The following planning applications in the Sutton division have been published by East Cambridgeshire District Council.

21/01156/FUL
Little Downham
Alpaca Lifestyle Farm First Drove Little Downham
Change of use of land from domestic garden to site for the siting of a mobile home—retrospective.

21/01355/FUL
Little Downham
67 Lawn Lane Little Downham CB6 2TS
Single storey front extension, car port to side, single storey rear extension plus partial conversion of outbuilding.

21/01483/OUT
Mepal
Horticultural site between 8 and 14 Bridge Road Mepal CB6 2AR
Outline planning application with all matters reserved to establish the acceptability in principle the subdivision of site into three plots and allocating these plots for three self/custom built dwellings.

Further information can be found on the district council’s planning pages. If you would like to respond formally to the council about any planning application, comments should be addressed to the district council and not to me.  Comments may be made

• online using the council’s public access web page (the link above);
• by email to plservices@eastcambs.gov.uk;
• or by post to the Planning Department, The Grange, Nutholt Lane, Ely, CB7 4EE.

Quite a lot has happened in the last couple of days, since local farmers blew the whistle on the material being dug out of the Hundred Foot at Welches Dam, and the potential serious damage to the integrity of the barrier bank and river bed.

Firstly and most importantly, the Environment Agency has paused this work, and will not be resuming on Monday.

I met Ross Taylor, Andrew Butcher and several others on site yesterday afternoon, and it was clear to all that what had been dug out of the Hundred Foot included clay and peat, which it absolutely should not have done.

The Environment Agency had sent one of their team to view the materials, and as of early this morning were still maintaining that this was absolutely normal and nothing to be concerned about.

However, I spoke to Andrew Newton from the IDB this morning, and with my full support he raised the matter at the meeting of the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Flood & Water Partnership (which I chair) this morning, at which Environment Agency staff were present. The meeting agreed that this situation was potentially very serious and that the Environment Agency should be asked to investigate more fully.

Andrew and I then spoke again separately to the Environment Agency after the meeting, who said they would reopen investigations.

The IDB will be holding an Extraordinary General Meeting late next week. I have been invited by the Environment Agency to join them on a site visit. The District Council has written to the Environment Agency, and the County Council is also writing.

This situation is now rightly being taken much more seriously. Many thanks to Ross, Andrew Butcher, Andrew Newton and others for their determination and hard work.

The following planning application in the Sutton division has been published by East Cambridgeshire District Council.

21/01324/FUL
Little Downham
69 Ely Road Little Downham CB6 2SN
Replacement front porch (following subsidence).

Further information can be found on the district council’s planning pages. If you would like to respond formally to the council about any planning application, comments should be addressed to the district council and not to me.  Comments may be made

• online using the council’s public access web page (the link above);
• by email to plservices@eastcambs.gov.uk;
• or by post to the Planning Department, The Grange, Nutholt Lane, Ely, CB7 4EE.

The next round of consultation on improving rail capacity in the Ely area will be open for six weeks from Monday 18 October 2021, Network Rail has announced.

The Ely Area Capacity Enhancement (EACE) programme aims to allow more trains to run through Ely by improving rail capacity and reliability for passenger services between key destinations, and allowing more freight to operate between Felixstowe and the West Midlands.

Proposals and options

Proposals and options will be put forward for

• Remodelling the track layout at Ely North junction 
• Level crossings at Queen Adelaide
• Level crossings at Stonea, Burgess Drove (Waterbeach) and Well Engine foot crossing
• Upgrading of another fifteen level crossings across the wider area.

The feedback from this consultation will help to progress the designs. Network Rail will then decide preferred options and, subject to further funding, submit a Transport and Works Act Order in winter 2022/23. The results of this consultation, together with the results from the Ely South consultation, are expected to be published as part of the Round 3 consultation, currently planned for summer 2022 (subject to funding).

How to have your say

Consultation documents will be available to view and download from Monday 18 October 2021 via the consultation area of the project webpage.

There will also be an online survey form to submit comments to Network Rail on the proposals and options being presented. There will also be a live webchat facility, and an option to call the consultation hotline between 18 and 30 October 2021. Details for the dates and times of the phone line and webchat can be found on the project webpage.

Hard copies of a consultation booklet are available upon request: call Network Rail’s 24/7 helpline number 03457 11 41 41 or email elyareacapacityenhancements@networkrail.co.uk

The following planning applications in the Sutton division have been published by East Cambridgeshire District Council.

21/01281/FUL
Little Downham
30 Lawn Lane Little Downham CB6 2TS
Single storey rear extension.

21/01405/FUL
Little Downham
Paddock Lodge 2A Black Bank Road Little Downham
Proposed rear extension with mezzanine floor.

21/01313/FUL
Little Downham
Head Fen Farm Head Fen Pymoor
Proposed new dwelling (following demolition of existing barn) and continued siting of residential unit (during building work).

21/01287/FUL
Sutton
16 Sutton Park Sutton CB6 2RP
Single storey rear extension, garage conversion, internal and external alterations.

21/01411/FUL
Sutton
5 Eastwood Close Sutton CB6 2RH
Demolition of conservatory and shed, removal of internal garden wall, construction of rear extension, cement timber-effect board to replace existing weatherboards on first floor.

Further information can be found on the district council’s planning pages. If you would like to respond formally to the council about any planning application, comments should be addressed to the district council and not to me.  Comments may be made

• online using the council’s public access web page (the link above);
• by email to plservices@eastcambs.gov.uk;
• or by post to the Planning Department, The Grange, Nutholt Lane, Ely, CB7 4EE.

At Fenland Hall in March today to chair a meeting of the Combined Authority’s Overview & Scrutiny Committee.

An unavoidable absence means we can’t hold our planned discussion on transport matters across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and have to delay this to next month, but we cover quite a wide range of topics and agree plans to host the first Mayor’s Question Time in late November.

A number of us also agree to go away and fact-find on a number of issues to do with the Combined Authority, including an accommodation strategy for the Combined Authority and the plans for affordable housing now that we know there’s to be no more money for this from Central Government.

A lively evening with Sutton Scouts at the Pavilion today, talking about local government.

We did a ‘which council does what’ exercise which resulted in some amazingly insightful discussions about everything from Grenfell Tower cladding and magnetic levitation trains to zoo licences and the rights of parents to educate their children at home.

And we followed up with a mock election, with the Scouts voting for their chosen candidate out of three – Tom Branson, Daisy Mason, and Beryl Patmore. Spot the Downton Abbey references! Mrs Patmore won the day, with her manifesto of higher council tax in return for affordable housing and more bus services.

Delighted to have been invited onto BBC Radio Cambridgeshire’s Great Outdoors Show at the weekend with Richard ‘Spanners’ Ready, to talk about the Queen’s Green Canopy.

The Queen’s Green Canopy is part of the celebrations to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June 2022, by planting trees across the country. Here in Cambridgeshire the project is supported by the Lord-Lieutenant Julie Spence. Three schools in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough (Spring Meadow in Ely, St Philip’s in Cambridge, and Woodston Primary in Peterborough) will receive a tree each out of the 70 being gifted to schools across the UK by the project nationally.

The County Council is encouraging local residents to take part too. Because the tree planting season starts in October now is the time to start planning. If you have a garden big enough for a tree then there’s advice on the County Council’s website on how to go about it. Schools, businesses, and parish councils are also being encouraged to join in.

The County Council will also be identifying land in its own ownership where larger scale tree planting projects can take place. These will be announced in the next month or so.

A map will be added to the national Queen’s Green Canopy website next month. Residents and organisations will be able to add their own planting projects so everyone can see what has been planted and where.

The following planning applications in the Sutton division have been published by East Cambridgeshire District Council.

21/00396/FUM
Little Downham
Willow Farm Pymoor Common Pymoor
Redevelopment of Corkers Crisps/Taylor Farms complex.

21/01322/FUM
Little Downham
Land south west of 14 to 20 Ely Road Little Downham
Construction of 40 dwellings.

21/01185/FUL
Little Downham
30 Bury Green Little Downham CB6 2UH
Single storey front extension and garage conversion.

21/01184/FUL
Mepal
Broadmead Boarding Kennels Witcham Road Mepal
Single storey side extension (revised scheme for previously approved 21/00960/FUL).

21/01378/FUL
Sutton
94 St Andrews Close Sutton CB6 2QX
Construction of two storey and single storey rear extension.

21/01010/FUL
Sutton
Fountain Farm The Gault Sutton
Proposed replacement dwelling, garage, site works and replacement garage for Broadpiece House.

21/01292/HEN
Sutton
94 St Andrews Close Sutton CB6 2QX
Construction of single storey rear extension which extends beyond the rear wall by 5.95m, has a maximum height of 3.72m and an eaves height of 2.40m.

21/01329/FUL
Sutton
107 The Row Sutton CB6 2PB
Proposed lake and associated works.

21/01332/FUL
Sutton
Poplar Hall Farm The Gault Sutton
New detached outbuilding for storage and security.

Further information can be found on the district council’s planning pages. If you would like to respond formally to the council about any planning application, comments should be addressed to the district council and not to me.  Comments may be made

• online using the council’s public access web page (the link above);
• by email to plservices@eastcambs.gov.uk;
• or by post to the Planning Department, The Grange, Nutholt Lane, Ely, CB7 4EE.