Recent Updates

Recreation facilities survey deadline extended to last day in January

Comberton Parish Council are running an online survey about the recreation facilities that the village should plan to have in the future.

The Parish Council is extending the deadline to submit a response to the Recreation Facilities Survey to 31st January 2023. The more responses we receive, the stronger our applications for funding will be. Note that we accept one response per resident. Groups are invited to email a letter to the clerk ( @ ). If you have any questions, or if you would like to help, please contact the clerk. Many thanks

The online survey is here , it closes on 31st January 2023.

CPC needs more responses from the old age groups, and teenagers to reflect better our village demographics!!

Village Pond looking much better

As of late November 2022 our Village Pond has recovered well
as the ground water level has risen through the gravel beds
(click image  for bigger picture)

 

Below is what it looked like ten years ago, before many of the invasive plants were ‘donated’.

People hope to see a floating island added to act as a sanctuary for breeding moorhens etc

Pictures of the works were added as the project evolved – last updated 24th November 2022

pondwork1

Image 1 of 27

pond

 

Two pictures show that the coir matting laid over the earthworks up’hill’ of the boundary have now been covered and some plants are already growing up through it !

The outfall from the field drain hasn’t yet shown any flow in the recent days of rain but the one from the Green End gulley has, but unfortunately has washed some of the seeds away. I have added a  splash area of stones to disperse it a bite, hopefully.

The Ducks have returned for their daily bath at 7am (I am told) and now the planting is greening after the arid summer…

Planting for Coir Rolls

AGA’s native wetland plants are selected for their adaptation to varied physical conditions and also provide excellent cover for invertebrates, fish and other animals. All the rolls are planted at their Merton Hall Ponds nursery using mature bare roots (MBR).

They plant the coir rolls with 6 plants per metre – a mix of four from:

❃ Norfolk reed (Phragmites australis)
❃ Reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea)
❃ Reed sweetgrass (Glyceria maxima)
❃ Yellow Flag (Iris pseudacorus)
❃ Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)
❃ Greater pond sedge (Carex riparia)
❃ Lesser pond sedge (Carex acutiformis)
❃ Soft rush (Juncus effusus)

The construction looks like this… 

AGA will return in late autumn or the spring to plant further plants in better conditions than this summer !


PLEASE Do NOT put ANY plants or fish into the pond !

Re-introduction of appropriate  plants is being done slowly and systematically  by CPC’s Pond Working Group
to encourage bio-diversity and to stop non-native and invasive species causing the pond to revert to its poor state in 2021.


Work  on the village pond started  on Monday 25th July and was expected to last three weeks. During that timeframe the area around the village pond was inaccessible, protected by  fencing. Residents should take care around the site, particularly when contractor vehicles are moving around the site. They will be removing the island, dredging the silt, deepening the pond, removing the plants,  repairing the brick work and then adding plants at the end of the project. It is not being re-lined.

This work has been funded by a £10k grant from the The National Lottery Community Fund (championed by Claire Coulson and the CPC Pond Working Group) and two pre-allocated budget amounts from last years and this years CPC budgets (i.e. from residents precept).

The Case for Cambridge released – March 2024

The government has released their vision of Greater Cambridge by 2050

See Government Paper here

A couple of salient points…

WATER

Our first priority is water scarcity, which is holding back development and risks causing environmental harm. It is vital that the city has the water supply it needs to support long-term growth, including a new reservoir in the Fens and a new pipeline to transfer water from nearby Grafham Water. We are also making a one-off intervention to support growth in the shorter term by delivering water savings through improved water efficiency of appliances in existing buildings that can offset new homes and commercial space

TRANSPORT

The government envisages a transport system made up of several elements, which may range from improved walking and cycling routes to mass transit system options, such as trams and light rail. To support this long-term ambition and the immediate transport requirements of Greater Cambridge, the government will:

  •  Deliver East West Rail, radically improving connectivity to other innovation and economic centres in Bedford, Milton Keynes and Oxford, and making sure we bring the full benefits ofthis new line to the city of Cambridge.

  • Ensure that the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, the world-leading life sciences cluster in the south of the city, has the right public transport links by providing £7.2 million to progress connectivity schemes. We will ensure that any scheme is connected into the city’s future transport network, including the new station at the campus, currently in development,that will improve connections into south Cambridge.

One can note comments from the newish Cambridge Delivery Group (CDG), chaired by Peter Freeman (Chair, Homes England), to drive forward the vision for Cambridge in collaboration with local partners. 

There are a number of early opportunities identified by local partners that help to realise Cambridge’s long-term potential. The CDG is actively supporting the local area to unlock and accelerate the delivery of planned growth at key strategic sites, including the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Cambridge East (Marshall’s Airport) and North East Cambridge.

..

These opportunities, alongside the government’s measures to address water scarcity, aim to accelerate the local area’s existing plans in the near-term.