Cambridge County Councillor Jonny Edge
LOCAL GOVERNMENT REORGANISATION
To nobody’s very great surprise, it has been revealed that the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government failed to undertake its own analysis of the financial implications of the ongoing local government reorganisation, relying instead on analysis by consultants PwC.
Fresh analysis of those figures shows that replacing the two-tier system with 58 new unitary councils with populations as low as 300,000 could end up costing £850 million over five years and deliver no long-term savings.
We will all need to watch this space to see what impact this revelation has on the ongoing process.
ADULTS & HEALTH
Cambridge Children's Hospital contractor appointed
A building contractor has been appointed to Cambridge Children's Hospital, which will be built on the same site that houses Addenbrooke's and Royal Papworth hospitals. Bouygues UK is expected to start within the next 18 months.
The facility will be the first specialist children's hospital in the East of England; the only region in the UK currently without one. The five-storey building will include 108 inpatient beds, sixteen paediatric intensive care beds, forty-two day-case beds, seven operating theatres, imaging and diagnostics, and a hospital school alongside a new research institute.
‘Good’ rating for adult social care services
Cambridgeshire County Council’s adult social care services have been rated as ‘Good’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), with its assessment finding that early support and flexible options are helping people stay independent longer.
Assessment began in November 2024, with a site visit in early April. It found that people who draw on the council’s care felt supported, listened to and offered choices, with care being co-ordinated in a planned way considering people’s interests and what was important to them.
A range of successes and areas of good practice were highlighted in the report, including:
The report also includes several areas for improvement, including:
Integrated Care Boards ‘between a rock and a hard place’
NHS Integrated care boards (ICBs) have been left between a rock and a hard place over taking forward redundancy schemes to hit demanding cost reduction targets set by the Government.
In March, the Government announced it was scrapping NHS England over the coming years and set a target for ICBs to reduce running costs by 50 per cent by the end of the third quarter of this year. It later refined this target to keeping running costs within £18.76 per head of population, meaning that ICBs face different cost reduction targets depending on their starting point. Redundancies will be essential to meet this target.
However, it has subsequently become clear that there is an expectation that all redundancy costs should be self-funded, leaving ICBs facing the prospect of launching a redundancy scheme, where the costs have not been included in their financial plan, or putting schemes on hold and missing their target to reduce running costs.
ICBs are now stuck between a rock and a hard place, without the additional funds needed to pay for their own restructuring.
To meet the cost cutting requirements of the Government, most ICBs have agreed ‘clustering’ arrangements. Cambridgeshire and Peterborough ICB has clustered with Bedfordshire Luton & Milton Keynes and Hertfordshire, with a population of around 3.3 million people.
CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE
Improvements in support for care leavers
The County Council has improved the support and stability it provides for care leavers in Cambridgeshire, according to a recent Ofsted report.
Ofsted carried out a focused visit in July, looking at the council’s arrangements for care leavers. They concluded that arrangements have strengthened since their last visit in 2024, though there is still work to be done.
Inspectors commented that:
Could you be a foster carer?
Having now attended numerous events for our children in care, I will share this in the next village magazines and encourage local village Facebook groups to share as a one off.
Cambridgeshire Fostering Service is looking for compassionate individuals and families across Cambridgeshire to become foster carers. By offering a stable, loving home, you can make a life-changing difference for children and young people who are unable to live with their families.
Fostering doesn't have to be a long-term commitment; the council also needs carers for short-term fostering and respite care.
Follow any of these channels to find out more:
COMMUNITIES, SOCIAL MOBILITY and INCLUSION (COSMIC)
Cambridgeshire Skills course guide
Whether you're looking to boost your career, gain essential qualifications, or explore a new passion, there's something for everyone at Cambridgeshire Skills - from functional skills in English and maths, to horticulture and counselling.
Courses are delivered in venues across Cambridgeshire, with flexible learning options and expert tutors, making is easier than ever to learn locally.
Explore the full course guide on the Cambridgeshire Skills website or contact your local centre for more information.
www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/adults/cambridgeshire-skills-adult-learning
HIGHWAYS & TRANSPORT
Local Highways Improvement Panel meets to score bids
Cambridgeshire County Council is taking firm action to reduce disruption on the county’s roads, issuing fines totalling £483,000 to utility companies and developers for non-compliant and over-running roadworks during 2024–25.
In total, the council processed more than 32,000 street and roadwork permits last year, regulating when and how works can take place on the highway.
However, as the highway’s authority, the council does have powers to challenge how long emergency and urgent works remain in place. In 2024-25:
New highways system to go live in September
The County Council’s new Asset Management system Aurora goes live on Monday 22 September. The current system will be taken offline on Thursday 18 September, and residents will not be able to log issues or defects online between 18 and 22 September.
Under the new system:
A reminder that the council’s road works programme can be found at www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/travel-roads-and-parking/roads-and-pathways/road-improvements
Cllr Jonny Edge, 07974 348141, [email protected]
To nobody’s very great surprise, it has been revealed that the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government failed to undertake its own analysis of the financial implications of the ongoing local government reorganisation, relying instead on analysis by consultants PwC.
Fresh analysis of those figures shows that replacing the two-tier system with 58 new unitary councils with populations as low as 300,000 could end up costing £850 million over five years and deliver no long-term savings.
We will all need to watch this space to see what impact this revelation has on the ongoing process.
ADULTS & HEALTH
Cambridge Children's Hospital contractor appointed
A building contractor has been appointed to Cambridge Children's Hospital, which will be built on the same site that houses Addenbrooke's and Royal Papworth hospitals. Bouygues UK is expected to start within the next 18 months.
The facility will be the first specialist children's hospital in the East of England; the only region in the UK currently without one. The five-storey building will include 108 inpatient beds, sixteen paediatric intensive care beds, forty-two day-case beds, seven operating theatres, imaging and diagnostics, and a hospital school alongside a new research institute.
‘Good’ rating for adult social care services
Cambridgeshire County Council’s adult social care services have been rated as ‘Good’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), with its assessment finding that early support and flexible options are helping people stay independent longer.
Assessment began in November 2024, with a site visit in early April. It found that people who draw on the council’s care felt supported, listened to and offered choices, with care being co-ordinated in a planned way considering people’s interests and what was important to them.
A range of successes and areas of good practice were highlighted in the report, including:
- Prevention and Reablement success: Quick assessments and goal-focused care are enabling people to stay at home and thrive.
- Strong provider relationships: Staff build trust and offer tailored care packages, supported by robust quality assessments.
- Leadership that listens: A stable leadership team is driving cultural change and boosting morale.
- Wellbeing at work: Staff feel supported through flexible working, wellbeing initiatives, and caring leadership.
The report also includes several areas for improvement, including:
- Direct payments: The number of people receiving direct payments is significantly below the national average. This needs to be increased to give people more choice and control over their care.
- Equity and inclusion: The council needs to improve its use of demographic data to understand the needs of underrepresented groups in Cambridgeshire.
- Unpaid carers: The council should build on the work of its All-Age Carers Strategy 2022-2026 to ensure unpaid carers have consistently good experiences.
- Transitions and continuity of care: The council should work to improve transitions from children’s services to adults’ services for young people, ensuring this is timely and well-coordinated.
Integrated Care Boards ‘between a rock and a hard place’
NHS Integrated care boards (ICBs) have been left between a rock and a hard place over taking forward redundancy schemes to hit demanding cost reduction targets set by the Government.
In March, the Government announced it was scrapping NHS England over the coming years and set a target for ICBs to reduce running costs by 50 per cent by the end of the third quarter of this year. It later refined this target to keeping running costs within £18.76 per head of population, meaning that ICBs face different cost reduction targets depending on their starting point. Redundancies will be essential to meet this target.
However, it has subsequently become clear that there is an expectation that all redundancy costs should be self-funded, leaving ICBs facing the prospect of launching a redundancy scheme, where the costs have not been included in their financial plan, or putting schemes on hold and missing their target to reduce running costs.
ICBs are now stuck between a rock and a hard place, without the additional funds needed to pay for their own restructuring.
To meet the cost cutting requirements of the Government, most ICBs have agreed ‘clustering’ arrangements. Cambridgeshire and Peterborough ICB has clustered with Bedfordshire Luton & Milton Keynes and Hertfordshire, with a population of around 3.3 million people.
CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE
Improvements in support for care leavers
The County Council has improved the support and stability it provides for care leavers in Cambridgeshire, according to a recent Ofsted report.
Ofsted carried out a focused visit in July, looking at the council’s arrangements for care leavers. They concluded that arrangements have strengthened since their last visit in 2024, though there is still work to be done.
Inspectors commented that:
- ‘Leaders are ambitious to support care leavers into employment, further education and training opportunities [...] The local authority is trailblazing the use of bursaries for care leavers over 19, supporting care leavers to remain longer in further education or giving care leavers who wish to return to employment, education or training, these opportunities.’
- ‘Care leavers now have stronger and more purposeful relationships with their personal advisors and investment in additional staffing in the service is helping to reduce staff turnover and workloads.’
- ‘Most care leavers live in suitable accommodation that meets their needs and increasing numbers are supported to remain living with their current carers through effective Staying Put arrangements.’
- ‘Political and corporate leaders and care leavers have co-produced a convincing and aspirational pledge which sets out their commitment to help care leavers fulfil their full potential.’
- The quality and impact of front-line manager’s supervision to promote and provide reflective practice for personal advisors
- The quality and impact of front-line managers oversight to ensure purposeful and considered case direction
- The quality and consistency of pathway planning
- The range and accessibility of suitable accommodation to meet care leavers needs.
Could you be a foster carer?
Having now attended numerous events for our children in care, I will share this in the next village magazines and encourage local village Facebook groups to share as a one off.
Cambridgeshire Fostering Service is looking for compassionate individuals and families across Cambridgeshire to become foster carers. By offering a stable, loving home, you can make a life-changing difference for children and young people who are unable to live with their families.
Fostering doesn't have to be a long-term commitment; the council also needs carers for short-term fostering and respite care.
Follow any of these channels to find out more:
- 0800 052 0078
- www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/children-and-families/fostering-and-adoption
- Facebook www.facebook.com/CCCFosteringService/
- Instagram www.instagram.com/cambsfostering/
COMMUNITIES, SOCIAL MOBILITY and INCLUSION (COSMIC)
Cambridgeshire Skills course guide
Whether you're looking to boost your career, gain essential qualifications, or explore a new passion, there's something for everyone at Cambridgeshire Skills - from functional skills in English and maths, to horticulture and counselling.
Courses are delivered in venues across Cambridgeshire, with flexible learning options and expert tutors, making is easier than ever to learn locally.
Explore the full course guide on the Cambridgeshire Skills website or contact your local centre for more information.
www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/adults/cambridgeshire-skills-adult-learning
HIGHWAYS & TRANSPORT
Local Highways Improvement Panel meets to score bids
Cambridgeshire County Council is taking firm action to reduce disruption on the county’s roads, issuing fines totalling £483,000 to utility companies and developers for non-compliant and over-running roadworks during 2024–25.
In total, the council processed more than 32,000 street and roadwork permits last year, regulating when and how works can take place on the highway.
- £185,000 was issued through Fixed Penalty Notices for 1,655 offences, including works that lacked a valid permit or breached the conditions of their permit.
- A further £298,000 was recovered from 201 works that overran, resulting in 1,191 extra days of disruption for road users and residents.
However, as the highway’s authority, the council does have powers to challenge how long emergency and urgent works remain in place. In 2024-25:
- Over 1,460 emergency permits were challenged for requesting excessive duration – more than 25% of all emergency permits.
- 254 immediate permit applications were rejected where they did not meet the legal criteria for emergency status.
New highways system to go live in September
The County Council’s new Asset Management system Aurora goes live on Monday 22 September. The current system will be taken offline on Thursday 18 September, and residents will not be able to log issues or defects online between 18 and 22 September.
Under the new system:
- Customer reports will be automatically directed to the correct officer or team, ensuring they are handled by the right person first time.
- All Highways Maintenance Officers will now be equipped with tablets, allowing them to inspect defects, raise work orders, and update customers directly while on-site.
- New workflows automatically escalate reports that are not progressed within agreed service level timescales, helping to prevent delays and improve response times.
- Performance dashboards will ensure no cases are overlooked.
- Officers can send updates directly from the system, meaning residents receive regular progress updates on their reports.
- Reports can be managed dynamically by officers in the field and loaded into inspection routes so they can be reviewed at the same time.
- The system will task officers with inspecting completed work and identifying any defects. If defects are identified these will be flagged to contractors and corrected.
A reminder that the council’s road works programme can be found at www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/travel-roads-and-parking/roads-and-pathways/road-improvements
Cllr Jonny Edge, 07974 348141, [email protected]
East Cambridgeshire District Council
East Cambridgeshire District Council
An update from Councillor Peter Cresswell
The Frustrations of being a Local Planning Authority
As I reported at last week’s meeting of the Parish Forum, the District Council has just lost an appeal in Fordham, brought forward by a company called Gladmans, for a site of up to 100 dwellings outside the development envelope. The national Inspector ruled that the Council could no longer “demonstrate a five year land supply”. What this means is that the Inspector decided there are not enough houses being built in the district to reach targets.
Local Planning Authorities are set targets for new housing numbers over the planning period. The Government basically tells ECDC how many houses it must try to get the market to deliver.
The effect of the Planning Inspector’s legal ruling is that applications cannot now be refused only for the reason of being outside the development envelope. Applications will still be judged against, and have to comply with, other relevant planning policies in the Local Plan, but for now, the development envelopes effectively disappear.
Many local residents don’t like this situation, as it means that people can apply for planning permission anywhere - it is fair to say that the District Council is not that pleased about it either!
The frustration for the District Council is that it can give all the planning permissions it likes, but it has no powers to actually force developers to build the houses. The irony of the Gladmans’ appeal is that it was the same company who put the Council into this situation a couple of years ago with a site at Witchford for around 140 houses, where it won the same argument and put the Council into the same situation of having no five year land supply. There are still no houses built on that land in Witchford, which helped Gladmans’ legal case in the Fordham appeal - it is perverse!
All is not lost however, as the Council foresaw this situation and has worked tirelessly on a new Local Plan, which we hope to be able to adopt after it has been through the national inspection process later this year or early next year. This will wipe the slate clean on the past lack of delivery and we will regain control of our five year land supply once again, meaning the development envelopes will be back in place. Given that the development of a new Local Plan is such a lengthy process, I suspect that we will need to begin working on a new Local Plan as soon as the emerging Local Plan is adopted.
To say the situation is frustrating is an understatement!
Councillor Peter Cresswell ECDC Councillor for Cheveley Ward
email: [email protected]
Telephone : 01638 661138 Mobile : 07960 733420
An update from Councillor Peter Cresswell
The Frustrations of being a Local Planning Authority
As I reported at last week’s meeting of the Parish Forum, the District Council has just lost an appeal in Fordham, brought forward by a company called Gladmans, for a site of up to 100 dwellings outside the development envelope. The national Inspector ruled that the Council could no longer “demonstrate a five year land supply”. What this means is that the Inspector decided there are not enough houses being built in the district to reach targets.
Local Planning Authorities are set targets for new housing numbers over the planning period. The Government basically tells ECDC how many houses it must try to get the market to deliver.
The effect of the Planning Inspector’s legal ruling is that applications cannot now be refused only for the reason of being outside the development envelope. Applications will still be judged against, and have to comply with, other relevant planning policies in the Local Plan, but for now, the development envelopes effectively disappear.
Many local residents don’t like this situation, as it means that people can apply for planning permission anywhere - it is fair to say that the District Council is not that pleased about it either!
The frustration for the District Council is that it can give all the planning permissions it likes, but it has no powers to actually force developers to build the houses. The irony of the Gladmans’ appeal is that it was the same company who put the Council into this situation a couple of years ago with a site at Witchford for around 140 houses, where it won the same argument and put the Council into the same situation of having no five year land supply. There are still no houses built on that land in Witchford, which helped Gladmans’ legal case in the Fordham appeal - it is perverse!
All is not lost however, as the Council foresaw this situation and has worked tirelessly on a new Local Plan, which we hope to be able to adopt after it has been through the national inspection process later this year or early next year. This will wipe the slate clean on the past lack of delivery and we will regain control of our five year land supply once again, meaning the development envelopes will be back in place. Given that the development of a new Local Plan is such a lengthy process, I suspect that we will need to begin working on a new Local Plan as soon as the emerging Local Plan is adopted.
To say the situation is frustrating is an understatement!
Councillor Peter Cresswell ECDC Councillor for Cheveley Ward
email: [email protected]
Telephone : 01638 661138 Mobile : 07960 733420