SPC’s July Newsletter
See Stilton Parish Council’s new monthly newsletter …
Telephone Box Ideas Needed!
Telephone box transformation
Stilton Parish Council has now formally adopted the telephone box near the village pump in the centre of the village and would like to hear your suggestions regarding how you would like to see it used …
Defibrillator? Seed library? Book exchange? Information centre? Place to detail the history of Stilton?
These were some of the ideas put forward when the Parish Council initially started thinking about adoption and now the process is complete, we’d like to get going on making the telephone box a useful asset for residents.
Let us know your thoughts through Facebook, emailing or popping a note in the Parish Room letter box on Church Street. All ideas will be discussed at the next Amenities Management Committee at the end of June (including the previous suggestions).
Thank you😊
Superfast Fibre Broadband for Stilton?
Superfast Fibre Broadband for Stilton?
The internet service in/around Stilton is currently limited to Fibre-to-Cabinet with the gap between premises and house using the copper cables. This limits the capacity and speed available to local residents. This has been challenging during lockdown where many have had adults working from home and school-age children engaged in on-line learning. The solution is a full fibre connection to the premises) or FTP. FTP offers up to 1Gigabit (1000 Mbps) but would likely be circa 300 Mpbs, approximately 10 times the current speed we can currently get) but it is not yet available in Stilton, nor are there an published plans to improve the infrastructure.
Community Fibre Partnerships (CFP) are a way of bringing FTP which is supported by Openreach and part-funded by the Government’s £210M Gigabit Voucher Scheme for rural communities. Vouchers worth up to £1500 for a household and £3500 for businesses can be put towards the costs of FTP. An initial study indicates that a CFP covering Caldecote Road and Church Street, all of the costs of the infrastructure could be met from a combination of vouchers and Openreach funding. Dependent upon the numbers of people from the village participating and the funding from vouchers, it could be fibre for free!
Stilton Parish Council is supporting the Stilton CFP and we now need to understand the level of interest in FTP among local residents and businesses so that we can work out the size of the scheme or schemes, whether it could be delivered as a single project or in Phases and also the costs. We will also need some help from residents to make this a reality and mobilise support from neighbours – at the moment the CFP is a one-man band!
Please register your interest by email with – please state your name, address (and Business Name if applicable) and if you would be happy to help get the StiltonCFP started.
Notice of Exercise of Public Rights – Stilton Parish Council
Notice of Exercise of Public Rights
From Wednesday 6th June until Tuesday 27th July 2021, any person interested has the the right to inspect and make copies of the accounting records for the financial year to which the audit relates, and all books, deeds, contracts, bills, vouchers, receipts and other documents relating to those records must be made available for inspection.
See attached document for more details …
SPEEDING VEHICLES!
The new Moveable Vehicle Activated Sign (MVAS) in North Street shows alarming results.
Over 3 weeks it recorded the speeds of more than 80,000 vehicles travelling into and out of the
village. 15% of vehicles broke the speed limit travelling south into the village and 38% travelling
north.
Of these nearly 350 vehicles exceeded 50mph, and more than 80 exceeded 60mph! One
vehicle sped towards the village centre at 93mph and another (perhaps the same one?) half an
hour later headed north at 82mph!
This is clearly unacceptable. Members of the Parish Council have discussed the matter with our District and County Councillors and it will be raised at the next Parish Council meeting.
More information is being published in SCAN and further data will be added to the Parish Council website.
Stilton Parish Council – Annual Report
Annual Report
Following on from the Annual Parish Meeting on 04/05/21, please find below the Chairman’s Annual Report.
Parish Council 1% Precept Increase Explained
Please see below for an explanation regarding the 1% precept increase on Council Tax bills this year …
The Skate Park is Open Again!
Skate Park opens in time for the Easter holidays
Following updates from Skateboard GB and Government guidance, the Parish Council has re-opened the skate park.
Restrictions still apply in terms of social distancing … no more than 6 users or 2 family groups are allowed to skate at any one time. Please remember to wash your hands after visiting the park and we continue to ask that no food be consumed while in the park.
See the updated Risk Assessment for more details https://www.stiltonparishcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Mar21-SPC-SKATEPARK-C19-Risk-Assessment-SEPT-2020.pdf
Skateboard GB’s roadmap out of National Lockdown for Skateboarding is below …
skateboard roadmap 2021 2
Thank you for your help in keeping all users safe👍🏼
Covid Restrictions – Step 1 effectual from 29/03/21
Covid-19 restrictions from 29/04/21 change to Step 1, see below for more details …
MVAS on the way!
Watching your speed ……..
We’re all aware that some drivers don’t keep to the 30 mph limit in the village, indeed, some drive well above the speed limit at times. Over the years, Stilton’s Speedwatch team have measured vehicle speeds in several parts of the village and we’ve used the data collected to show that more traffic calming measures are needed. The Parish Council has used the information in bids to Cambridgeshire County Council’s Local Highways Improvement (LHI) scheme that funds road safety measures across the region each year. For 2020-21 our bid was successful and the Moveable Vehicle Activated Sign (MVAS) that we announced last year will be with us soon.
We shall be placing the MVAS in various places around the village where we’ve observed speeding vehicles, moving it from time to time to cover North Street, High Street and Church Street. The equipment will measure the speed of approaching vehicles and display this to the driver together with a warning if they are travelling too fast. The equipment will also record the speed of all vehicles travelling both towards and away from the MVAS and so we shall have a record of speeds of all passing vehicles. This information will help us to decide if further calming measures are needed and help us make further bids to the County.
The Parish Council’s LHI bid for 2021-22 has already been submitted and we are awaiting the outcome. The MVAS will help remind us all of the 30 mph speed limit in the village and how important it is to keep our speeds low. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) points out that a pedestrian hit at 30 mph has a 93% chance of survival, but at 40 mph this falls to a little over 60%! Unfortunately, Speedwatch has recorded many vehicles travelling faster than 40 mph in the village.
We know that there are a number of traffic issues in Stilton, some can be addressed through LHI funding but major changes require action by the County Council. Parking and road safety in the centre of the village is of particular concern and the Parish Council is organizing a working party with our District and County Councillors to look at the problems and see what can be done.
Speedwatch has been important for Stilton, to help calm traffic speeds during Speedwatch sessions, to raise awareness of speeding issues and to provide information to aid bids for calming measures. At the time of writing, due to COVID restrictions, Speedwatch is not operating. However, as restrictions are lifted we shall be able to start our regular activities again. We’re always looking for more volunteers so, if you are interested in joining the Speedwatch team, please contact Keith Bull, Stilton’s Speedwatch Coordinator, at .