campaigning – Katie Thornburrow

Working to Improve the Cam

We all care about the Cam and the chalk streams that supply it, and we all know that no plan for the future of Cambridge or the greater Cambridge area can go ahead without some solution to the water crisis that we face – itself just one aspect of the much wider climate crisis.

This is something I’ve been arguing for years, and in 2019 I organised the first major meeting about water in the region. Since then, it has been acknowledged by all the local councils and MPs from every party, and widely reported (as here in the Cambridge Independent).

So it’s a real pity when we see members of one party misrepresent the steps that we are taking as a City Council to do something positive to improve the quality of the Cam, put pressure on the water companies and the Environment Agency to take action, and raise awareness of the importance of our water supply.

Cambridge Needs More Than Content-Free Headlines

The Sunday Times (9 July) has a breathless report that Michael Gove is thinking of building a quarter of a million new homes in Cambridge, in order to turn the city into a ‘tech leader’, and that he will send a planning ‘hit squad’ over to ensure that annoying irritations like ‘eco rules’ don’t get in the way of his brilliant plan.

Apparently this will help to ‘fix England’s housing crisis and unleash growth in the life sciences and technology sectors’.

Let’s ignore for the moment that the chances of Gove still being Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities after next summer are very slim – indeed it is unlikely that his band of failed Tories will be anywhere near ministerial office.

And let’s ignore for the moment that the ‘tightly guarded’ plan, which goes under the mysterious code name ‘Cambridge 2040’ (I wonder what it could be about…) seems to consist of some under-researched aspirations and a briefing to a friendly newspaper in a desperate search for positive headlines.

What would it take to actually deliver such a plan, assuming we wanted it?

Thank you, Petersfield

Petersfield Results
Katie Thornburrow 1302 votes 50 per cent
Emmanuel Carraud 509 votes 19 per cent
Joshua Morris-Blake 449 votes 17 per cent
Paul Roper 370 votes 14 per cent

Thank you to everyone who voted in Petersfield on 4th May. Thanks to the other candidates Emmanuel Carraud, Joshua Morris-Blake and Paul Roper, who also stood in our democratic election for a seat on Cambridge City Council.

I’m grateful to have been returned as your councillor. Thank you for every vote. Thank you for telling me about your lives and issues over the last few weeks. Thanks for listening to me and reading my leaflets.

I’m your candidate for Petersfield

I’m pleased to say that the Petersfield ward has chosen me to seek re-election as the city councillor, and I’m standing in the local elections on Thursday May 4.

When I was first elected to Cambridge City Council in 2018 I promised people three things: that I would fight fairly for my arguments and always listen to and work with people from all sides of the political arena; that I’d stay in touch, even when I couldn’t sort a problem; and that I’d be here all year round, not just at election times. I believe I’ve fulfilled these promises, and if re-elected in May I will continue to live up to them.

Within the ward that means representing residents when a much-loved tree was threatened, finding funds for benches, bee banks and hedge replacement, and listening carefully to all sides on controversial issues like Mill Road bridge.

I’ve helped limit the number of builders’ lorries moving through our streets, and even got a major planning application near the station revised because it didn’t allow for walking or cycling.

And I’ve worked across the region to highlight the water crisis, helped develop the emerging local plan, and supported the consultation on the sustainable travel zone.

I hope that you’ll support me on May 4, so that I can continue to work with my fellow councillors for everyone in Petersfield, as Labour delivers One Cambridge Fair for All.

Trees on St Matthew’s Piece

The City Council has received an application to completely remove the three mature plane trees on St Matthew’s Piece opposite 191-193 Sturton Street, an application which I, along with other local councillors and residents groups, oppose. Although the application claims that the trees are causing subsidence and structural damage to the houses, there is no clear evidence that this has happened, and certainly not enough to justify the removal of these important trees, which are an integral part of the local area and much-loved by all of us who use St Matthew’s Piece.

Although they are on land owned by the St Matthew’s (former Howard Mallet) Centre they are covered by tree preservation orders and fall inside the Mill Road conservation area, so they cannot be cut down or pruned without an application to the Council. In fact, this is the second application about these trees. A request to cut 5m from each tree, 22/0271/TTPO, was refused on 1st August 2022 due to lack of evidence that they were causing damage.

Now that the application has been received the council has six weeks to make an assessment. As well as considering if the reason for the proposed works are valid, the council has to assess the trees’ contribution to the visual amenity of the area, and whether the proposed works would adversely affect the appearance of the trees and/or the visual amenity value of the locality.

The technical term ‘visual amenity’ considers how the height, shape, shadows and colours of the trees contrast and complement the streets and surrounding buildings, something especially relevant to mature trees like these in a built-up area. it also covers the ways the trees change through the seasons and how that enhances the area. And it can also include the contribution made by the birds, bats and insects within the trees.

It seems clear to me, and to many others, that the amenity provided by these trees is substantial, especially to the many children and families who enjoy using the space and its playground,. They form part of only three significant open space areas in Petersfield, which is mainly residential streets. They contribute to a green oasis within this urban setting, with significant cooling effects, and are home to a range of birds and bats.

We should also remember that they are part of the history of Cambridge. The land that forms St Matthew’s Piece was bought in 1891-2 because the “provision of open spaces was one of the best provisions they could make, not simply for the health of the town but for the morality of the town” and a resolution for the establishment of a “recreation ground” was passed, in the interests of the 2,000 children in the “immediate neighbourhood” was made. It was opened in 1898, and it needs to be protected so we can continue to benefit from this wonderful area.

Because these trees are so important, I wanted to speak out before the planning committee discusses the application. That means that I will not take part in the discussion and vote, even though I’m a member of the committee, as all members are required to consider applications during the meeting, and making my views known in advance would compromise that.

Rail is key to Cambridge’s Future

I wrote an article recently for the East Anglian branch of Railfuture, raileast

You can see the whole issues here on the RailEast website

It’s a real privilege to represent Cambridge City Council on the East West Mainline Partnership, and an opportunity to ensure that we can make a full contribution to improving rail services in the region.

It also reflects the commitments made by Cambridge Labour, the controlling group on the City Council, to support further rail investment and improvements, acknowledging what has currently been achieved and building on it.

Our wider transport strategy is clear about the importance of rail and the City Council, via the County Council as the transport authority, made a commitment to support investment and improvements in the rail network through the 2014 Transport Strategy for Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire, which supports our current 2018 Local Plan.

It’s great that all the planned rail service improvements have been implemented along with many of the future service enhancement sought, but the main outstanding development is the Bedford to Cambridge connection.

Fortunately funding has been allocated for the feasibility, contracts and delivery of the Stage 3 Bedford to Cambridge section and, subject to ministerial approval, could be approved in the next few weeks but with so many changes in the government we may have to wait longer to know if this will be granted or not.

And we want to go further, with a proper assessment of routes from Norwich and Ipswich to Bristol and Cardiff via Cambridge. We need a more extensive, integrated rail system that is not London-centric, one that reflects changing patterns of living and working.

It is vital that we get this right: a modern transport system needs to work for people in their daily lives. People shape their lives around transport systems, asking whether there is a bus stop near home or work, how long it will be to cycle to a rail station or get to the shops or GP surgery.

These are fundamental considerations, and we will be judged on how effectively we can deliver. Working with the East West Mainline Partnership offers a significant contribution to achieving our shared goals.

The Equiano Bridge

This morning I joined hundreds of other people at the official ceremony to name the Equiano Bridge on Riverside. Along with other councillors including Gerri Bird, Hilary Cox Condron, and Neil Shailer, Cambridge Mayor Jenny Gawthrop Wood, and combined authority mayor Nik Johnson, we heard speeches from those involved in the campaign, and saw the plaque unveiled.

This marks the end of a successful campaign started by Cambridge African Network and Circles of Change, Cambridge and supported by The Equiano Society, London, and was a wonderful way to celebrate the last day of Black History Month.

The crowd gathers for the plaque unveiling

The bridge is named for Oluadah Equiano, born in Essaka – modern day Nigeria – who was enslaved at the age of 11 but eventually bought his own freedom and settled in London in later life. He was a powerful advocate for abolition, and wrote an autobiography. He is generally acknowledged as the first political activist within Britain’s African community in the 18th century.

Oluadah Equiano had several ties to Cambridge through his work with Cambridge-based abolitionists. He married Cambridgeshire woman called Susannah Cullen and one of their daughters, Anna Maria Vassa, is buried in St Andrews Church in Chesterton.

Find out more at the Equiano Bridge website
http://equianobridge.org.uk/ and at the Equiano Society website at https://equiano.uk/

Restoring Our Chalk Streams

Chalk streams are one of the most important water features in this area. They are a globally rare habitat in Northwest Europe and an important habitat to the UK – our equivalent of rainforests. They are hugely important for supporting biodiversity, as they support a wide range of flora and fauna including freshwater sponges, brown trout, and mayflies.

So it was a real pleasure to work on a restoration project for Cherry Hinton Brook, along with Ruth Hawksley of the Wildlife Trust, Cambridge City Council, Friends of Cherry Hinton Brook and other environmental activists.

We met at the Daws Lane bridge to reshape the bank and improve the flow of water by restricting the brook in some areas, returning it to the state it was in before the area was developed.

Katie using a sledgehammer to hammer in a post

In 2019 I convened a forum on the water crisis facing the region (you can read our full report here on my website), and we highlighted the importance of the chalk streams, so it was great to get my hands dirty – and my feet wet – helping improve them.

Dealing with the Water Crisis in the Cambridge Area

The work was covered by BBC Look East and you can see the report here

#StopRwanda

The great people at Care4Calais are fighting to stop Government plans to forcibly send refugees to Rwanda, a cruel and inhumane policy that I absolutely oppose.

Apart from the many issues around sending people to a country that they have no connection to, anyone sent to Rwanda will no longer be inside the UK asylum system, so if their application for asylum fails in Rwanda they won’t come back here – they will be sent somewhere else by the Rwanda government.

Yesterday I wore my #StopRwanda t-shirt around Cambridge, and I’ll be working with Cambridge Labour to do what we can to get this plan cancelled.

Katie cycling in her t-shirt. The message reads “If you are neutral in situations of injustice you have chosen the side of the opppressor”

You can buy your t-shirt directly from Care4Calais at
https://shop.care4calais.org/product/stop-rwanda-t-shirt-mens/

Facing up to the cladding crisis

As an architect and a local councillor I’ve been following the Grenfell Inquiry with enormous interest, and have been appalled by the evidence that has emerged. The implications for the safety of our buildings are severe, and the impact on residents has been enormous – both emotional and financial.

Last July I convened a forum to discuss building quality issues (you can find out about it here on my website), and this month I’ve written an article for Cambridge Architecture, the magazine published by the Cambridge Association of Architects. I’m republishing it here

Cover of Cambridge Architecture issue 82

We should all care about the quality of the buildings around us, whether they are council homes, private developments, schools, offices or civic buildings. Since the Grenfell Tower disaster in 2017 attention has rightly focused on concerns about unsafe cladding, with serious concerns about the safety of people living in affected properties, the costs of replacing potentially dangerous materials, and who should pay.