Oakington & Westwick

Journal

November 2014

Oakington & Westwick Journal November 2014

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Northstowe It will not be long before actual development work and building starts on Phase 1 of Northstowe, and the outline plans for Phase 2 have been published and completed their consultation period. Probably the most impact this phase will have for residents of Oakington and Westwick in the near future is the closure of Longstanton Road (the “Airfield Road” to many), probably in 2017, to allow the building of an access road into Northstowe from the B1050 near Bar Hill. The work on this may also affect residents at the west end of Longstanton Road and we are asking that any disruption be kept to an absolute minimum. The Parish Council’s response to the Phase 2 plan can be viewed on our website, and covers a number of areas, mostly transport, drainage and environmental issues. Thermal camera The Parish Council will have a thermal camera on loan from November 27th to December 4th, and is again offering the service of a visit to your home with the camera, a survey of where there may be insulation or damp issues that the camera can detect, and a set of photographs that you can use when planning any insulation work in the future. No costs are involved, it is up to you to decide what if anything to do with the information. Other residents have found this very useful in the past. If you would like to arrange a visit please leave your contact details with the Parish Clerk, Laura Lawrence, on 01223 232398, or by email at oakingtonpc@btinternet.com. Martyrs’ Graves Many of you will know of the Martyrs’ Graves, sited near the St Andrews Churchyard. These have very significant historical interest and are a definite feature of the village. Sadly, they are falling into disrepair, and the responsible authority, currently the United Reform Church, has no plans to resolve this. The Parish Council does have powers to maintain such a site, but of course there is a cost involved. We would be interested to hear from anyone who has an opinion as to whether we should, or should not, invest in making the minimum essential repairs to this site. Please contact myself or the Clerk if you would like to register an opinion. Community grant And finally, I would like to remind you that the Parish Council does have the power to bestow a small Community Grant on any local group or organisation that operates in the Parish, and which needs some help toward the cost of some particular project or activity that would be of benefit to all or part of our community. For further details and an application form please contact the Clerk.

Mike Oakley

Chairman

Oakington & Westwick Journal Please send contributions for the next issue to: editor@oakington.org.uk or phone C 234 383 Advertisements: David Chapman C 235 537 canddchapman@btinternet.com Distribution: Mark Darling mark@stuartdarling.co.uk Contributions are strongly encouraged for images from Oakington or Westwick for the front cover and activities for the next issue – please submit to the editor. Editor: Geoffrey Butlin editor@oakington.org.uk

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From the Parish Council Flooding Firstly, I have to report that there has been disappointing progress so far from the organisations involved in our watercourses and drainage. This is shown by the heavy rain on October 13th that again partially flooded a number of roads and properties, but fortunately does not seem to have affected any houses. We have chased the relevant bodies yet again, and will continue to do so until suitable action has been taken. I believe the most important and immediate action needed is the clearing out of all the drain pipes that were blocked during the August flood, or previously, just cleaning out the drain sumps themselves has been insufficient. However, I can report that the Environment Agency are now using the height of the Oakington Brook just west of the village to issue flood alerts, so these should be of much better value. If you have not yet signed up to their free flood warning service, you can do so via this website https://fwd.environment-agency.gov.uk/app/olr/register or call the Floodline on 0345 988 1188 or 0845 988 1188. If you have received a flood questionnaire from the Environment Agency and not returned it please do so as soon as possible.

Oakington and Westwick website www.oakingtonandwestwick-pc.org.uk

Deadline for January issue midnight Wednesday 7 January

to be distributed week beginning 19 January

Oakington & Westwick Journal November 2014

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Police Please allow me to introduce myself. I am Police Sergeant Mark Rabel based at Histon Station and have responsibility for the Histon Panel area – which embraces Oakington & Westwick. I’ve been in post now for about 3 months. For your information I live in this area and have three kids – the two youngest attend local schools. What happens in this area – also affects me – I have a vested interest in your village! South Cambridgeshire continues to enjoy a status of being a safe place to live and work. Our biggest crime problem continues to be burglaries with an average of one a day being committed throughout the area. Sounds a lot? Our geographic patch is approximately 350 square miles – it’s a massive area to patrol. A typical event is that a window is smashed with an untidy search of the house before people make off with small valuables. Its an awful experience for the victim of such a crime with a feeling of violation and the cost of replacing stolen items, repairing windows and changing locks. Awful. In the last several weeks we have apprehended and charged 8 individuals with burglary – interestingly all bar one of these thieves lived outside South Cambridgeshire – suggesting that our area is targeted by criminals. Preventing burglary and catching offenders remains our top local priority. You can help by keeping vigilant for suspicious activity in your area and calling 999 if you feel something is amiss. Statistically there are very few successful burglaries where there is a working alarm system fitted. If you want advice in relation to the security of your property call your local Officer who will be only too happy to help and provide a free security survey. The summer months are gone and we have had relatively little disorder in comparison to the same time last year. We were actively engaged in conducting summertime patrols in the green spaces in your area. Pretty well all events / carnivals have been without major incident. Panel meetings (where your local priorities are set) are held from time to time. They usually start at 7.30 and finish by 9.00pm and are your chance to meet your local Officers, get a more specific update in relation to Police activities in your area and ask questions or just observe. For those that already know me I am also happy to talk about cricket!

Histon Police Station PCSO James Fuller Call: 101

Oakington and Westwick Community Plan

The Village Has Spoken!

Tuesday 25 November

7.00-8.00pm Pavilion (Meeting Room)

o the Community Plan Steering Group have drawn up key

findings from the questionnaires o these will be presented at a short public meeting in the

Pavilion, 7.00-8.00pm, Tuesday 25 November o join us to find out more, share your thoughts and hear

how to get involved o the Plan will be published in early January and working

groups to implement it will then get started

Key Findings o what the Village wants comes in 4 categories:

Ø issues for the Parish Council: - let’s lobby and support

Ø tasks we as a community can take on: - let’s get started

Ø community-led projects which require new resources: - let’s get looking

Ø ideas that need more research: - let’s get thinking

Transport and travel o footpaths and cycleways to be better

maintained and new ones created o more effective speeding restrictions o free school bus for all o more Citi 6 services including

busway stop, or better busway drop-off o open Longstanton Road

Environment o start a community-wide local energy

scheme o become a Transition Village o improve crossroads area o improve dog free zones and dog-only zones o improve woods o better flood protection o

Community o employ village caretaker and handy

person o start local exchange schemes for

skills, services and hobbies o create local market o explore central multi-purpose drop-in community centre o set up support scheme for the elderly o establish welcome initiatives for newcomers o investigate Heritage Centre

Jonathan Chaplin on behalf of the Steering Group

Oakington and Westwick Tennis Club AGM NOVEMBER QUIZ NIGHT! Saturday, 22nd November is just around the corner! Why not get together a team of four for an evening of fine food, fun and some easy questions in the Oakington Sports Pavilion! The bar and raffle complete the evening and we hope to see you there. All are welcome and tickets are available from Sue Heaver, Tel. 232894. It’s still not too late to take out an annual subscription and be part of the Oakington sports scene for a whole year. You can play right through the autumn and winter on our fantastic courts. You will also get the chance to enter the LTA ballot for Wimbledon tickets next year. Please contact Lynda Neech at 19 Manor Farm Close, Oakington, Tel: 234416, for further details on how you can join your local tennis club.

John Barnett secretary

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Thanks Dennis Smith from Coles Lane and his family would like to thank all those who attended Dorothy’s funeral on Friday 29th August and for their contributions which totalled £405.05. The money has been gratefully received by The Royal British Legion which Dorothy was a member of for many years in the Women’s Section, first in Oakington then with Histon & Impington when the village Legions combined and it was here that she was in the post of treasurer for some time. Many thanks

Catriona Livingston on behalf of Dennis.

Oakington and Westwick WI Oakington and Westwick WI has a new home! From now on we will be meeting at St Andrew’s Church Hall at our usual time of 7.30pm on the 2nd Thursday of the month. Many thanks to St Andrew’s Church for their kindness in accommodating us in their lovely facility. We look forward to using the hall on: o THURSDAY 13th Nov for ‘TALES FROM

CAMBRIDGESHIRE’ by Malcolm Busby o THURSDAY 11th Dec, Hi5 QUINTET to include

Christmas refreshments For this, our last meeting of the year, we offer a UNIQUE opportunity…… WHAT BETTER WAY TO TRY OUT YOUR LOCAL W.I. THAN WITH THIS…

Simply cut out this voucher and come along to St. Andrew’s Church Hall at 7.30 p.m.

on Thursday 11th December…IT’S FREE

And not only do we meet monthly but we arrange a host of ‘extras’! Last month we met at the Olive Tree Café for a demonstration on Bee Keeping. On 8th October a group of us went to the Arts Theatre in Cambridge to see Maureen Lipman (of ‘ology fame) in ‘Daytona’, a drama of moral dilemma. On Nov 1st the W.I. centenary baton will pass through our village!

After a photo opportunity at our Village Sign we will have a sociable lunch together at the Olive Tree. We are also organising THIS Village Christmas event, open to all women….

Visit our Oakington and Westwick Women’s Institute

Facebook page!

Saturday 29th November 10am till 1pm at Oakington Pavilion

Be creative, have lots of fun and take away:- Your own unique Xmas Decoration and special Gift Box.

Materials and refreshments provided Cost £6 Phone 01223 232614 to book

Helen Williams

Oakington Singers The highlight of October was the annual Harvest Concert where we sang a couple of our favourite pieces by John Rutter, and gave an acclaimed performance of selected songs from Bernstein’s West Side Story! We’re now concentrating on Christmas music, with the following engagements coming up - do come and support us at any or all of these: o Saturday 13 December – Carol singing in the Grand

Arcade in Cambridge to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Research (2-4pm)

o Monday 15 December – A joint Christmas Concert with the Oaktet in St Andrew’s Church (7pm), raising money for the Ruth & Poppy Nicholas Music Fund which facilitates musical events at Oakington School

o Sunday 21 December – Christmas Carol Service, St Andrew's Church (4pm)

We will also be singing at the Sunday evening service in church for Advent (Sunday 30 November). We are always on the look-out for new singers, so why not join us? We rehearse every Monday evening from 8.00-9.30 pm in St Andrew's church hall, Oakington. Please contact:

Paul Tann 01223 235 567

Should I fear God? ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom’ – says the Bible in several places. So . . . . yes is the answer. After all God is omni-everything and we are omni-nothing! And then there is the natural resistance to God in us all, and the desire for independence from Him. In Jesus time this led men to turn on Him and cruelly kill Him. As we look at that picture of Jesus on the Cross, we should be very afraid. The same desire is in us today: which is why we live in a secular society.

Rev James Alexander

New Councillor- Annette Field I moved to Oakington in 1985, when my husband went to work for FEGS, which at the time was located in the centre of the village. I became involved with the Mum's and Toddlers group and then as my children grew up, playgroup, the primary school and eventually IVC. In 1991 I went back into teaching and was

appointed to a part -time post in the science & PE departments of Bottisham Village College. In 1994 I became full time at BVC and I was appointed a responsibility post in the science department. I retired from teaching in 2011. Since retiring I have become involved in various activities. I'm a member of U3A, I volunteer at Cambridge Arts Theatre and I help with the Camsight swimming group. I have always been involved in Oakington village activities and hope that I would have some useful contributions to make.

Annette Field

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District Councillors' Report It betrays my age, of course, but the death of Sid Vicious was for me a JFK moment: I can still remember precisely what I was doing at the time. Not that I was ever much of a punk, at least not consciously. So with uncomfortable

memories stirred of the late Seventies, I found it reassuring and heartening to learn that Johnny Rotten had been telling people that if they wanted to make the world a better place they should start by getting active in their town halls. Appreciation of the role of local government from such an unlikely quarter undoubtedly helps make it all seem worthwhile. More to the point, our quality of life is enriched by a high standard of public services and facilities, and the more we all participate in supporting them the better our health and wellbeing in the long term. I know I will upset many people by saying that autumn is my least favourite season. Mists and mellow fruitfulness are greatly overshadowed for me by dampness, darkness and decay. Harvest, however, is a time for celebration of course – and in my opinion it certainly has the best hymns. Sadly some of us have been upset by mud on the roads and large vehicle movements at unsocial hours. But let us also be grateful to those agricultural workers among us who still work long hard hours to supply us with plentiful and abundant home-grown food. The organisation Helping Britain Blossom plans to create and restore a hundred community orchards across Britain by 2017. We have been promoting community orchards throughout South Cambridgeshire for several years now, and Oakington already has one. I have donated a bundle of stakes which will be driven into the hard ground to support the trees as they grow. Bear in mind that seven in ten Britons say they don’t know their neighbours well and more than half of those questioned in a recent study said they didn’t take part in community activities. Elderly people are worst affected by loneliness – with all that implies for cognitive impairment. Community orchards offer a productive opportunity for people to come together informally outdoors and do as much or as little physical activity as they are comfortable with – as well as share in the crop! On 8th October members of Longstanton Parish Council and the Northstowe Committee were invited to attend a visit to the site of Phase 1 before considering whether to approve details of earthworks. The volume of dirt being moved during re-profiling of the site is just amazing. Some aspects of sports pitches close to Longstanton village remain to be resolved, but the site visit provided reassurance with regard to drainage issues. The earthworks were approved by the committee on 29th October. At that meeting the committee also approved the application for the Phase 1 primary school, to be named Pathfinder in recognition of the site’s WW2 connections and the school’s church affiliation. The building is designed to accommodate both primary and pre-school children in the long term. In the short term it will also accommodate secondary school students and community uses such as child and family health services, a pop up library, church services, meetings and activities and will serve as a drop in point for agencies and officers supporting the new community.

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Acknowledgement was made at the meeting of the role played by pupils at Oakington Church of England Primary School. During discussion about colour schemes at a briefing in September it had been suggested that the views of an age group more similar to those attending the school should be sought. The chairman praised the mature response of the Oakington pupils, and their views have influenced how the building will look when complete. The strategic partnership that we have formed with Huntingdonshire to protect and transform services has received over half a million pounds of government backing from the Transformation Challenge Fund. We have already made progress towards our goal of jointly achieving annual savings around two million pounds by working together. Some projects will also involve Cambridge City Council, and a separate tie-up will coordinate waste collection and recycling services. You may have noticed slight changes to collection times since our new refuse freighter rounds started in September. Just a reminder that green bins are being collected only once a month in December, January and February. Also, don’t forget that Christmas refuse collections will effectively leap a week over the coming festive season. So, for Oakington and Westwick, it’s green/blue on 9th, black on 16th, blue only on 23rd December, black on 6th January, green/blue on 13th, black on 20th. We realise this means a three-week gap between black bin collections over a period likely to generate more than its fair share of waste, so we are promising to take away neatly bagged “side waste” placed next to full black bins the first collection of the new year. We will be monitoring closely how these arrangements work in practice and will review next year’s schedule according to this year’s experience. Remembrance Sunday will have passed by the time this edition comes out. The occasion is marked with ringing the bells half-muffled before a service at 4pm in the parish church. The Royal British Legion lays a wreath, and representatives from 7 Rifles attend to sound the last post and reveille in memory of Rifleman Andrew Fentiman, who died in Afghanistan. On Armistice Day itself, the last of 888,246 ceramic poppies will have been “planted” in the moat around the Tower of London. As the moat filled up it drew thousands of people not only to admire a spectacular work of art but also to reflect on the sacrifice of all those British and Imperial servicemen. The ring surrounding the tower resembled a stadium and the press of people come to see the poppies made this a collective act of solemn witness. On top of that, every single one of the poppies has been sold in aid of half a dozen charities. 'Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red' has been an example of striking a perfect balance between commemoration and thanksgiving. Your three district councillors are here to help you at any time. Lynda Harford @2whit2whoo

cllr.harford@scambs.gov.uk 01954 251775/07889 131022

Simon Edwards @Cllr_S_Edwards cllr.edwards@scambs.gov.uk 07711 079089

Tim Wotherspoon @TimTheMan1

cllr.wotherspoon@scambs.gov.uk

01954 252108

Tim Wotherspoon

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Vikings U8's Oakington Vikings U8's started their league campaign strongly with their first game against Cambourne on Saturday 13th September resulting in a 5-2 home win. Despite losing an early goal through some initially nervous link up play, two goals in two minutes from Toby Wilson settled the players and saw them all relax and show more of the promise they displayed the collection of friendlies and mini tournaments last season. Wilson added a third just two minutes later with a typically audacious free kick, taken well inside the Oakington half – but unfortunately saw this cancelled out shortly afterwards through another defensive mix up. Reuben Critchley jinked his way through midfield time and again, linking up well with Reeve Mowatt to put the Cambourne defence under continual pressure in the second half. Reeve came close to scoring the goal of the game after a great team build up, but saw his final flourish shave the far post. Breaking through early in the second half Reuben’s efforts were rewarded - the ‘onion bag’ billowing after a ferocious strike to put Oakington 4-2 up. Defensive duties were largely left to Josh Pike, leaving the older Cambourne strikers in no doubt who was in charge and Ralf Beaumont staked a solid his claim for the No. 1 shirt with some brave goalkeeping in the second half. Ollie Ellis made a tentative start as substitute in his first game back after a broken collarbone, but showed enough glimpses of skill to suggest he will soon be back to his best. A brief cameo from debutant Anthony Prowse completed the player appearances. Toby Wilson sealed victory with five minutes to go, cheekily lobbing the Cambourne keeper from 15 yards. An emphatic 11-2 away win at Caldecote one week later established the Vikings’ position as the team to beat this season, and was an excellent reward for the dedication and hours of work put in by Jamie Wilson and Paul Pleasants over the past 12 months. Once again, Reuben Critchley and Toby Wilson filled their boots, with Reeve Mowatt taking a little longer to find his range. A couple of sighters, and the promise of a McDonalds happy meal from mum Jo on the sideline proved just the incentive required as Reeve found the net twice in the final quarter. The return of Aidan and Ethan Seymour-Tompkins shored up the defence alongside Josh Pike to almost impenetrable levels, and once again Ralf Beaumont donned the gloves for the majority of the match, keeping out the opposition with some crucial early saves. Anthony Prowse showed promise in his second game, with some fearless last gasp defending, and Ollie Ellis looked far more confident than the previous week with some real trickery in midfield.All eyes now turn to what promises to be a far stiffer challenge presented by Cottenham in a couple of weeks time.

Richard Beaumont

Oakington and Westwick Table Tennis Club The club meets every Tuesday evening at 7.30 pm at the pavilion and would welcome new players. We have four

tables and spare bats – all you need is a pair of trainers. Please note that an adult must accompany junior players. If you would like any further information, please contact:

Dawn Stokes 01223 236 427

Oakington (at Histon) Country Dance Club

Where are you? Jane and I have been looking forward to seeing you at dancing each month and have been very disappointed that you haven’t come. We really do look forward to seeing you on o Friday, 14th November and/or o Friday, 12th December (Christmas Party Night with

shared refreshments). We meet in Histon Methodist Church Hall, High Street, Histon. CB24 9JD, from 8.00 to 10.00 p.m., usually with live music provided by Heather (violin) and Mike (button accordion) and a guest caller. Adults: £1.50 Accompanied Children: 50p. See you there.

Kathryn Coles

Oakington & Westwick Short Mat Bowls Club Come and give short mat bowls a try on a Thursday afternoon or evening. We have spare sets of bowls for you to use – all you need is a pair of smooth-soled shoes. The afternoon session starts at 2.00 pm and the evening session at 7.30 pm. For further details please contact:

Dawn Stokes 01223 236 427

Tuesday Talk and Tea Join us for our Christmas party time afternoon on: o Tuesday 9th December, 2.45pm, Oakington school.

Entertainment by the Oakington School children, carols with piano accompaniment and Christmas tea.

o January 13th 2015, Oakington School 2.45pm. The Bobby Scheme – up to date information on scams, rogue traders and telephone scams.

Joan Pettit (Chairperson)

OAKINGTON GARDEN SOCIETY This season has started well with Graham Parnwell’s timely advice on ‘Winter hanging baskets’. Followed in October by Rob Brett, talking on his time at the Eden Project and the wider implications of how plants can and must change our world, if we are to survive. o Wednesday 26th.November

Andrew Sankey Smith: Remedies, Cures and Superstitions. 7.30 p.m: St Andrews Church Hall The role of plants in medicine over the centuries.

o Wednesday 28th January 2015

Pippa Temple: Elizabethan gardens and what they tell us. Garden historian, Pippa Temple, on how Elizabethan gardens influenced the development of the English garden. Pippa, with husband Steve, own and are restoring Impington Windmill.

New members always welcome, do come along. May I wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Let’s hope that 2015 will be a glorious gardening year.

Julie Grove

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There are five easy steps to cheaper heating oil: o Step 1: Join the Cambridgeshire ACRE Community

Oil Buying Scheme Complete a membership form or apply online and then set up a direct debit to pay for your future oil purchases.

o Step 2: Receive a reminder to check your oil levels Each month, we’ll remind you to check your tank and notify you of the deadline to place an order. The minimum order is 500 litres.

o Step 3: Place your order online Use our online portal to let us know how much oil you want to buy. Your order increases our negotiating power, so once submitted we regard it as binding.

o Step 4: Sit back whilst our negotiators get the best possible price AF Affinity Ltd negotiate the best price from a range of suppliers. We advise you who the supplier is, the price per litre (exclusive of VAT, currently at 5%) and the approximate date of delivery.

o Step 5: Take delivery of the oil and pay the company The oil will be delivered as soon as possible and your bank account is debited with the amount you owe.

To find out more about the Cambridgeshire ACRE Community Oil Buying Scheme:www.cambsacre.org.uk or contact Julie Weekes on 01353 860850 email oil@cambsacre.org.uk

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Community Oil Buying Scheme Cambridgeshire ACRE’s community oil buying scheme is designed to help purchasers of central heating oil to make savings by buying in bulk. The scheme is open to anyone in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. Community buildings such as churches and village halls as well as businesses which are reliant upon heating oil can join too. The annual membership fee for domestic users is £20 and covers as many oil orders as you need during the course of the year. Through our partnership with AF Affinity Limited, a subsidiary of Anglia Farmers Limited, the leading agricultural purchasing co-operative in the United Kingdom, the scheme makes the most of collective purchasing power. The average saving is usually 2 pence per litre against online prices. In July and August this year members who ordered oil in these months got it at less than 50pence per litre (exclusive of VAT at 5%). The environment benefits too as every time a tanker comes out to make a delivery, it is using a lot of diesel – a full tanker can get as little as a horrifying 8 miles per gallon. If deliveries are organised so that one tanker delivers to several customers in a village, instead of making lots of individual deliveries, the fuel consumption is reduced and so is traffic in the village.

Oakington Primary school

annual Christmas Fayre Saturday 29th November 2:30-

4:30pm

Meet Santa in his grotto, browse around the many stalls, try your luck with the tombola or relax in the cafe with tea and cake!"

Hanna Lumley

1st Oakington Cubs, Scouts and Brownies

Christmas Carol Concert With Cottenham Brass Band

Free refreshments & Grand Christmas Draw Saturday 6th December 2014 2 – 4pm

School Hall, Oakington Please come and join us!

Jenny Prince

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OAKINGTON & WESTWICK HISTORY SOCIETY o Thursday 20th November , 7.30p.m. St. Andrews

Church Hall. Our November meeting shows a new departure from our usual programme. The food Historian and Writer Monica Askay will be here to talk about and demonstrate ‘Christmas food and drink through the ages’. Some of you will remember Monica from the Saxon Day held on the recreation ground during the summer dig. Monica will be bringing with her samples of medieval fare and also some seasonal drinks with, I might add, vegetarian options. There will also be recipe sheets available for those interested in varying this year’s Christmas celebrations. This promises to be a very interesting and enjoyable evening. Is anyone daring enough to turn up in medieval dress? Non-members welcome. Please note that for this month only, non-members will be charged £5 o Thursday 15th January 2015

Gilly Vose: History and Treasures of the Norris Museum.

Gilly is deputy curator of the charming Norris Museum in St Ives. If you haven’t visited this little museum, on the bank of the river, you have missed a fenland gem. Do try to find time to visit during the school holidays.

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7.30p.m. St. Andrews Church Hall Non-member welcome there is a small charge of £3. I hope that some villagers were able to visit the Northstowe archaeology open day in September. Due to the topography and modern development of Oakington it is difficult to envisage our Saxon settlement in context. At Longstanton the hut sites were so numerous you were able to visualise the wider site and sense how these people lived. It also helped that it was on a very bleak flat plain. Alison Dickens has agreed to update us on the Northstowe dig as it develops. May I wish you all a very merry Christmas and Happy New Year: see you in 2015.

Julie Grove

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Our next special event is a FUNDRAISING DINNER on Sat 17 January. We hope to see lots of you there! Our annual concert takes place Sat 14 March, 7:30 pm at Histon Baptist Church. For more information on Ten Sing please contact:

Megan Bate (Yr 13) chair - megan.bate@hotmail.co.uk Or adult coordinator, Iréne Butlin

irene@thebutlins.net - 01223 234 383

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The back half of the old building has been knocked down and is being re-built. Once that has been completed, the daily operations of the shop will move into the newly renovated back half of the shop and the front of the shop will be demolished and re-built. We are very excited about the project and what it will bring to the Oakington Community. We will be better equipped to serve our customers, many of whom are loyal regulars. The shop will also boast more floor space and therefore be able to carry more product lines, as well as house new more energy efficient refrigerators. We hope that you will pop into the store and check out the architectural drawings posted inside; outlining the three phases of development involved in the project, and why not pick up a pint of milk, loaf of bread or simply have a chat with your local neighborhood shopkeepers!

Kanwal and Raj Sanghera

BT Infinity upgrade BT have recently extended their High Speed Internet offering (BT Infinity) further across the village as part of the Connecting Cambridgeshire program and most residents in Oakington and Westwick who could not previously obtain BT Infinity should now be able to get it if wanted. It gives a speed increase of about 13 times your previous broadband speed depending on where you live, at some fairly small increase in cost. Those with Internet providers other than BT may also now have an improved service available, please contact your ISP to see what they can now offer.

Mike Oakley

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Oakington Village Store & Post Office Expansion Project We have been operating the local shop for 23 years and are proud members of the community who have raised our family

in the village and fully intend on retiring (one day!) in Oakington. We made the decision to begin a remodel on the shop earlier this year. The post office has been closed since May 2014 and is due to re-open on 17th November 2014. Currently the shop is operating in the front half of the old building.

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Cambridge Ten Sing This autumn we have enjoyed two special events. The first one was a team building day at the East Coast. The weather was amazing and we enjoyed activities on Hemsby beach for several hours before 10-pin bowling in Gt Yarmouth. During half term we took part in an informal Ten Sing Festival, with guests from our friendship group in Norway. The weekend had been planned by a young people's committee, giving them experience in organising an event. The activities included choir, dance, drama and media workshops, reflections, a performance and not least a Fundraising Fair. You could have your face - or nails - painted, get a henna tattoo, take a quiz, sing karaoke - and more - all in aid of Gt Ormond Street Hospital. We have about 30 members and have room for more :) So if you are at secondary school and would like to meet regularly with other young people, do come and see if Ten Sing is for you! This year we are particularly in need of somebody to operate the sound system, update our website and more. We meet Thursdays in term time, 7-9pm at Histon Baptist Church. We are part of YMCA Cambs & Peterborough and subs are £40 per year.

Oakington Post Office is due to re-open on 17th November 2014