November 2024

12 Buckden Roundabout November 2024 Village News outlines various options for addressing a series of im- portant issues facing the district. • Land Availability Assessments: An assessment of sites that were submitted to the council that could be suita- ble for development. • Sustainability Appraisals: An analysis of site proposals and options based on their economic, environmental, and social impact. Feedback must be submitted through the consultation portal, Huntingdonshire District Council Consultation Home - Key- stone, to be formally considered in the local plan process. In addition to providing feedback online, there will be opportu- nities to view the documents and speak with the planning team in person at several local events. All events are drop - in between 2pm to 8pm and can be visited locally: • Thursday 10 October, Civic Suite Pathfinder House • Tuesday 15 October, Burleigh Hill Community Centre, Constable Road. St Ives, PE27 3ER • Monday 21 October, Sawtry Womens Institute, Gidding Road, Sawtry, PE28 5TS • Tuesday 22 October, Kimbolton Scout Hut, Thrapston Road, PE28 0HW • Monday 28 October, Love's Farm House, 17 Kester Way, St Neots, PE19 6SL The Local Plan update is a powerful tool for strategic planning, and the consultation process offers a unique opportunity for residents to have their say in how Huntingdonshire will be shaped in the years to come. For more information on how to participate in the Local Plan Engagement 2024, please visit Local Plan | Let's Talk Hunting- donshire (letstalkhuntingdonshire.net) or contact lo- cal.plan@huntingdonshire.gov.uk.Wishing you well, Martin Martin Hassall District Councillor for Buckden, Diddington and Southoe Phone: 07480 798 342 - Email: martin.hassall@huntingdonshire.gov.uk (Continued from page 5) Buckden Learning Group Update As I write in early October I am looking at the Autumn term and reporting on a mix of activities. On September 24th we celebrated our fifth birthday as an in- dependent group. Looking back to the summer of 2019 there was consternation in Cambridgeshire as the grant funding for adult education was changed and there was nothing available for the WEA (under whose auspices we then operated). With a choice of higher fees or closing down we found a third way – independence! With some trepidation we embarked on setting up the current organisation and we haven ’ t looked back since. In retrospect, the hardest parts were choosing a name, and then later picking a logo. For those that may be wondering, our logo is based on the medieval labyrinth drawn on the floor of Chartres Cathedral and represents our educational journey through life. We had a bit of a ‘ wobble ’ when COVID came along in 2020 part way through our second term. We could so easily have given up at that point; however, most of us learnt to use Zoom and we set up an email system to maintain con- tact with our growing list of members. Our Summer Zoom ses- sions now allow us to access an ever growing list of excellent distant tutors. On September 7th, inspired by a previous course about the history of Architecture, a small group of our members visited Flag Fen for a guided tour of the site. An unexpected element of the tour was the ever - growing flock of free ranging Soay sheep on the site – a rare breed that moults and needs no shearing. They would appear from nowhere to cross our path. The weather was kind to us that day, and the sun appeared while we lunched on the veranda chatting about what we had seen. Also in September we were re - visited on Zoom for two weeks by a British tutor now based in Detroit. The subject this time was ‘ US Politics: An Election Year Introduction ’. Our morning sessions meant a very early start for the tutor, with 2 alarm clocks and a bottomless coffee pot! It also meant longer than usual sessions for us to accommodate the material. This short course took us back to the early days of an independent Amer- ica and explained how those early experiences shaped the cur- rent American electoral system that seems so incomprehensi- ble to us today. We are now partway through a short course on ‘ The French Revolution ’. This has been surprisingly popular with all places allocated within 24 hours; a waiting list was created and some people were disappointed. For this we are back in the class- room with a tutor travelling to Buckden from Cambridge (using the 905 bus to St Neots). Interestingly the course has gone back before ‘ the main event ’ to set the context. Thus, we are seeing a number of essentially reasonable changes occurring within France; however, with our modern eye we can see where each step is leading … Enrolment is now underway for our next course which starts in November. This is another 5 week course entitled ‘ Japanese History and Culture: A Deeper Dive ’ (see advert for details). This follows on from a course provided in 2021. A full programme has now been planned through to Easter 2026. As usual, our main courses will continue to be inter- spersed with some additional events. Note that pre - registration for our courses is essential to avoid disappointment.