Category Archives: Uncategorized

TL/DR – Some of the research commissioned by the organisation representing a range of Business and Academic organisations provides further insight into Cambridge’s persistent problems. The absence of sectors that don’t have the financial clout mean that some of their conclusions risk over-looking the needs of communities that have as much a say on theContinue reading “Cambridge Ahead’s look ahead for 2021/22”

TL/DR: Going beyond moaning about ‘spreadsheet architecture’ Some of you may have seen the report in The Times about a housing development in Nottingham which got no objections to the application. This is the Barton Quarter and they describe it as one with “houses of traditional beauty fit for the modern age”. I can seeContinue reading “Involving the public at design stage when planning new housing”

TL:DR Until we see the visual changes in our urban environments and in our day-to-day lives, the public will remain unconvinced that ministers are serious about the climate emergency And for all of the talk of the Blitz Spirit, where we are at the moment has all of the hallmarks of the run-up to theContinue reading “The Government’s slow piecemeal approach to the climate emergency isn’t working”

“Prospective Parliamentary Candidate” in old language, but it’s a mouthful to say, and the acronym PPC isn’t widely-known outside the bubble of politics followers. Remember that only around 2% of people are members of a political party. The announcement was made by the Leader of the Liberal Democrats, and the former Energy & Climate ChangeContinue reading “Liberal Democrats select Cllr Pippa Heylings as MP-candidate for South Cambridgeshire”

TL/DR: Having explicitly rejected both the CAM Metro and the Cambridge Connect Light Rail proposals, it now falls on councillors on Cambridge City Council, Cambridgeshire County Council, South Cambridgeshire District Council – and in particular those from the Conservative Party, the Labour Party, and the Liberal Democrats to champion the cause of the Greater CambridgeContinue reading “Which councillors will promote this new Greater Cambridge Busway Network?”

TL: DR – if you want light rail, you will have to go through your MP and ministers instead. That was the message from officers from Cambridgeshire County Council and the Greater Cambridge Partnership at what I thought was a very well-run online meeting of the Cambridge East Community Forum – where lots of homesContinue reading “County Council & GCP officers confirm Busways strategy for Cambridge”

Because we have several ones happening at the moment, and trying to make sense of them is not easy for a time-poor population. “It’s almost as if the planning system has been designed by ministers and lobbyists to exclude as many people as possible to make it the play thing of only those that canContinue reading “Cambridge must overhaul how it does consultations”

TL:DR – Rubbish assumptions make for rubbish decisions. Ditto rubbish data. Or in civil-service-speak / local-gov-officer-speak: “The unrealistic assumptions – ones which do not reflect the day-to-day reality of service users, – assumed in this report and used in the calculations result in a sub-optimal outcome for the community and our designated user groups. ThisContinue reading “Someone on Cambridge town planning is wrong. Again. This time it’s on swimming pools.”

TL:DR – Click on the consultations by the Greater Cambridge Partnership and tell them their suggestions for an improved bus network do not answer the shortcomings highlighted repeatedly by members of the public and campaign groups, and instead need to commission formal in depth studies of the Cambridge Connect Light Rail. (You will also needContinue reading “A case for a Greater Cambridge Unitary Council – and a light rail network to service it”

Another cohort of Cambridge University students calls on University & colleges to change their values and act as if all of the people who make up our city matter – echoing the call from a former Vice Chancellor from over half a century ago. It’s worth listening in full to the speech by Daisy ThomasContinue reading “Cambridge students demand their University delivers climate justice for Cambridge town”