Author Archives: Cambridge Town Owl

A new proposal written by Dr Sacha Hilhorst for the Institute for Public Policy Research proposes additional measures to reverse the long term decline of community venues and spaces where people used to meet You can read the paper here Although pitched as a response to the rise of TeamNigel and groups beyond, this framingContinue reading “Could a tax on Amazon-style businesses fund local community infrastructure?”

Cambridge Community Arts pleaded repeatedly for support from our supposedly wealthy city (see their IG feed here). So why didn’t we respond? “After more than a decade of creative impact, Cambridge Community Arts will formally close on 31 July 2025.” I knew a handful of people who were involved in the work of the CCAContinue reading “The closure of Cambridge Community Arts – and loneliness in society”

Furthermore, can they work with the EU to compel big tech firms to maintain the software and upgrades needed to keep older items functioning, or alternatively compel them to make the continuation of that work available to third parties? Image – Cambridge & South Cambs recycling bins for small electrical appliances See The Guardian onContinue reading “Will ministers scrap VAT on refurbished electronic goods?”

And ministers will ignore MPs. Again. What is the point? (And the same politicians then wonder why democratic structures and institutions are breaking down) Image: the LGIU’s guide to council finances – comparing the current system of council taxes with the Poll Tax, and the older system of rating. “Link between paying taxes and qualityContinue reading “MPs tell ministers that local council finances are broken. Again”

Next challenge: filling the venues with people From Friday 08 August there are a number of singing workshops at the Cambridge Corn Exchange as part of the the Big Big Collab in what is our largest civic hall’s 150th anniversary. “Cambridge will be alive “with the sound of music” as part of this one-off specialContinue reading “More big singing events in Cambridge”

I found out the hard way what it looks like when Cambridge’s Accident and Emergency Department at Addenbrooke’s (which actually covers a much greater geographical area) it hit by an unexpected, unseasonal spike in admissions For those of you wondering why I hadn’t blogged for almost a week, it was because I got stuck inContinue reading “The failure to fund Addenbrooke’s A&E service – the buck stops at the Chancellor’s desk”

As Rachel Cunliffe of the New Statesman was told by an MP in her piece on broken systems of accountability in Britain You can read her piece here (and also her Bsky Thread here) which involved a site visit to Shefford, Beds with the local MP for the area, Alistair Strathern (whose constituency is namedContinue reading “Hollowed-out local government can no longer cope”

Be radical or don’t do it at all is the message from the title of their new report Go Big or Go Home: Governing England’s polycentric regions. The policy recommendations are on pages 5/6. The first major proposals for regional government came from Harold Wilson’s Labour Government in the 1960s at a time of significantContinue reading “Re:State propose new English provinces for regional issues”

…stated the WEA [Formerly the Workers’ Educational Association] in response to the community cohesion report: The State of Us. At the same time, the More in Common group published their report: Shattered Britain. What are the risks to community cohesion in our polarised city, and what are the limited policy options for local government? ReadContinue reading “*Stronger communities require opportunities to learn and grow together*”

A co-sponsored motion for next week’s full council meeting concludes that of the options available, the existing Greater Cambridge Partnership boundaries (i.e. South Cambridge District *including* Cambridge City Council in the middle) is their preference You can read the meeting papers here “That a unitary authority based on the current boundaries of Cambridge City CouncilContinue reading “Cambridge City Council goes for a Greater Cambridge Unitary on GCP boundaries”