Wicken Parish Council – Annual District Council Report 2026

DISTRICT COUNCILLOR ANNUAL REPORT

April 2026

Cllr Lucius Vellacott – Soham South and Wicken, Conservative

Cllr Ian Bovingdon – Soham South and Wicken, Conservative

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Wicken Annual Parish Meeting

It has been a privilege to serve Wicken and Upware on the District Council since being elected in May 2023. Here is a short summary of what we’ve been up to in 2025-26.

The Bus Situation (*dramatic music plays*)

Lucius brought the Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Paul Bristow, to Wicken in November to discuss the possibility of a timetabled bus service. Paul has agreed to include this proposal in the franchising plans for the region, which are currently subject to legal review so are at least 12 months away from materialising, but this is progressing.
The village continues to be served by Tiger on Demand since January 2025, following a campaign by ourselves, the Parish Council and Councillor colleagues. This is the first regular public transport in Wicken for over 10 years. We strongly encourage residents to demonstrate demand by downloading the app or calling the number; the service must be booked, but can take you anywhere in East Cambs for the usual fare, or free with a bus pass.

Local Updates in Wicken and Upware

The big win of the year was getting DEMAT to reverse their immoral proposal to exclude Wicken children from the priority admissions criteria to St Andrew’s Primary School, leaving them without a designated school. A robust cross-party response involving all types of councillors, Members of Parliament and professional bodies meant the decision was not implemented. We will always stand up for Wicken’s youngest residents!
Another big win was the opening of the Soham to Wicken Non-Motorised Vehicle Route (‘cycle path’). Congratulations to all Councils in the area who funded and delivered this.
It is a shame, especially for young rural families, that permission for 4 small properties on Chapel Lane (outside the agreed development envelope) was refused by the Government on appeal, but a large and undoubtedly very expensive 5-bed property was approved.
I am disappointed but not surprised that my Planning Committee colleagues could not find a sufficient reason to refuse the Battery Storage application off Church Road. I had argued that impact to the landscape was the one matter of judgement we could go for, but with the technical information lining up and the near certainty of a successful appeal, the Committee instead took as much of its power as possible and, by a vote of 7-4:
- Appended 4 additional conditions (relating to security and safety mainly – these will be published in the Decision List for the 1 April Planning Committee on the ECDC website, as well as the originally-proposed conditions in the report)
- Delegated authority to REFUSE the application should the applicant fail to agree the conditions
It was a 3-hour hearing with balanced views so I was happy in that respect. The applicants did not appear to know anything about Wicken, though… so attention now turns to holding them to account and ensuring the best of a bad situation.
The absolute A1 top priority full resurfacing of Back Lane has been downgraded to the Dragon Patcher for only the worst potholes, which at the time of writing are still outstanding
The A142 and Downfields Roundabout were resurfaced overnight, again only in the worst patches (but a win is a win…)
We’ve received complaints about the vibrations caused by lorries on the High Street. I’ve asked Highways to get in touch with the main haulage companies and farms to request that they stick to the 20mph limit. Lucius has reported drainage covers which need repairing. This is a tough issue but we are working on it.
We continue to work closely with Kingfisher’s Bridge Nature Reserve and got them a bus stop for Tiger on Demand earlier in the year
We’re pleased to support Wicken Parish Council in their progress towards a Neighbourhood Plan for development. This will be important, as the Government continues to restrict local communities’ ability to have their say, and raise our housing targets. The overall plan will eventually be set by the Mayor, at a much less local level, alongside Neighbourhood Plans, making them very important.
- East Cambs District Council, following a Motion put by Lucius and agreed by the Council, is pleased to be offering up to £5k per parish towards the cost of a Neighbourhood Plan, after the Government withdrew the funding for this.

The Political Landscape

The political complexion of East Cambridgeshire District Council changed in-year, and is now:
- Conservative and Independent Group (administration) – 15 councillors
  - 14 Conservative
  - 1 Independent
- Liberal Democrat and Independent Group (opposition) – 13 councillors
  - 12 Liberal Democrat
  - 1 Independent
The Annual Meeting of ECDC will be held on 21^st May 2026, where it will be decided who will Chair the Council, who will sit on various committees and where we will debate support for dualling the A10 between Ely and Cambridge. You are welcome to attend all Council Meetings, held in person in Ely, or watch via our YouTube channel.
Our next elections will be in May 2027, but to the NEW unitary authority, not ECDC. See below note on Local Government Reorganisation. Parish Council elections will also be held.
Cambridgeshire County Council had full elections in May 2025 resulting in a Liberal Democrat administration with a majority of 1. We have worked to hold this administration to account over the state of the roads and its maximum Council Tax increase.
Paul Bristow (Conservative) was elected as Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough on the same day, on a manifesto to ‘Get Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Moving’ through focusing on transport and economic growth. Lucius scrutinises his work on behalf of East Cambridgeshire on the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Matters Further Afield

Local Government Reorganisation continues to dominate the agenda. The decision about the geography of the new, larger, unitary authorities will be made by the Government this summer. This will abolish East Cambridgeshire District and Cambridgeshire County councils and amalgamate their duties into a single, much larger Council. We are firmly opposed to the entire idea, but determined to get a good outcome for residents.
East Cambridgeshire District Council froze its element of Council Tax for a record 13^th year, whilst proposing service budget increases and holding zero debt. This is possible due to a combination of a Community Infrastructure Levy on developers, a loan to our Trading Company which builds affordable homes amongst other things, and a laser focus on efficiency and value for money.
The Council appointed Emma Grima MBA as its Chief Executive in January following the retirement of John Hill, the longest serving Council CEO in the UK.
The Council is introducing its new waste service (with black wheelie bins, and the government-required food waste service) on 1^st June. Residents will receive bins shortly, but are asked not to use them until that date (there is an information pack with them). Soham and Wicken’s collection date will not change.
The Lake View Bereavement Centre is set to open on 1^st September. Construction is over halfway completed and we will visit the site later this month. We recently agreed the policy which includes memorialisation and natural burials as well as rigorous biodiversity enhancements. There will only be 2 services each day and it’s a stunning site. The function room is particularly amazing. It has come at no cost detriment to other community projects, as it was built using unallocated funds.
Lucius has been appointed as East Cambridgeshire’s representative to the UK’s Local Government Association and will therefore carry a whole ONE vote at the General Assembly in July!
See you at the Beer Festival…