Eastern Expansion – Have Your Say

MK Council is consulting on the future of the land around the A421 on the eastern edge of Milton Keynes, including Church Farm.

Developments are decided in three stages, with consultation at each stage, and it’s important to understand that what is decided at each stage can’t normally be changed later:

Stage 1 – this one – the brief.  This stage will set what is included in this development, eg. whether a main road or a community facility is there or not.  That much will be fixed now.   If you do want to comment at this level, the time to do it is now!

They’ll also give an outline of their intended layout, so that you can influence their thoughts before they draw up the final outline plan for stage 2.

Stage 2: Outline Plan – typically this sets the access roads and the basic layout of what goes where. It’s often accompanied by a “design code” which sets the look and feel of the development.

Stage 3: Detailed plans of each part – this sets the fine details of what goes where and the detailed design.

There will be exhibitions for you to see the Stage 1 brief and make comments on:

Wednesday 4 September, 5.30pm-7.30pm
At: Wavendon Community Centre, Walton Road, Wavendon

Thursday 12 September, 5.00pm-7.30pm
At: The Memorial Hall, High Street, Woburn Sands

 

Saturday 14th September, 2.00pm-4.00pm
At: Wavendon Gate Pavilion, Isaacson Drive, Wavendon Gate, MK7 7RZ

There are also copies in libraries and on MK Council’s website under Planning Policy.

Cllr Jenni Ferrans checks the proposals for the new development along the A421.

Cllr Jenni Ferrans checks the proposals for the new development along the A421.

No GP for Walton Grange

Residents of Walton Grange have been telling the Lib Dem Focus team about the problem of not being able to register with the local Walnut Tree GPs.  They are being referred to GPs two buses and a long walk away!

Jenni Ferrans and Vanessa McPake have met with NHS England and with the Health Centre.  They reminded NHS England that money was available from building Walton Grange to expand health services.  They are all going away to have meetings and think about it!

The Lib Dems think this is a poor show, they should have sorted out how the local GPs could take on local Walton Grange residents before the houses were even built!  They have had years to sort this out!  The Focus team will keep you posted.

Cllr Jenni Ferrans and Vanessa McPake outside Walnut Tree surgery

Cllr Jenni Ferrans and Vanessa McPake outside Walnut Tree surgery

Lotsa Litter!

Why does the Conservative run MK Council not collect litter in our play areas often enough?
That is what the Lib Dem Focus team wants to know after visiting all our play areas. They found unacceptable litter in almost ALL of them!

Litter, litter everywhere in the play areas! Top: Vanessa McPake and Cllr Jenni Ferrans at the whirligig play area, Kents Hill. Right: Cllr Subhan Shafiq near the river in Monkston Park. Left Subhan and Vanessa in Walnut Tree.

Litter, litter everywhere in the play areas! Top: Vanessa McPake and Cllr Jenni Ferrans at the whirligig play area, Kents Hill.
Right: Cllr Subhan Shafiq near the river in Monkston Park. Left Subhan and Vanessa near the community centre in Walnut Tree.

Bollard Chaos!

Vanessa McPake with a local resident at the bollard in Luttlemarsh, Walton Park.

Vanessa McPake with a local resident at the bollard in Luttlemarsh, Walton Park.

Vanessa McPake had been told by Tory run MK Council that the loose bollard in Luttermarsh, Walton Park was fixed.  Cleary it had not been yet!  And it was the same story in Monkston, where Jenni Ferrans was told the Flaxley Gate bollards had been fixed.  Jenni has asked the Council to investigate what it’s contractors are doing!

Landcape Problems – and Success!

In Monkston, Jenni Ferrans and Vanessa McPake got the overhanging branches cut back so you don’t get hit when walking along Blanchland Circle.

But in Kents Hill it was a different story.  Vanessa McPake and Subhan Shafiq took out their secateurs in Eridge Green, Kents Hill to cut back the dangerous brambles after the Council said that keeping the path open was “not a priority”!

Pruning the path on Eridge Green, and before and after pictures under the trees along Blanchland Circle.

Right and top: Vanessa McPake and Jenni Ferrans in Blanchland Circle, Monkston.
Left, Subhan Shafiq and Vanessa McPake pruning near Eridge Green, Kents Hill

Bad Buses

Vanessa McPake checks the reliability of the no 12 bus.

Vanessa McPake checks the reliability of the buses after lots of complaints

Ever since the Conservative run MK Council cut the bus subsidy by nearly £1/2 million, your local Lib Dem team has been concerned about the quality of the service.

Bus user, Vanessa McPake, has been keeping an eye on the bus changes in our area since the new timetable came into force.  She has been contacted by residents about the nos. 8 & 9 services not running on time.

Do tell Vanessa by providing: the date location of bus stop time the bus was supposed to arrive time it did arrive.

She will then take up the problems with Arriva who run these services

Broadband – Any Broadband – for Walton Grange!

Walton Grange needs broadband – that was the message from residents recently as you told us about speeds of only 0.5mbps on supposedly 10MB connections.

“The problem is that Walton Grange is about as far as you can get in MK from the local telephone exchange – and that means slow broadband.” said Cllr Jenni Ferrans.  A number of solutions have been tried over the years, but the best is to get fibre-optic cables laid.  That’s less dependent on distance, so even low speed connections would work far faster, and superfast connections would be available.

However, BT insists that it’s not economic to connect Walton Grange – despite connections to neighbouring estates only 100m away!

“BT have made their position clear.  We are campaigning now to get Walton Grange included on the Council’s government-funded programme to connect up the uneconomic areas“, says Jenni.  “Please email the Council on [email protected]  if you want faster broadband.”

The Council will make the decision about which areas to go for in August or September.