Welcome to the Longstanton Ward page, covering the parishes of Longstanton and Oakington & Westwick.
Local contacts
Sarah Cheung Johnson (District Councillor)
scjlibdem@gmail.com 
@scjlibdem 
/sarahcheungjohnson
Alex Malyon (District Councillor)
You can also get in touch with any of our main South Cambs contacts found here.
We produce a regular email newsletter. If you would like to receive these then please subscribe here.
Northstowe noise breakthrough
After meeting with Sarah and Alex, Northstowe developers have agreed to properly tackle the problem of construction noise and ensure work is only done during permitted hours.
In a meeting called by local councillors and attended by council officers, all developers agreed to fit white-noise reversing alarms on all vehicles, and look at installing CCTV to record all traffic going in and out of the main entrance as well as individual sites, with the footage made available to the council.
After again pointing out that complaints about the noise are widely seen on social media and causing concern for potential house buyers, Sarah and Alex felt the developers now fully appreciate the impact of their work on local residents.
Sarah and Alex also talked to Homes England who are leading construction for Phases 2 and 3. Although housebuilding for these phases hasn’t yet started, Sarah and Alex were reassured that Homes England will be accelerating plans for CCTV and other monitoring for their sites.
The first houses of Phase 2 will be modular - they will be built in a factory in Alfreton, Derbyshire, then transported to site and connected in place. This does away with the need for truckloads of bricks, cement and construction material to come on site.
Sarah and Alex both felt the meeting was very productive, and are looking forward to the follow-up meeting in October when hopefully there will be more progress to report.
Sarah and Alex demand developers keep promises
Sarah and Alex are joining Northstowe residents in calling on L&Q (formerly Gallaghers) to complete the main park, Pioneer Park. In the agreement signed between South Cambs District Council and the developer, it was agreed that work on the park would be triggered by 350 homes being occupied, which we have now gone well past. L&Q were already late going out to tender for the work on the park.
Many Northstowe residents have moved in with young families, and community facilities they were promised are not being provided. Sarah and Alex support any measures the council wishes to take, including the possibility that they can stop all work by the developers and house-builders, until this work is done.
A14 works: speaking up for the wellbeing of nearby residents
Alex and Sarah have written to Highways England after receiving complaints from Oakington residents about being kept awake at night by piling work on the A14.
Lib Dem councillors in nearby Histon & Impington have been battling the disruption caused to residents by the A14 works for over a year. As a result, South Cambs District Council took the unprecedented step of demanding stricter thresholds for noise and vibration under Section 61 of the Highways Act 1980.
This means that Highways England has to apply for permission for out-of-hours working and night works should be kept to a minimum, taking place if the work would be too dangerous or disruptive during the day. It also means that Highways England should carry out ‘best practical means’, such as using noise-absorbing barriers or digging trenches to reduce the vibration from piling. Highways England must also give parish councils ten days’ notice for piling work, but Alex and Sarah have been told that often this doesn’t happen.
Highways England lodged an appeal against South Cambs District Council’s use of Section 61. But the Lib Dem council stood firm on protecting the health and wellbeing of residents, and Highways England recently withdrew its appeal at the eleventh hour.
Alex and Sarah have written to Highways England about the disruption the night works cause to Oakington residents and the need for sufficient notice, and will continue to contact them until the situation improves.
Sarah said: "Whilst residents appreciate the need for A14 works to take place overnight, noise levels from piling or other construction operations in the middle of the night must be kept to an absolute minimum - and must comply with limits set down by regulations."
If you are affected by noise or vibration from the A14 works, please do email your complaint to ldf@southcambs.gov.uk as well as Highways England at a14cambridgehuntingdon@highwaysengland.co.uk with details of the disruption, times and videos.
Longstanton parish ‘Community Governance Review’
South Cambs District Council will soon start a 'Community Governance Review' for Longstanton and Northstowe. At the moment Northstowe is part of Longstanton parish and is looked after by Longstanton Parish Council. As the community at Northstowe grows, a review will be needed to look at whether any changes need to be made to this.
Residents will be consulted and we encourage those of you who have views to let the council know! A committee of elected councillors (which doesn’t include Alex or Sarah) will make a recommendation on whether any changes need to be made.
This will be based on communities’ feedback and the views of the parish councils, as well as consideration of the communities’ identities and any local ties and links. For a full overview of the process please visit www.sclibdems.org.uk/longstanton
Please don't hesitate to email us if you would like to discuss the above matters or anything else:
Sarah Cheung Johnson cllr.cheungjohnson@scambs.gov.uk
Alex Malyon cllr.malyon@scambs.gov.uk
District Councillors for Longstanton, Oakington and Northstowe
You can view all our campaigns on the campaigns page of this website.
Do you have an idea for a campaign in your community? Why not let us know, or better yet, let's run it together.
