What are your priorities for South Cambridgeshire District Council?

Residents and businesses are being asked to help shape South Cambridgeshire District Council’s plans for the years ahead – to help ensure the area remains one of the best places to live and work in the country.

The Council has identified five key priorities to help achieve its goals. Councillors now want to hear the views of local people so they can help influence the production of a full Corporate Plan for 2025 and beyond. This Plan, when finalised, will set out the actions, initiatives and strategies the Council will work through to meet its targets.

The five priority areas the Council has put forward are:

• Healthy and flourishing communities – which could include supporting communities to tackle local issues, support for arts and culture projects, providing cost-of-living support and working with partners to combat crime and anti-social behaviour.
• Sustainable homes and vibrant places – such as continuing to deliver new, high quality Council homes, bringing empty homes back into use, making new towns vibrant and attractive places to live and supporting improved access to green spaces.
• Being green to our core – including reducing local carbon emissions, protecting air quality and working with others to tackle water scarcity and other environmental issues.
• Helping businesses to thrive in South Cambridgeshire – through methods such as promotion of local businesses, renting out space, supporting new markets and events and providing business support resources.
• Financially secure and fit for the future – which could mean completing reviews of services to make sure processes are efficient, exploring new ways of generating income, acting to reduce fraud and making it easier for residents to access services online.

The Council is keen to hear from as many people as possible – especially those who live, own businesses or work in South Cambridgeshire, as well as regular visitors to the area.

A public consultation and online survey have launched today, and will run until Tuesday 29 October, to help people have their say.

The feedback given to the consultation will be used to draft a full new Corporate Plan, including actions to deliver on the priorities and measures so residents can see whether those goals are being met.

You can view the plans in more detail and have your say. Anyone who completes the survey will have the chance to be entered into a prize draw to win one of two £50 One4All vouchers. To complete the survey via an alternative format, such as using a printed copy or in an alternative language, please contact equality.schemes@scambs.gov.uk or call 01954 713 000.

The Leader of South Cambridgeshire District Council, Cllr Bridget Smith, said: “South Cambridgeshire is already a fantastic place to live, work and do business. This is about not only ensuring it stays that way but making our area even better. That’s why it is vital communities tell us whether they think we are on the right track with our proposed priorities. We’ll listen to this feedback and use it to inform the development of our full Corporate Plan which all councillors will discuss early next year. There’s no doubt that councils up and down the country face significant budget pressures. Although we know we are in a positive financial position, it’s crucial we target our spending on those services which residents tell us they value and benefit from the most. This survey will help ensure we do that.”

As outlined in the Council’s recent ‘State of the District’ report, the Office for National Statistics conducts an annual survey of the population to gauge feelings of anxiety, happiness, life satisfaction, and worthwhileness. In the 2021-22 survey, South Cambridgeshire ranked above the national average in all these categories, suggesting quality of life locally is above average for the United Kingdom. Generally, South Cambridgeshire residents also report better general health than wider Cambridgeshire and England.