A Councillor's Comments - May 2000

This month you had two for the price of one. First the Town Council Meeting, then at 8 pm the Annual town Council Meeting. The start of business for the Town Council was the cooption of a new Councillor. It was a close-run contest and the outcome: Mr Haydn Davis voted in.
There was great excitement during this Meeting when we witnessed Police in Action, one of the Police Constables dashed out of the meeting to nab a motorbike rider on the recreation ground - boy, did he get a shock. It was also good to hear from the police report that Soham's crime figures for last month are well down.
An update on the Paddock Street/Adelaide Close saga. Yet another site meeting was held with County Council Traffic Management, Soham Town Chairman and myself, Vice Chairman, a District Councillor, a representative from the Residents' Association and our Town Clerk. A satisfactory conclusion to all concerned was agreed with measures that should assist the traffic problem, these are subject to the usual procedures.
Barway Village Hall Committee will be receiving a donation from Soham Town Council towards their project for the millennium of creating a wildlife garden on the site of the old Village Hall. Another donation went to the Soham Holiday Scheme in their 20th year. They do sterling work to help parents during holiday time by diverting children's energies into a variety of skills, like sports, arts and crafts.
Now the Annual Town Council Meeting, which was well attended by the public - mention must be made of the new comfortable chairs we all sat on, purchased by the Town Council. Also, the pavilion kitchen has had a facelift - doesn't it look good.
The Chairman, Mr Lionel Hart, gave an in depth account of the year. County Councillor Mr J Powley gave a written report which, amongst other observations, stated how exciting and challenging it is being chairman of the Social Services Committee. District Councillor Mr C Hempstead, spoke about planning problems and yours truly also spoke about East Cambridgeshire District Council and my role. In particular I reported on the work I have done to get funding for a feasibility study into Soham's need for Community Transport. This study has now been published. A copy can be seen at the Council Offices, Walter Gidney Pavilion. Without the funding and help from County Council Transport Manager, Cambridgeshire Action Rural Transport Officer, East Cambridgeshire District Council, Soham Town Council and Soham Town Forum it would not have been possible. This study proves we need a Community Transport Scheme.
During the Annual Town Council Meeting Mrs Donna Martin, Chairman of Soham Community History Museum enlightened us about the dedicated group of volunteers and the work they all do, also the importance of preserving Soham's heritage and promoting conservation and tourism for our future. Also Mr C Scurrah of Soham-online website informed us he had 350 calls a week from all round the world. Soham is definitely on the map - go check it out. I've tried to keep comments to a minimum even with the two meetings so am signing off now.

Anne Tuite
Soham Town Council - Vice Chairman