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Please be aware pregnant sheep are grazing in the Meadow adjacent to the Croft Close set aside. We have been notified of two instances where out of control dogs have attacked the sheep.
It is important when walking through the set aside, for dogs to be kept under control and on a lead.
We have received the following update from South Cambridgeshire District Council:
Green bin collections will resume from this Wednesday, 12 January, and we are asking residents to put their green bins out on their scheduled collection day. We’re also reminding people to check the existing (festive) schedule (as printed in South Cambs Magazine and available on the website), because collection days are not yet back into the normal repeat pattern following the bank holidays over Christmas and New Year.
The intention is to empty all green bins in line with the published schedule. However, because there are still several absences and vacancies, any green bins that are missed will not be emptied until the next scheduled collection in February. This is because there are not enough waste crews to return to empty these missed green bins. Any homes that are unfortunately missed will be prioritised for the subsequent collection.
The next green bin collection for Histon and Impington is scheduled on Saturday 22nd January with the blue bin followed by Friday 18th February.
Brookfield Contracting have, once again, kindly offered to help chip our village Christmas Trees this year, in conjunction with the enviro.volunteers. Trees can be left on the triangle of land near Villa Road and on the Green as usual and will be chipped on the following date:
Saturday 8th January 2022 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Trees for chipping MUST be left at either site by 11 a.m. at the latest or they will not be chipped. Please do not leave trees on the sites after this date.
The numbers haven’t changed much locally. 63 new infections in the 7 days to 10 Dec 21 (65 two weeks previously) and 522 per 100,000 people (previously 539) but we know that the national figure went to the highest level reported, 78,610 new daily cases, earlier this week. Thank you very much Omicron.
We know that vaccinations are a part of fighting this surge and the figures reported on 14 Dec 21 say that only 76.2% of people in Histon & Impington have had two doses and just 38% have had a booster. The national numbers are 81.5% and 43% respectively so we could do better. Please sign up and get your jabs now.
We are now on plan B which means face coverings in all public indoor settings, working from home (if possible) and Covid passports for large events.
The press conference on Wednesday was sobering and it was down to Professor Whitty to spell it out in simple but stark terms how he thinks we should approach Xmas. Don’t ‘cancel Xmas’ but scale back the events. Meet fewer people and avoid larger gatherings, especially indoor ones.
We are fortunate in Histon & Impington. There is good compliance when it comes to using face coverings and by and large social distancing is observed. Our cafes and restaurants have outside facilities and several continue to practice the Covid measures of early in the year. They can be visited with confidence.
The Covid alert level was increased to 4 at the beginning of the week. Nobody knows when it is likely to be go down again so until then we’ve got to be patient, look after our fellow people and follow the rules: get a jab, wear a face covering and avoid unnecessary contacts.
The guidance from the NHS is unchanged.
Finally: if you are, or you know somebody who is, having difficulty with life because of Covid please contact your street co-ordinator or call the HICOVID19 helpline on 01223 320420.
Click here for a pdf of this digest.
A public meeting was held on 1st December to discuss the consultation on the Local Plan. Speakers included all our District Councillors – Pippa Heylings, Steve Hunt and Martin Cahn, and Parish Councillor Geoff Moore, with Denis Payne chairing the meeting.
Pippa Heylings covered the current state of the plan – where the “First Proposals” have been made. What is unique about the plan, though, is the vast amount of background research that has been done – and is available. The plan covers Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire.
The challenges the plan has to meet include the ever changing Government guidance, but also Government regulations that do not go far enough, for example, on building standards. Furthermore, the area suffers from a limited water supply – and one that cannot be fixed simply or quickly.
The plans have been drawn up taking into account the major effect travel has on CO2 generation so concentrating development on established settlements, and where major planning applications have already been permitted (Cambridge, Cambourne, Waterbeach). As a result, out of over 900 submissions of sites as having development potential, less than 20 have currently been accepted, and none of those in and around Histon & Impington.
A number of slide packs are available online:
The Parish Council supports the decision regarding housing development around the village, given the primary care (GP) bottleneck, for which there appears to be no solution, and the recently adopted Neighbourhood Plan.
However, the proposal for Cambridge Science Park North is potentially the most significant for the village since jam factory 1873 and IVC 1939 and could bring benefits in a number of areas, as well as potential issues as well. Whilst not endorsing the proposal, the Council would not wish to see it ruled out of the Local Plan at this stage.
There was a wide ranging discussion – covering drainage, wildlife, and a range of issues raised by members of the public.
The meeting closed with District and Parish Councillors asking everyone to get involved with the Local Plan process via the planner’s quick questionnaire
It seems to have been a long time since we published our last Covid digest but it was only a little over 3 months ago. At that time we were bemoaning a high 7-day number of new infections, 40-50 were being recorded in August, and our infection rate was 364 per one hundred thousand. The 7-day number is now at 65 and the rate is at 539. This compares with 590 for South Cambridgeshire, 526 for Cambridgeshire and 439 for England.
And now we’ve got the omicron variant just when we seemed to be working our way through the latest surge in delta cases.
We understand that one of the reasons behind our high numbers is a low rate of vaccination and that hasn’t changed since the summer. Please, if you haven’t been vaccinated yet sign up and get it done. Getting vaccinated and behaving carefully (see below) are the two things that we, as individuals, can do to make a difference.
The good news though is that the Addenbrookes numbers are down and it is not experiencing a crisis of demand for Covid treatment being more than it can deliver.
There are new laws: we must wear face-coverings in retail settings and on public transport. And there’s updated guidance from the NHS:
It’s probably fair to say that locally we have relaxed a little. Although many people continue to wear face-coverings and to avoid close contact it’s not as many as it was. Given what’s now happening it’s perhaps best that we exercise a little more caution in the forthcoming weeks. We won’t on our own affect any national decisions of course but we will make our neighbours and others more confident that we are all doing our bit to minimise the spread of infection locally. And we will show respect to our local retailers who are doing their best to comply with the law.
Our advice therefore is that we follow the NHS guidelines above but that we also test regularly and self-isolate if we test positive. And if you have not been vaccinated, or you’ve had your first two jabs but not yet had your booster, sign up now and get it done. Get vaccinated now!
If you need or someone you know needs help our local Covid helpline number is 01223 320420.
Click here for a pdf of this digest.
We have received the attached information regarding new tickets and fare zones for Stagecoach that will come into affect from January 2022. The changes mean that most people should pay the same or less for their tickets.
You may notice a small change to this years Christmas light display on the Village Green. Unfortunately, the existing mulitiude of little lights in the big tree near the Play Area failed their final safety check just before the switch on. We think the squirrels have nibbled the wiring over time.
We will be replacing these lights with uplighters for this year with the hope to have these back up and twinkling even brighter for next year!
Storm Arwen has been named and is forecast to bring a period of very strong winds and cold weather to the UK this weekend.
The strong winds may cause some tree damage in the villages, please be aware of possible dangers walking beside wooded areas when it is windy. There maybe a risk of falling dead wood and in extreme cases trees either fracturing or becoming uprooted.
Flagship Homes is launching a public consultation ahead of submitting an outline planning application for a development on land off Milton Road, Impington. The proposals are for 50 new homes, 25 of which will be affordable, and a 4.8ha Community Park
Upcoming Events:
Webinar – Monday 8th November 6pm – 7pm details how to sign up can be found at www.miltonroadimpington.com or using the QR code here
Drop In Session -Tuesday 9th November at the Recreation Centre, New Road, Impington – 3.30pm – 7.30pm
More information on the proposal and how to respond to the consultation are avaiable to view at www.miltonroadimpington.com or by clicking here
