Parish Council Report:  February 2007:

Hilton

A14 Consultation The Council had finalising its response to the Highways Agency Consultation and the letter was expected be despatched in mid February.  The Council had also urged residents to make their views on the route known to the Agency before the closure date of 9 March 2007.  The A14 Action Group had recently hosted a meeting of other local communities to discuss the environmental impact of the road and how best to make their concerns known.  The meeting was attended by 14 other communities and it was agreed to send a joint letter of concern to the Highways Agency and other agencies and authorities detailing the common environmental impacts and urging the need to provide realistic solutions.

Planning Matters  The Council recommended that an application for an extension at 3 Tithe Close be approved.

Parking on the Green.  The erection of raised verges and posts along Wraggs Row had had some success in reducing the damage caused by vehicles parking on the Green.  The Council agreed to continue to monitor the situation over the coming months.

Crime  The Council noted that the incidence of minor vandalism appeared to have risen over recent months with the most recent incident being the damage caused by joy riding on the Green.  Whilst a number of incidents had not been reported to the Police, damage to fencing in Kidmans Close and further damage to the telephone box had been reported.  The Council agreed to ask the Community Beat officer to be more vigilant to the situation

Closure of Pre School.  The Council noted with regret that the pre-school had decided to close after 33 years in operation.  The Council thanked the Pre School for its contribution to the Hilton community over these years.

Ditches.  Recent heavy rain had raised concerns that the local drainage ditches may need some attention.  Work to clear vegetation from the ditch at the back of the cricket pavilion had recently been completed as part of annual maintenance.  The Council agreed to inspect the remaining ditches and to address any problems found.

Street Lighting.  The Council had recently had a large number of calls to report broken street lights.  The Council urged residents to report outages directly to Cambridgeshire County Council using the telephone number and lamp post number on the post.