From our District Councillor
A recent MORI poll revealed East Cambridgeshire as being the fifth best place
in Britain to live. Out of nearly 499 districts assessed, it is a compliment
for our area to be given this recognition. Ely's Jubilee Garden's won
the Green Flag award, the only park in Cambridgeshire to receive this honour,
and Dullingham triumphed in the Village of the Year competition.
But the District is not entirely a land of milk and honey. There are serious issues confronting us. Beautiful countryside, good transport, virtually zero unemployment and a buoyant economy all bring their won challenges -- affordable housing, traffic congestion, the need for more schools, medical care and recreational facilities. These are some of the issues the council is tackling in order to maintain our high-ranking as one of Britain's best places to live. One issue we must try to address is housing that is affordable.
Cambridgeshire is going through a period of rapid economic growth, with thousands of people wanting to move here from other parts of the country. This results in rising house prices, rising levels of homelessness, and a shortage of workers in some key areas.
Affordable housing can be for rent from a housing association or through shared equity housing, where people buy a proportion of the house from a housing association and rent the rest. Shared equity housing is a way to get into the housing market for people who cannot afford full market prices. Last year work began on 184 new affordable homes, with a target of 150 a year thereafter. The housing associations insist on a high standard of construction, and the people who have moved into these houses are usually very happy with them.
If anyone would like any advice on this matter, the East Cambridgeshire District Council Housing Advice Team can be contacted on 01353 665555.
License Applications - Be aware of your rights!
The way that the government has framed new licensing laws can be problematical. What happens is that the licensee first places a public notice in a local paper, and this is usually missed by the general public. They then put a notice on their premises. At this point any affected residents only have twenty eight days to object in writing. If there are NO objections by members of the public, the police or the fire-service, the application will be APPROVED.
So be aware of your rights.