The cele- brations are being managed by the Community Events Team. Buckden Parish Council ’ s Policy for Solar Panels Neither the Huntingdonshire District Local Plan nor the Buck- den Neighbourhood Development Plan make specific refer- ence to Solar Panels. BPC has therefore developed a Policy to guide its response to future Planning Applications. Our concerns include the need for any installation to have a minimal impact on the environment, not be overly intrusive and not be adjacent to or immediately visible to residential properties unless on existing roofs. We feel that they should be on existing buildings and brownfield sites rather than greenfield sites, and we would strongly oppose any applica- tion for them on agricultural land of grade 3 or better. We also wish to see a district strategy for renewable energy which has a mixture of wind, hydro and solar power and would like to see the installation of solar panels on roofs of new proper- ties to be made a planning condition. Councillors At the September meeting Anne Howell - Jones was appointed as Chair and Caroline Underwood as Vice Chair of the Council. Council Meetings The next Council meeting will be at 7.00 pm on Tuesday 14 th November. The meeting will include a 15 - minute open forum. If you want to speak at the meeting, please let us know what you want to say, by contacting the Parish Clerk. You will get a three - minute slot. All of the papers and reports for Council Meetings are available on the Thursday before meetings on Council website www.buckdenpc.org.uk .This provides the opportunity to see the agenda, reports of work carried out by the Council as well as reports from our County and District Councillors. Any questions or comments on this report should be addressed to the Parish Clerk at: Buckden Parish Council, Buckden Village Hall, Burberry Rd, Buckden, PE19 5UY. Telephone 01480 819407 Email: clerk@buckdenpc.org.uk.