Symptoms of too much Cambridge growth and too little infrastructure supporting it

Posted byCambridge Town OwlPosted inUncategorized

Successive governments only have themselves to blame for not requiring the infrastructure providers to construct what was needed – and for not funding the expansion of primary healthcare and new hospital provision

The landing page for what locals have long called Addenbrooke’s still has the very busy A&E notice up

As of Midnight+7mins on Thursday early morning so I should go to sleep as I’m due to be on the radio at 7am.

These notices are all-too-frequent for an A&E Unit that was last extended nearly a quarter of a century ago. And in a heatwave where more of us struggle with the extreme conditions and a built environment not designed for such extremities, more people inevitably end up in hospital.

What will it take for the state and large non-state institutions to respond proactively to these increasingly frequent hot days?

Water Stress – appeal from Cambridge Water Company, and a warning of lower water pressure

“We’re producing as much water as we possibly can but we’re asking for your help to use essential water only.

Essential use for hygiene, cooking and staying hydrated.

Non-essential use includes washing cars, filling paddling pools, watering plants, vegetables or the lawn.

You may notice lower water pressure at times. This is a temporary measure to help us balance demand and ensure everyone continues to have access to essential water.

By reducing non-essential use, you can make a genuine difference to maintaining supplies for your neighbours and community.”

Above – Cambridge Water Company, 07 July 2026 – social media post

For whatever reason this is not on their landing page at https://www.cambridge-water.co.uk/

The New Normal

Here’s an update from Anglian Water

While Cambridge Water supplies Cambridge and surrounding areas with water, Anglian Water provides sewage services. You can find out who provides which via https://www.water.org.uk/customers/find-your-supplier

Talking of the future of Cambridge, anyone got time to plough through 875 pages of draft plan document?

Above – see Appendix A in the list here, the 28MB document

Places that stand out in the contents:

“Cambridge Urban Area

  • Policy S/C/LCR: Land at Clifton Road (including Cambridge Junction and
    Cambridge Leisure)
  • S/NEC: North East Cambridge
  • Policy S/C/SMS: Garages at St Matthews Street and Norfolk Street
  • Policy S/C/HTR: 137-143 Histon Road
  • Policy S/C/HGH: Henry Giles House, 73-79 Chesterton Road
  • Policy S/C/HRC: Horizon Resource Centre, 285 Coldham’s Lane
  • Policy S/C/PDC: Cambridge Professional Development Centre, Foster Road
  • Policy S/C/PPS: Police Station, Parkside
  • Policy S/C/NCA: North Cambridge Academy, 108, Arbury Road
  • Policy S/C/ER: 1-99 Ekin Road and 1-8 Ekin Walk
  • Policy S/C/DR: 2-28 Davy Road and Garage Blocks
  • Policy S/C/HPC: 1-78 Hanover Court, 1-49 Princess Court and Garage at
    Newtown Garages
  • Policy S/C/GER: Former Garage Block, East Road
  • Policy S/C/SH: 1 – 33 Stanton House, Christchurch Street
  • Policy S/C/MRG: Milton Road Garages
  • Policy S/C/SCL: Land South of Coldham’s Lane, Cambridge
  • Policy S/C/BRN: Land at Barnwell Road and Newmarket Road
  • Policy S/C/TRP: Travis Perkins, Devonshire Road
  • Policy S/C/OPK: Parcel Com4, Orchard Park
  • Policy S/C/BFS: Brookfields
  • Policy S/C/SRW: Station Road West
  • Policy S/C/BJH: Betjeman House
  • Policy S/C/OPM: Old Press/Mill Lane
  • Policy S/C/NMD: New Museums, Downing Street

Above – from the contents page

AREAS OF MAJOR CHANGE”

  • Policy S/AMC/BC: Beehive Centre
  • Policy S/AMC/EB: East Barnwell
  • Policy S/AMC/FBG: Fitzroy/Burleigh Street/Grafton Area of Major Change
  • Policy S/AMC/SCL: South of Coldham’s Lane
  • Policy S/AMC/AS: Abbey Stadium

PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENT AREAS:

  • Policy S/PRIA/CRP: Cambridge Retail Park
  • Policy S/PRIA/MC: Mitcham’s Corner
  • Policy S/PRIA/EG: Eastern Gate
  • Policy S/PRIA/MR: Mill Road
  • Policy S/PRIA/HRRS: Hills Road and Regent Street Corridor
  • Policy S/PRIA/OPML: Old Press/Mill Lane

EDGE OF CAMBRIDGE

  • Policy S/CE: Cambridge East [The Airport site]
  • Policy S/CBC: Cambridge Biomedical Campus (including Addenbrooke’s
    Hospital)
  • Policy S/WC: West Cambridge [Still waiting for that swimming pool!]
  • Policy S/ED: Eddington
  • Policy S/HHR: Land between Huntingdon Road and Histon Road (Darwin
    Green), Cambridge
  • Policy S/EOC/NWO: Land North of Worts’ Causeway
  • Policy S/EOC/SWO: Land South of Worts’ Causeway
  • Policy S/EOC/BS: Bell School, Babraham Road [Because the school went into administration]
  • Policy S/EOC/FRE: Fulbourn Road East
  • Policy S/EOC/IDH: Ida Darwin Hospital
  • Policy S/AMC/NEC: North East Cambridge [What will become of the sewage works?]
  • Policy S/AMC/FH: Fulbourn Hospital [Significant local historic buildings]

NEW SETTLEMENTS:

  • Policy S/CBN: Cambourne North
  • Policy S/CB: Cambourne
  • Policy S/GF: Land adjacent to A11 and A1307 at Grange Farm
  • Policy S/NS: Northstowe
  • Policy S/WNT: Waterbeach New Town
  • Policy S/BA: Bourn Airfield New Village

RURAL SOUTHERN CLUSTER

  • Policy S/WGC: Wellcome Genome Campus – Expansion Land, Hinxton
  • Policy S/RSC/BRC: Babraham Research Campus
  • Policy S/RSC/MF: Land at Maarnford Farm, Hunts Road, Duxford
  • Policy S/RSC/SBR: Land South of Babraham Road, Sawston
  • Policy S/RSC/FSS: Former Spicers Site, Sawston Business Park, Sawston
  • Policy S/RSC/CC: Comfort Café, Fourwentways

Which is more than enough to be getting on with.

It all goes out to public consultation over the summer. The meetings the councils will have next week are a formality to approve the consultation launches. So this post shows where the main documents are to help you find what to look for.

If you are interested in the longer term future of Cambridge, and on what happens at the local democracy meetings where decisions are made, feel free to: