There was a Parish Council meeting on 27th October. Due to resignations the Parish Council had only six councillors of whom four were in attendance. However there were four applicants wishing to be co-opted on to the Parish Council in place of Ian Storr and Betty Grimes who had resigned. It is a sad fact that we cannot co-opt every willing volunteer who puts their name forward and the Council voted to co-opt Tony Gill and Pauline Joslin. Tony and Pauline had served previously on the Parish Council and had continued to assist the Council with matters such as planning, footpaths and trees where they had expertise. Tony and Pauline were welcomed on to the Council and the other two candidates, Tom Fletcher and Tim Tack, were thanked for offering their services to the Council. There will soon be another opportunity for Tom, Tim or others to join the Parish Council following the recent resignation of Jim Coe. During the time Jim was on the Council he was always willing to offer his help. He inspected the main play area each month and helped set up the group of residents who are looking to raise funds for better play equipment in the village. Many of you will remember the survey he helped organise. He also helped co-ordinate the sports clubs regarding the recreation field maintenance. Village residents can call for an election to fill the vacancy caused by Jim’s resignation. Details are shown on the village website and the village noticeboard but the period for calling such an election ends on or around 12th November. If no election is called for by residents then the Parish Council will ask for permission to fill the vacancy by co-option. The implications are clear. If residents in the village want a direct say in who fills the vacancy they need to call for an election to be held.
The Parish Council has approved a planning application by St Mary’s Church for a new Church Community Hall. This has gone to the District Council who have also approved the application subject to some improvements to the access road from Main Street. This requires use of a small area of land owned by the Parish Council and the Council considered what was required of them and Chivers Farm in order for this condition to be met.
The councillors confirmed their support for the Village Plan Group and agreed that £1,000 from the special project fund would be made available to help this project get started.
Hardwick owns a speed camera which can be used by trained volunteers to monitor speeding through the village. However there are only two trained volunteers at present and we need a minimum of three. If anyone is interested in being trained for this role please contact our Parish Clerk on hardwickpc@lgs-services.co.uk .
District Councillor Grenville Chamberlain gave a report on the significant progress that has been made in getting the eyesore which is the fire damaged building on the corner of St Neots Road and Cambridge Road sorted out.
The Greater Cambridge City Deal consultation on improved bus services and cycleways was noted. It is understood that all houses in the village have received a copy of the consultation documents and residents are encouraged to make their views known. Fortunately all options, other than doing nothing, will be a direct benefit to Hardwick but we can have a say in which option we prefer. If residents want to know more an exhibition is being held in Hardwick at the Community Primary School on Tuesday 3rd November from 5:00pm to 8:00pm.
The results of the St Neots Road development survey results were reported to the Parish Council and they will help the Parish Council when it has to comment on the planning application when it is made.
Thank you for all your feedback and comments about Hardwick and its issues.
