March 2024

4 Buckden Roundabout March 2024 Buckden Parish Council Buckden Parish Council News... Council Website For more information, please visit the Buckden Parish Council (BPC) web site at www.buckdenpc.org.uk. To automatically find out what is going on subscribe to our Newsletter service using your email address. Weed Killing on Roads and Paths The County Council Highways and Transport committee have decided to reinstate the use of chemical weed control across the county. An investigation has apparently confirmed that chemical weed control remains the most effective method for weed control as well as being the most financially viable op- tion. The cyclical chemical weed treatment program, which will take place twice a year, will be reinstated in May 2024. Additionally, a one off non - chemical weed removal program will be implemented to cleanse all areas affected by weeds. This program will serve as a deep clean measure prior to the reintroduction of the regular programme. Speeding Survey Update Thank you to all those who completed the survey about speeding. We received more than 100 responses. We learnt that Lucks Lane and Church Street are the areas where people are most concerned about speeding and most respondents favoured MVAS (mobile vehicle activated signs) units over speed humps or other traffic calming measures. We have put a bid into Cambridgeshire County Council for MVAS units in Lucks Lane. It is likely to be some months before we learn the outcome. In the meantime we are continuing to run Speedwatch sessions to gather more data across the village. A couple of points that we should make clear are: • The Parish Council has no powers in relation to in- stalling, maintaining, or policing highways in the vil- lage. What we can do is to gather information about areas of concern and use that information to bid for measures that might help mitigate the issues highlight- ed. These could include more MVAS units, installation of dropped kerbs, more parking restrictions etc. • Some respondents commented that the survey was not well constructed. This is the first time we have tried to do this, if anyone has the expertise to help us improve any further questionnaires, please contact us. • The questionnaire did not mention Perry Road or Mill Road because there are already MVAS units on those roads and the survey was to help decide where to bid for additional units. We will post the full results of the survey on the website. Young Residents ’ Photographic/Art Competition. We are running a competition for young residents who live in Buckden or Diddington. Our villages have 22 signposted foot- paths. Our competition is for either: • a digital photograph • a drawing or painting or other artistic impression of the local countryside as seen from one of the footpaths indicated on the Buckden and Didding- ton Public Rights of Way Map. The winners in each age group will receive a cash prize. Full details are on our web site. Closure of the Fire Station in Kimbolton We have been advised of the potential closure of the Fire Sta- tion in Kimbolton. We have serious concerns about the safety implications of this of this. We will be sending in an objection and attending the relevant meetings. Hedgerow Importance and Management Hedges play a crucial role in supporting wildlife, providing various ecological benefits for both flora and fauna. Please see our full article in next moths ’ s Roundabout. Allotments Group Request In the spirit of recycling and reusing resources, do you have any plywood offcuts (they don ’ t have to be new) in your shed or garage that we could have to make hedgehog houses / bird / bat boxes in our wildflower area at the Silver Street allotments? A minimum of 12 or 18mm (about half inch) would be most suited to the project. We would very much appreciate it and are very happy to collect at a time that best suits you. Please let the parish council know via the clerk@buckdenpc.org.uk Councillors We are delighted to welcome Anita Pancholi as a new Council- lor. Council Meetings The next Council meeting will be at 7.00 pm on Tuesday 12 th March. 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. The Council Planning Committee will also meet if required. Agendas for both meetings are posted on the Parish notice boards no later than the Saturday preceding the meeting. Office opening hours The Clerk operates flexibly between the office and home. If you wish to meet with the Clerk, please call on. 07483 033357. 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.