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Saturday 4th June 2005
Those who live in Bourne choose to do so and would
not wish to be anywhere else. Not all view the place through rose-tinted
spectacles because they are aware of its shortcomings and yet remain intensely
loyal to the town, which is at it should be. The suggestion therefore in the
Stamford Mercury last week that we might be in the running for the title of the
Best Market Town in England (“Five reasons why our town is the best” - May 27th)
has been greeted with some derision.
The competition is run annually by Country Life magazine and the
standards are high, taking into account vibrancy, architecture, accessibility,
transport, amenities and the range of shops, but our newly-elected mayor,
Councillor Judy Smith, thinks we are in with a chance because she told the
newspaper: “Bourne is very forward looking and the people here are fantastic.
There is a very caring community and the facilities, especially the schools, are
excellent.”
The mayor’s love of this town is not only well documented but also
understandable because she said in her mayoral message last month: “I am greatly
passionate about Bourne because it is the place I have lived in and loved since
I was born.” There are others who are equally fervent but contributors to the
Bourne Forum this week are less than favourable and although all swear
allegiance to the place where they live, they also recognise the futility of
comparing it with those that reflect the essence of England such as Bakewell and
Banbury, Eton and Ely, Newbury and Nuneaton. In short, Bourne does not stand a
chance, according to some of the comments made:
Hmmm . . . Stratford upon Avon, Warwick,
Church Stretton, Windemere, Coombe Martin, Bourne . . . I think not. – Bob
Currell.
Even on Thursdays and Saturdays, Bourne cannot be described as vibrant. Most
days, there is just no atmosphere at all. Architecture? Yes, there are one or
two interesting buildings but for the most part, there are mediocre late
Victorian or Edwardian buildings of no great merit. Access and transport? No
rail service and indifferent roads although there is a local bus service.
Amenities? About average for a market town. Range of shops? Alright if you want
a variety of junk food takeaways but otherwise very little to recommend it which
is why everyone I know shops out of town. – Geoff Wright.
My feeling is that life in Bourne is broken but we still have a huge amount
going for us, the United Charities, the Pick legacy, the Abbey Church and the
Wellhead, the outdoor swimming pool, the Red Hall, clubs and organisations. But
the schools are overcrowded, the streets dirty and car parking dismal. – Stan
Watson.
There are many worse places to live than Bourne but a competition winner it
ain’t. It does look run down and the view along North Street is uninspiring and
seems somehow stuck in a time warp. The only competition it might win is one to
find the most over populated and under resourced market town in Britain. –
John Glen.
If you have any observations on the subject, please make them to
the Bourne Forum.
There is undoubtedly some justification for these criticisms especially
when you consider that Bourne has won accolades for its appearance in the past.
In 1965, it was judged to be the best kept small town in Kesteven (until the
boundary changes of 1974, Lincolnshire was divided into three counties and we
were in Kesteven) and the following February, Bourne Urban District Council
which then ran our affairs, was presented with a metal plaque and trophy from
the Council for the Preservation of Rural England for winning this competition.
An additional prize was a tree of their own choice and the council selected a
flowering cherry that was planted near the entrance to the Abbey Lawn during a
civic ceremony where it still stands and the small plaque nearby reminds us of
this success and of those days when Bourne was a town of which we could be
justly proud.
An award was won for a second time in 1978 when a similar trophy and metal
plaque were awarded by the CPRE and by this time, Bourne had its own town
council and the commemorative tree planting was carried out in the War Memorial
gardens by the mayor, Councillor John Smith, with the mayoress, his wife Judy,
in attendance.
Unfortunately, even these tokens of our past glory have not been well
maintained. The front landscaped area of the Abbey Lawn is in urgent need of
attention while the parlous state of some spots around the Wellhead Gardens have
a neglected air and are not a welcoming sight to visitors. We would all like
Bourne to be collecting prizes for its appearance yet again but I fear that this
may not be happening for some time to come and if the town has become as run
down as some people suggest, and it would certainly not win any prizes today,
then we must look to those who run our affairs to do something about it.
What the local newspapers are saying:
The public inquiry
into house building at the Croft in North Road dominates both of our main local
newspapers this week (June 3rd) with The Local reporting the angry
reaction of those attending when the hearing was adjourned until June 16. The
reason given was that statistics about road safety on the A15 trunk road which
runs past the site were not presented until the last minute, and only then by a
member of the public, revealing that in the past five years there had been three
serious accidents, one fatality and a four-car pile up and it has since been
deemed to be a site of temporary public concern and a speed camera is to be
installed as a result. “I feel that the highways issue has left me lacking the
necessary confidence to make a decision”, said government inspector Peter
Jamieson, “and I will delay the process until I have this information to hand.”
More than 200 people had turned up over the two days of the hearing and their
feelings were summed up by town councillor Trevor Holmes who told the newspaper:
“This is all wrong. People have had to take days off work to attend and now they
face doing the same again at short notice which could seriously affect the
turnout.”
Among those protesting was the town’s M P, Quentin Davies and the Stamford
Mercury gives front page coverage to his speech in which he crystallised the
overall objections from the town, telling the inspector that the site was a
valuable green space that should not be developed. “This is undoubtedly a
greenfield site and we should not be building on it at all”, he said. “The
proposal is nothing short of vandalism and I wholly oppose the development along
with the people of Bourne.”
One of the most telling comments of the inquiry came from John Edmond, the
solicitor acting for the developers, CFD Ltd of Oakham. The Stamford Mercury
reports that he denied claims that the development was out of keeping with the
character of the area. “The properties surrounding the site are undistinguished
and of no great merit, merely providing a function”, he said adding that The
Croft is currently in a dilapidated state.
What he did not say was that The Croft has been allowed to deteriorate by the
present owners who are pressing for the housing development and that at least
one property of character, No 20 North Road, a substantial period house of great
charm, was pulled down in 1990 to make way for the residential development known
as Maple Gardens.
The County News, which is published by Lincolnshire County Council and
distributed free to all households, continues to seek a feedback from those who
pay its bills by inviting requests for information about this topic and that
(June 2005) but anyone who might be so tempted is advised not to bother because
you will most likely be wasting your time. I emailed for some information about
salaries and staffing levels on February 28th but it has still not arrived
although Tina Stankley in the County Treasurer’s Office did send me a message on
April 12th telling me things I already knew and adding: “I will supply the
outstanding information as soon as I have it” although I have heard nothing
since. I also sent off a similar inquiry to Steve Jackson, the Public Relations
Manager, on the same date, but there has been total silence from that
department.
The newspaper also reports with some elation that the council now has 277
entries in the local telephone directories but assures us that a team of workers
at the newly-formed Customer Service Centre is trying to improve the way they
handle more than a million calls every year. “With over 15,000 staff to choose
from, many based in large departments like education, highways and planning and
social services, we do not always get it right”, says the report and so we must
assume that if council staff cannot answer emails, it is doubtful if they will
bother very much with telephone calls.
Incidentally, the last time I checked on staffing levels at Lincolnshire County
Council was in March 2003 when I was informed that the authority had 12,000
staff, making it the biggest employer in the county, but here we have their
official newspaper suggesting that the figure is much higher. Has this council
really taken on 3,000 additional workers in the past two years? I think we
should be told but don’t bother to email to find out.
Shop watch: Travis Perkins, the builders’ merchants in Cherryholt Road,
always appears to be one of the most gloomy retail outlets in Bourne for it
is not a joyful experience to shop there and the staff give the impression that
they might benefit from a few sessions at a charm school. I called in this week
for a bag of red stone chippings for the garden and was directed between yard
and counter before they could decide who should issue the necessary sales ticket
or give me a price. Eventually, after much tapping on a computer keyboard, an
assistant told me that it would be £7.50 which was exorbitant and even then I
would have to go back into the yard and get an invoice from the lad on duty then
go back into the shop and pay, and then go back into the yard and load up. Too
much money and too much trouble and not a smile in sight so I drove down the road to Branch Brothers,
found exactly what I wanted in the yard, the price clearly marked, loaded a bag
on a trolley, paid at the office and had a joke with the chap at the cash desk and was on my way home in under ten minutes.
The price: £3.49.
The contents of the Bourne web site are kept under constant review and it
is a time-consuming task to ensure that our information is always up to date. We
have an entire page of links to other web sites, including local and national
government, schools, churches, the environment, genealogy and services. The page
is monitored regularly and dead links are removed and so it is essential that
the owners notify us of any changes to their address.
The system for recording visitors to the web site has also been updated and the
new counter indicates that more than 200 people log on most days, a very welcome
statistic that makes our work worthwhile. You may see the diversity of locations
by taking a look at the list of Visitor Countries that is currently being
enhanced with the flags of the nations. If your town or city, state or country
is not among them, please email by using the facility at the bottom of that page
and it will be added immediately.
Meanwhile, the Bourne Forum continues to thrive, stimulating discussion on a
wide variety of topics in a civilised and good-natured fashion. I treat this
facility as I would if editing a newspaper or magazine and that is not to allow
anonymous contributions, which has been my rule throughout 50 years in
journalism. Not everyone agrees and so letters without names and addresses are
printed but it is my opinion that if anyone has a view to express, then they
should have the moral courage to sign it, otherwise it is worthless and could
have been written by anyone. It is also unfair to those who do identify
themselves and so if you wish to join our debates, add you name otherwise it is
unlikely to appear. If there is a good reason for your reluctance, then send me
an email suggesting a nom-de-plume and it will be accepted. The cardinal rule is
that I must know you to be a bona fide contributor, otherwise what you write is
mere graffiti and has no place in the Forum.
Thought for the week: Wherever you decide to live in Bourne will be good
and you will be made very welcome. There are lots of organisations for all of
you to participate in, to create opportunities, to make new friends. We moved
from Peterborough to Bourne in 1987 and have never regretted one single moment.
Good luck to you in your search. – contribution from Sandy Cameron to the
Bourne Forum in response to a query from a family planning to move here and
seeking advice on where to live, Friday 3rd June 2005.
Saturday 11th June 2005
A magnificent display of silver trophies from the heyday
of the BRM of Bourne has gone on show at the Heritage Centre in South Street.
They have been given to the Civic Society on permanent loan by David Owen OBE,
chairman of Rubery Owen Holdings Limited, the engineering firm that eventually
took over the motor racing company founded by Raymond Mays.
The collection comprises 63 cups, salvers and rose bowls collected by BRM and
its drivers, a veritable history of the company that produced the first
all-British car to win the world championship in 1962 with Graham Hill at the
wheel. Forty-nine are already on display and the remaining 16 will be added to
the collection later in the year.
They include trophies presented to BRM at racetracks around Europe where their
cars were successful in Formula 1 Grand Prix events in France, Germany, Holland,
Spain, Austria, Monaco, Belgium and Italy, together with three rose bowls
awarded in consecutive years to top driver Graham Hill after winning the United
States Grand Prix in 1963, 1964 and 1965. Other awards were won in Australia,
South Africa and of course in Britain.
The collection is displayed in four specially built cabinets made from aluminium
and safety glass, all floodlit to show off the trophies to their best effect and
designed by society member Jim Jones, a qualified engineer who used his
knowledge of technical drawings to complete the job, and when they were
delivered from the manufacturers last month, he supervised their installation in
the Raymond Mays Memorial Room on the first floor of Baldock’s Mill where the
Heritage Centre is situated.
The result is a pleasing enhancement of the Memorial Room that was officially
opened in the summer of 1999 by our M P, Mr Quentin Davies, and now perpetuates
the life and times of Raymond Mays CBE (1899-1980) with
photographs, memorabilia and other items related to his career as an
international driver and designer of racing cars.
After winning the world championship, the fortunes of BRM declined and the last
remaining cars were sold by auction at Christies in London in 1981 while the
workshops where they were made are now the Bourne Auction Rooms in Spalding Road
and the engine test house part of the Delaine company’s bus depot.
But the BRM memory lives on. The new display of trophies will be officially
opened on Sunday 17th July when the guest speaker will be David Owen, son of Sir
Alfred Owen who ran the Rubery Owen organisation when it acquired the BRM in
1952. Until now, the silverware has been on show in the firm’s boardroom at
Darlaston in the West Midlands but re-organisation has meant that more space is
needed and so it was decided that the collection should come to Bourne. The
company has met all of the costs for the cabinets, transport and insurance, and
the result is that the Heritage Centre has yet another attraction for visitors
that demonstrates the prestige of an organisation that gave the town international
status in the world of motor racing, an era that is remembered by the stone
memorial erected in November 2003 on the banks of the Bourne Eau in South
Street, just a few yards from Baldock’s Mill.
Mrs Brenda Jones, chairman of the Civic Society, who was instrumental in
arranging the loan of the trophies, is delighted with this boost to the
attractions of the Heritage Centre. “It has taken many months to coordinate
everything but the time and effort have been well worthwhile”, she said. “We also
feel sure that these wonderful silver cups will attract more visitors and help
increase the knowledge of the achievements of the BRM and of Bourne itself.”
There seems little doubt
that the housing stock built up
over the past century is about to be sold off by South Kesteven District
Council, or to use the official term, “transferred” to some form of housing
association or non-commercial landlord. The inner cabinet of six senior members
that governs policy has endorsed the scheme and it has now been voted through by
a majority of members at a full meeting of the council.
All that remains is a ballot of the tenants of the 6,500 properties involved, 535
of them in Bourne. This would appear to be a democratic way forward and one that
persuaded many reluctant councillors to support the proposal, thinking that it
would be the tenants themselves who would decide their destiny. But that may not
be the case.
The council scheme is to hand over its properties for £36 million, around £5,500
each which is 30 times less than the average house price in the United Kingdom.
If residents vote for the housing association, it could mean an uncertain
future. The council would benefit from the sale with an injection of capital but
with no apparent advantage in switching to a new landlord, tenants are therefore
likely to prefer to remain with the council which charges controlled rents and
provides a security of tenure and a reliable maintenance service.
A straw poll has already been held by the council in which 60.2% indicated that
they wished to change ownership while only 35.7% did not. Unfortunately, only
512 tenants responded to the ballot, despite being sent reminders, and anyone
who did not reply was assumed to be in favour of a change of landlord and this
is blatantly unfair.
A detailed media briefing for the benefit of local newspapers has been issued by
SKDC outlining their responsibilities in this matter and stressing the
implications the authority faces in trying to reach the Decent Homes Standard by
the government’s 2010 deadline but the impression is that transferring the
housing stock to avoid expenditure on bringing existing council properties up to
standard is a done deal in spirit if not in deed. The four-page document does
however stress that such a transfer would not take place unless a majority of
tenants taking part in the final ballot voted in favour although there is no
mention of the voting procedures adopted by the council.
This final ballot is likely to be held next year and the result of this will be
binding but the indications are that the voting, as with the recent straw poll,
may again be organised in favour of the council with tenants being asked to fill
in a questionnaire saying whether they want to keep their present landlord or
not and each abstention counting as a tick in the box of approval. This unjust
method would not be acceptable if challenged, as indeed it would be if the
result reflected any evidence of dubious practices. SKDC will also be unable to
keep the result secret because the details must be disclosed to anyone who asks
under the Freedom of Information Act that gives you and me a right to know what
is going on. The council would also lay itself open to an investigation by the
Local Government Ombudsman were complaints to be made and feelings are running
so high in many areas that this would seem to be inevitable.
The council is also unwise to pursue such a controversial issue so soon after it
received a damning indictment of its housing management from the government
watchdog, the Audit Commission, which gave it the lowest possible scores for its
efforts. “It is a poor, no star service with uncertain prospects for
improvement”, said the report and this pitiable showing has been accepted by the
council with promises to do better in the coming year. In the private sector,
those responsible would have resigned or been sacked but in local government,
despite their incompetence being revealed, they cling to office with the support
of their party colleagues. It is not something that gives the public confidence
in them or their deliberations.
There is a growing unease in this country at the way government at all levels
conducts itself but there are no immediate remedies and protest takes a long
time to filter through. In the case of the Blair government, for instance, his
detractors used the general election to give him a bloody nose and his party is
likely to be rejected at the next one. The case is much the same with our local
councillors and transgressions to which they have subscribed that are against
the will and the benefit of the public should be remembered next time they seek
our vote for a return to office. The proposed sale of our housing stock may well
be the acid test for our own elected representatives.
What the local newspapers are saying: John Edmond, the solicitor acting
for the developers who want to build on meadowland adjoining The Croft in North
Road, has not endeared himself to the people of Bourne by telling last week’s
public inquiry that houses in the vicinity were undistinguished and lacking in
merit. A vigorous defence of our urban heritage appears in the Stamford
Mercury in which letter writers point out that virtually all of the houses
along that stretch are fine examples of Victorian and Edwardian architecture,
varied in design, building materials and colour (June 10th). A report on the
protest elsewhere in the newspaper adds: “Residents insist that North Road is of
great merit, containing a pleasant mix of good quality, attractive housing
dating back nearly 400 years in places.”
Henry Humphries, aged 78, who lives in one of them, was particularly incensed.
“These houses are reputed to be some of the best crafted homes in Bourne”, he
said. “They were erected in the early 1900s when builders really knew their
business and I am sure they will be adding to the atmosphere of the town when
those planned for The Croft are long gone.” His sentiments were echoed by Alice
Gray, aged 84, who lives nearby. “The housing along this road is as nice as
anywhere in Bourne”, she said. “It is well built and the difference in styles
create a wonderful impression for people coming into the town for the first
time.”
It would therefore seem that in the eyes of local people, Mr Edmond may have set
a high standard for the developers should they get permission to build the 51
new houses they are seeking although a more judicious judgement of what we
already have would have been wiser counsel and one that would not have alienated
the neighbours.
Most of our busy organisations, whether sporting or social, depend on voluntary
effort without which many would founder and the lack of help is currently
causing a crisis at Bourne Town Football Club because The Local reports a
serious situation in which its future is in doubt (June 10th). Acting chairman
Derek Bontoft spells it out: “We are in a desperate state. If it continues as it
is, then I fear the worst. If urgent action is not taken, the club may be forced
to consider its future level of football or even face closure.”
The problem is that the club has insufficient willing hands to fill places on
the committee, an essential part of any voluntary organisation, and with only
four fit members at present, the workload has become a strain. “We need to
encourage new and especially younger people”, said Mr Bontoft, “and we would
welcome anyone from teenagers upward. If people love football and want to become
involved, they will be welcome.”
Stark warnings such as this surface in many of our voluntary organisations where
willing helpers are thin on the ground. Most usually survive and it is to be
hoped that this will be the case with Bourne Town, one of our old established
sporting organisations. Soccer has been a popular game in the town since the
early 19th century and there were several clubs in existence at various times
but all folded. It has been claimed that the present club dates from 1883 but my
research indicates that it was actually formed on Tuesday 24th August 1897 when
a general meeting was held at the Nag's Head Hotel under the chairmanship of Mr
Robert Gardner who expressed his pleasure at seeing such a large attendance and
added: "I have no doubt that if our efforts are directed on the right lines, we
will be able to organise a football club that will give a good account of
itself. Years ago, Bourne possessed an excellent team and it is our desire to
see the town again take a high place in football annals. We have the material.
It is now only a question of unity and good organisation."
The spirit of club soccer in Bourne has been with us ever since and it is hoped
that sufficient volunteers will come forward to resolve the present crisis.
Thought for the week: My experience of life is that you will find a very
small proportion of fairly worthless people in all social groups including the
comfortably off. Most people are great, whatever their economic status.
-
contribution to the Bourne Forum by Brynley Heaven, of Aslackby, near Bourne,
Thursday 9th June 2004.
Saturday 18th June 2005
The county’s biggest agricultural event of the year, the
annual Lincolnshire Show, gets underway next week with more than 500 trade
stands, 1,500 livestock and equine entries that are expected to attract more
than 70,000 visitors over the two days it is held, on Wednesday and Thursday.
The show is now in its 121st year, providing a venue for agriculture and the
countryside and establishing a link with the towns by showing what farming is
all about. There are also commercial interests with demonstrations of the latest
machinery and food production while show jumping has become an important feature
and a variety of main ring attractions ensure that no one is ever bored.
It all began in 1884 and has been held on the permanent showground near Lincoln
ever since it was established in 1958 although in the years before that it often
travelled to other places around the county and it came to Bourne in the summer
of 1939, shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War, a particularly
auspicious occasion because the guest of honour on the first day was the Duke of
Kent and so it turned out to be a royal occasion.
The site chosen for the event was alongside the A15 near Morton where 57 acres
were brought into use for the massive array of stands, animal pens, marquees and
car parking and 150 bays for machinery, the largest number since 1930, but still
leaving an extensive area of open ground, second only to that available at
Lincoln. Entries in the stock classes were a record, totalling 712. Of this
number, 42 were in a new category for Wessex saddleback pigs but even without
them the entry would still have been higher than that for the three preceding
shows at Scunthorpe, Spalding and Louth respectively. There was also a slight
increase in the Lincoln Red Shorthorn entries and although the number of sheep
was
slightly down on the previous year, both pig and horse classes were better
supported. Shire horses and poultry were also well represented and there were
excellent entries for allotment and garden produce.
The show was held over three days, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, the 21st,
22nd and 23rd of June, and the Duke was scheduled to visit on the first day. He
arrived by plane at RAF Wittering, accompanied by his equerry, Lord Herbert, and
was met by the Marquess of Exeter, the Earl of Ancaster, president of the
Lincolnshire Agricultural Society, Lord Willoughby de Ereseby, M P for Rutland
and Stamford [the constituency which included Bourne] and Wing Commander D V
Carnegie. The Duke motored through Stamford to Bourne with hundreds of people
lining the route to see him pass and as he arrived at the showground in bright
sunshine and drove down the main avenue, the band of the Metropolitan Police
played the National Anthem amid cheers from a record crowd, many of them
children who had been given the day off school to attend.
The town was the smallest the show had ever visited and it had been gaily
decorated with floral baskets hanging from the lamp posts, tubs of flowers along
the streets, flags, banners and bunting festooned from buildings and across the
roadways and special floodlighting effects along the riverside.
On reaching the members' pavilion, the Duke was met by Lord Heneage, chairman of
the Lincolnshire Agricultural Society, and Lord Ancaster presented some 20
officials and members of the committee who had organised the event. Afterwards,
he inspected a guard of honour formed by 120 ex-servicemen from Bourne and then
toured the showground.
He stopped at several stands to talk to company representatives including Mr
Eric Rickards, of Messrs T Rickard and Sons, the agricultural engineering and
implement suppliers, Raymond Mays, who was representing his family firm of Mays
Chemical Manure Company, fertiliser manufacturers, Mr A E K Wherry, of Wherry
and Sons Ltd, corn and seed merchants, and Mr George Stafford, a basket maker of
Burghley Street, whose employees were busy weaving some of their popular wares.
There was also a War Office military display of two light tanks, Bren guns and
other weapons, war being only a few months away.
The Duke had lunch in the stewards' pavilion and in the afternoon, watched the
grand parade of animals in the main ring and presented the supreme cattle
championship cup. He left the showground at 3 pm and returned to Wittering by
the same route.
Although Bourne was one of the principal centres for agriculture at that time,
it was the first occasion that the show had been held there and the local
organising committee raised more than £1,100 as a guarantee fund to ensure its
success. The public attractions included a polo match, trotting races, scurry
stakes, push ball on horseback and a musical ride by the Metropolitan Military
Police. There were also parades of the Cottesmore and Belvoir Hounds and music
by the Metropolitan Police Band. Other attractions included displays of
horseshoeing, acetylene welding and practical beekeeping with exhibitions of
honey, hives and appliances, and a colourful floral display in the
horticultural tent.
It was one of the biggest events ever held in the town and also the last for
several years because war broke in September which put an end to all such public
gatherings until 1945.
What the local newspapers are saying: The perfect example of bureaucratic
procrastination is given front page coverage by both of our main local
newspapers this week (June 17th) with reports about the delay in opening the new
south west relief road, now completed but gated and closed while heavy vehicles
continue to cause chaos in the town centre. Lincolnshire County Council, the
highways authority, blames the developers Allison Homes for refusing to sign the
necessary legal documents about the planning gain while the developers blame the
council for failing to sign the required papers adopting the road.
The planning gain is due from the developers in return for building the
2,000-home Elsea Park estate on 300 acres of farmland to the south of the town
and it includes the road but this project did not proceed without long and
protracted negotiations over finance and now a second stage of the so called
S106 agreement, the legal contract which formalises what will and will not be
provided, appears to be the subject of the latest dispute, the building of a new
primary school for children who will be arriving to live there.
Meanwhile, opinions on both sides are polarised, each one blaming the other. No
doubt the truth lies somewhere between the two but in the meantime, a road which
has been the subject of great controversy and repeated delays ever since work
began three years ago stands idle while the finer points are thrashed out and the
traffic situation in our main streets worsens daily. The Stamford Mercury
reports Martin Chandler, technical director of Allison Homes, saying: “The road
itself is ready” while The Local quotes the county council’s highways
manager Brian Thompson as saying: “All we need do is move the bollards and the
road could open in ten minutes.”
The people of Bourne will therefore be asking why it cannot be opened immediately
and the argument settled afterwards. But the official mind does not work like
that and public benefit always comes a poor second to procedure although I
suspect that when these newspaper reports become widely read in the town, there
may be a rush to use the new road over the weekend despite the bollards and
barriers. In the meantime, both sides might take some advice from the Duke of
Edinburgh who once famously said [in a London speech in 1961]: “It is about time
someone out there pulled their fingers out.”
The discussion over the future of The Croft in North Road is now all over bar
the result of the public inquiry and The Local reports on the last day
held at the Corn Exchange on Thursday to consider residential development on the
meadowland surrounding the house (June 17th). Final pleas mainly concerned the
traffic implications on the A15 trunk road which runs past the site and the
government inspector Peter Jamieson was left in no doubt about the fears of
local people that increased vehicle flows would endanger residents. Opposition
to the scheme from South Kesteven has been lukewarm so far but the newspaper
quotes a spokesperson as saying: “We believe this to be a cramped and oppressive
development which would not be in keeping with the historic market town of
Bourne and we urge that the scheme be turned down for the good of the people.”
Mr Jamieson will now go away and consider what he has heard during his three
days in Bourne listening to the pros and the cons of the appeal that has become
a cause célèbre in recent planning applications. We are not privy to his
deliberations but emotion will play no part in his decision that, we hope, will
be based purely on the facts. Opposition from local people has been passionate
but legal arguments by the developers have been equally intense and so his task
will be a difficult one. We can expect the result in four to six weeks and until
then, the fate of this small slice of green belt in our urban landscape remains
uncertain.
The Bourne web site is read around the world and we have a large
following in America that accounts for almost 20% of our weekly visitors. People
from practically all of the 50 states have logged on at some time during the
past seven years, including Alaska and Hawaii, California and Arizona,
Mississippi and Texas, but for some inexplicable reason the State of
Massachusetts produces the highest number with over 30 towns and cities
recorded.
They are Acton, Beverly, Boston, Bourne, Boxford, Boylston, Braintree, Brockton,
Brookline, Cambridge, East Falmouth, East Taunton, Fall River, Framingham,
Hamilton, Hudson, Hyde Park, Leominster, Lowell, Malden, Marston Mills, Medford,
New Bedford, Newton, Raynham, Sandwich, Seekonk, Springfield, Sturbridge,
Tyngsboro, Wilbraham, Woburn and Worcester.
Most of the names are evocative of England because they were given them by
immigrants from this country who sailed to the New World in past centuries and
perhaps this is the reason why the web site is so popular over there.
Massachusetts is one of the original 13 states, first settled by the Pilgrim
Fathers in 1620 and becoming part of the union in 1788. It is situated in the
north-eastern part of the USA and is variously nicknamed the Bay or Old Colony
State. It covers an area of 8,299 square miles, has a population of more than
six million people, the capital is Boston and it is rich with a diversity of
industries including electronics and optical equipment, precision instruments,
dairy products, fruit and fish. The state also has a chequered Civil War
battlefield history with many national parks and museums while the town of Salem
was the site of the infamous witch trials of the 1690s.
There is also a wealth of interesting places on the eastern seaboard, including
Plymouth where the Mayflower carrying the pilgrims from the old country landed
in 1620, several former whaling ports and a small town called Bourne that
produces many of our visitors. This is a medium-sized rural community at the
gateway to Cape Cod and the Cape Cod Canal runs through it, crossed by the
Bourne and the Sagamore bridges as well as a lift railroad bridge. The canal is
well known for its superb game fishing, scenic bike rides and for carrying ships
flying the flags of all nations while the scenic park campground can be found
beneath the Bourne Bridge and is a perfect location for those seeking to enjoy
the canal.
The town has numerous quiet harbours and inlets for boating and swimming and the
shell fishing in the area is particularly enticing. It is a quiet community
without the summer tourist crush experienced by some of the other Cape
communities although the annual Bourne Scallop Festival, which is held in early
September each year, brings visitors from across the nation.
Thought for the week (1): The penalty that good men and
women pay for failing to participate in public affairs is to be governed by
others worse than themselves. – Plato, Greek philosopher (429-347 BC).
Thought for the week (2): The politicians keep banging on about global
warming yet how do they explain that the past few months have been as cold as
Christmas. – overheard while shopping at Sainsburys supermarket in Exeter
Street, Thursday 16th June 2005.
Saturday 25th June 2005
The continuing delay over the opening of the south west
relief road despite it being completed several weeks ago highlights the
difficulties in enforcing planning gains promised by developers building new
housing estates.
This particular project is the responsibility of Allison Homes, agreed with
South Kesteven District Council when planning permission was granted in 1999 for
the building of 2,000 new houses on 300 acres of farmland to the south of the
town and known as the Elsea Park estate. The scheme is well advanced and it must
be admitted that it looks good although there are still reservations as to how
the town will cope with the eventual influx of an additional 6,000 residents.
The benefits of a planning gain are the subject of a Section 106 agreement
(S106), the legal contract that formalises what will be provided by the
developer for the new community and it is up to the council to ensure that they
do eventually materialise although in some parts of the country these agreements
have been drawn up in a sloppy fashion and have proved difficult to enforce.
The provisions are meant to benefit the community but the case of the new road
has been the subject of headlines in our local newspapers for many months
reporting problems with finance, building delays and adoption, and now we have
the sorry sight of the developers and Lincolnshire County Council, the highways
authority, squabbling in public while the new carriageway remains closed and
traffic piles up in the town centre. Furthermore, there are signs of yet more
dissension over a second stage of the planning gain, the building of a new
school which is a vital necessity to cope with the influx of children at a time
when our existing classrooms are already overcrowded.
It is therefore worth recalling the euphoria expressed by SKDC in 1999 when the
Elsea Park estate was first mooted, the biggest single development in the
history of the town which will increase the population of Bourne by 50% within a
decade but putting more pressure on schools, the library, public transport,
leisure amenities, medical and other facilities. Yet this controversial project
was pushed through despite widespread public opposition because of the loss of
green belt land and fears over the subsequent effects on the infrastructure and
the planning gain was the main plank of the council’s argument in favour of
endorsement.
An exhibition was held at the Red Hall in October 1999 in an attempt to
allay public fears but many of the 200 people who attended came away totally
dispirited by the experience because there was insufficient information over the
provision of the additional facilities needed to cope with such a massive influx
of people. Visitors were told that the development would take ten to fifteen
years to complete although no time schedule was given for the new services that
were included in the plan. Nevertheless, this is what the developers proposed
and the council agreed:
-
A primary school for local children
-
A multi-purpose community hall
-
Sites available for a doctor's surgery
and crèche
-
Cycle, pedestrian and vehicle links and
a shuttle bus route through the development
-
Sports pitches, toddler play area and
nature conservation areas
-
Links to Bourne town centre and existing
public footpaths to the surrounding countryside
-
Retention of the majority of existing
site features e g hedgerows, ponds, etc
-
The south west relief road to reduce
traffic congestion within Bourne town centre
-
Measures to
safeguard and enhance the
ecology including the protection of Math and Elsea Woods, a Site of Special
Scientific Interest
Despite the opposition, members of the council’s planning and
development control committee voted 15-1 in favour of granting outline planning
permission when they met on November 2nd and this was subsequently ratified by
the full council and building began in the summer of 2001. The Elsea Park estate is now
a fact and already part of our topography while many of the newcomers have
embraced their new way of life and are fast becoming integrated with the
existing community.
It is therefore up to the council to ensure that the terms of the planning gain
are enforced with as little inconvenience to the public as possible but if the
haggling over each provision is to be as prolonged and bitter as that over the
road, then we are in for a very long wait indeed.
What the local newspapers are saying: “Arguments continue and bypass
stays shut” says a headline over a report in the Stamford Mercury by
James Westgate detailing the latest developments in the fiasco over the south
west relief road (June 24th). He also quotes one of our county councillors, Mark
Horn, the newly elected member for Bourne Abbey, who accuses Allison Homes “of
holding the people of Bourne and the council to ransom”. It does appear that the
company has the whip hand in the current situation and is adopting a cavalier
attitude to its responsibilities in the matter but the newspaper gets very
little help from them in explaining the situation because Margaret Welton,
marketing director, said that they were involved in ongoing negotiations
but “we are not prepared to play them out through the press”.
It is a serious mistake, often committed by large organisations, to treat the
press as a whipping boy, forgetting that newspapers are there for the public to
read and, as in this case, often represent their only source of information.
Refusing to provide explanatory statements as to their conduct over
controversial issues is usually a device to maintain secrecy and an attempt to
deflect disapproval over unpleasant issues but the result invariably has the
opposite effect. Allison Homes is fast becoming the bogeyman in this sorry saga
and one would have thought that a multi-million pound company with such a high
profile in the market place would employ an efficient public relations officer
to keep the people informed and avoid such disparagement and, above all, advise
those responsible to open the road before any further damage is done to its
reputation because the company’s name is fast becoming synonymous with a
stubborn refusal to accept public opinion.
If reason cannot triumph in this matter, then perhaps a little bit of old
fashioned chastisement might do the trick, as reported by The Local in its account of
a meeting of the town council’s amenities committee on Tuesday when the delay
was unanimously branded as “ridiculous” (June 24th). Councillor
Shirley Cliffe told members: “The people of Bourne need this road and if we are
just waiting for two signatures I think they should communicate and get the
papers signed. I just want to bang their heads together and get them to sort it
out.”
Heaven forbid that it should even be on the list yet we are told that Bourne
Wood was once among 500 sites considered for the dumping of radioactive waste.
This alarming revelation appears in the Lincolnshire Free Press reporting
on documents released under the Freedom of Information Act by Nirex, the agency
that handles the country’s nuclear waste (June 21st). Twenty-four of the
potential sites for deep geological depositories were in Lincolnshire but none
of them materialised, Bourne Wood being struck off the list after being deemed
unsuitable because of its size, presumably because the area was too small. We
also have the assurance that it could not happen in the future because Nirex
have issued a statement saying: “The list is no longer current and would not
form the starting point of any further consideration for radioactive waste
sites.”
The Standards Board for England has been showing an interest in this web
site. My ever vigilant monitoring system reported that someone from this
organisation visited on Tuesday and spent some time checking on the contents. I
would hope that whoever it was employed at the quango’s plush offices in Cottons
Lane, London, had no ulterior motive and was merely interested in our town and
wanted to enjoy some of its history which is amply illustrated here. However,
that may not be the case.
The Standards Board is a prying eye, established as an independent organisation
by Act of Parliament in March 2001, and is responsible for investigating
allegations that the behaviour of members, not salaried staff, of a wide range
of public organisations, councils, fire, police and civil defence authorities
among them, may have fallen short of the required standards. The board even
invites accusations about colleagues who might be at fault and it is therefore
the equivalent of the neighbourhood snooper or school sneak, hence my concern
that it has been interested in those who are quoted here.
I hear on the grapevine that a recent Diary entry of mine commenting on local
authority affairs was the subject of a complaint but that was probably too long
ago to be connected with this visit and I imagine that the centre of attention
on this occasion was the Bourne Forum that attracts opinions from all quarters,
including our elected councillors. If by any chance the Standards Board is
investigating these contributions, then it is a matter of serious concern
because it means that free speech is under critical scrutiny.
But then, who could possibly report any of our contributors in such an underhand
manner, especially as these things always tend to become public knowledge before
very long? Surely, it could not happen in Bourne. We sincerely hope not, but
watch this space just in case.
My local government representative, John Kirkman, a member for Bourne
East, lives at the end of the road and while returning home on Sunday morning I
was reminded of his recently elevated status as chairman of South Kesteven
District Council because a large black limousine was parked outside, chauffer at
the wheel and engine running, waiting to whisk him off to an engagement
somewhere because an official car is one of the perks of the job.
Until this year, the council owned and ran its own but in these days when such a
provision is deemed to be an expensive luxury, the work has been contracted out
to private hire and so the owners get the rate for the job and the council is
spared the overheads of maintenance and repairs and wages for the driver. The
chairman of any large authority needs to show the flag at many functions and I
suppose that we cannot expect them to take a bus or walk although our own town
mayor, Councillor Judy Smith, is often to be seen between engagements using
shank’s pony but then Bourne Town Council could not aspire to even a Robin
Reliant let alone a Daimler or some other swish saloon with leather upholstery
in the back to take the strain after an arduous lunchtime or evening session
accompanied by canapés and bubbly.
But it was not always so. The sight of this shiny motor car standing outside
Councillor Kirkman’s house with the engine ticking quietly over reminded me of
past times when official transport for district authorities were unheard of. In
particular, I remembered Councillor Fred Peake, chairman of Old Fletton Urban
District Council, near Peterborough, more than half a century ago when he was
also chairman of the local bench of magistrates. His actual employment was as a
clerk at the local sugar beet factory and to get to and from the office, a
distance of two miles, he used his bike, an unwieldy sit up and beg machine as
they were known, and he pedalled it everywhere, even to the council offices for
regular evening meetings and to the magistrates court where the justices sat
every Tuesday morning.
He used his cycle too for all official council engagements, parking it outside
wherever he was going with all of the other machines and carrying his chain of
office in his pocket ready to slip round his shoulders before being greeted by
the organisers. There was a certain humility in the way he conducted himself yet
he commanded the utmost respect and is still remembered in the district he
served so well. Today, the trappings of office, such as a chauffer driven
limousine, come with the job but the humble cycle was a reminder that Fred Peake
was after all, simply one of us.
Message from abroad: Our 23-year-old daughter Ellie is bicycling through
England this summer and has just called home to wish her Dad a Happy Father's
Day. She met a wonderful family today in Bourne who were enormously kind and
helpful. Since our daughter finished college a few years ago, she has taken to
travelling as often as possible around the world and I visit those same towns on
the Internet whenever possible to keep up with her travels. To my delight, your
website gave so much information and wonderful photos. Your welcoming community
and this exceptional web site are a gift to a parent. Thank You. – email from
Mary Ellen Beaurain, Tucson, Arizona, USA, Sunday 19th June 2005.
Thought for the week: Why should people go out and pay money to see bad
films when they can stay at home and see bad television for nothing?
– Samuel
Goldwyn, Polish-born American film producer whose MGM company made many
Hollywood successes (1882-1974).
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