Agenda item

The Civic Affairs Committee AGREED with the establishment of an independent Northstowe Parish Council with the aim of it commencing in April 2017, but that this be reviewed in June 2016.

The Civic Affairs Committee considered a report which provided an update on the Longstanton, Oakington and Westwick and Northstowe Boundary Review.

It was noted that officers had completed the public events reported at the previous meeting of the Committee on 5 December 2013.  As well as the public events and meetings with residents of Rampton Drift, officers had also visited Parish Council meetings of Longstanton and Oakington and Westwick to continue discussions in relation to any boundary changes. 

Mrs Gill Ashby, Chairman of Longstanton Parish Council, was in attendance and clarified that there was a general lack of appetite from local residents to become Parish Councillors for Northstowe at this stage, although there had been some interest in establishing an informal working group.

(Councillor Roger Hall attended the meeting at this stage of proceedings)

Councillor Simon Edwards reminded the Committee that it would probably be 30 years until development moved down to the Oakington area and the Parish Council therefore felt that there was no reason at this stage why the boundary should change.  He accepted that things may change in 15 or 20 years, but reiterated that there was no need to change the boundary now.

Councillor Ray Manning declared a non-pecuniary interest in this item as County Councillor for Longstanton.  He asked whether any financial support to fund additional clerking responsibilities had been offered to Longstanton Parish Council to assist with the number of planning applications it would have to deal with as a result of the Northstowe development.  It was noted that the District Council had agreed to provide additional funding for this and was in the process of liaising with the Parish Council to establish anticipated costs. 

Councillor Sebastian Kindersley reflected on previous experiences with Orchard Park, Cambourne and Bar Hill and was of the opinion that the governance arrangements had to be up and running as soon as possible.  He felt that an independent Parish Council for Northstowe was necessary as it would be making decisions about its own future.  Councillor Kindersley highlighted that Oakington and Westwick and Longstanton residents were very engaged and would be able to sit on a Parish Council for Northstowe, due to the fact that they were located within the required distance from the parish boundary.  He called for this issue to be moved forward and said that in developing its first town the District Council should have an obligation to take the lead and encourage local people to do this.  Councillor Kindersley suggested that the aim should be for a Parish Council for Northstowe to be established by 2017, but that this be reviewed annually.

Councillor Alex Riley felt that there should be a move to set the phase one site up as an independent entity as soon as possible in readiness for anticipated delivery in April 2017.  He also reported that the Highways Division at Cambridgeshire County Council had made it clear that the phase two site would not be able to take any further traffic until the A14 had been upgraded and that no houses were anticipated on phase two until 2020.  Councillor Riley also reflected that west of phase two was all in Oakington, which was 20 to 30 years away, and north of the Guided Bus Way in Longstanton would not be an issue for at least another 30 years.  It was noted that the respective areas of the Northstowe development were all completely different and the people living within them at the various stages and phases would have changed by the time any decisions needed to be made on boundary issues.

The Civic Affairs Committee AGREED with the establishment of an independent Northstowe Parish Council with the aim of it commencing in April 2017, but that this be reviewed in June 2016.