Great Shelford Parish Council

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Stinging pothole attack on Cambs County Council 

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The strong letter was sent to County Council CEO Stephen Moir by Great Shelford Parish Council.

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This is the letter in full:

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I am writing on behalf of Great Shelford Parish Council to raise serious concerns about the deteriorating state of highways and road safety in our village. These issues are causing significant distress among residents and pose an increasing risk to public safety.

Church Street – Immediate Safety Risk

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We are receiving numerous complaints about traffic congestion and dangerous conditions on Church Street, particularly outside Great Shelford Primary School. Children and parents are navigating extremely unsafe conditions during school drop-off and pick-up times. Our Local Highway Improvement (LHI) bid was approved in October 2024, yet no progress has been made. This delay is unacceptable. Without urgent intervention, there is a real risk of a serious accident involving a child and other vulnerable road users, including older residents, wheelchair users, those with visual impairments, and parents with pushchairs.

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Delays to PFHI Schemes

Both of our Privately Funded Highway Improvements (PFHIs) have stalled. One concerns the installation of double yellow lines outside the Co op on High Green, and the other involves gateway features, dragon’s teeth, and other safety measures. The latter has been delayed due to miscommunication between officers, which is extremely disappointing and undermines confidence in the process.

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Unsafe Road and Pavement Conditions – Woollards Lane, Tunwells Lane, Cambridge Road

​The surface of Woollards Lane is in a dangerous state, with numerous potholes making it hazardous for cyclists and other vulnerable road users. Pavements across the village are also deteriorating, increasing trip and fall risks and affecting accessibility for those with mobility aids and pushchairs. Repairs were marked months ago but have not been carried out, and the markings have washed away. We note that it is marked again for filling (hopefully soon) but the whole road and pavements need resurfacing. We asked repeatedly what the asset condition score is for the road and it has not been forthcoming.

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By way of context, Woollards Lane is Great Shelford’s principal commercial and retail centre, serving not only our residents but also people from neighbouring villages who rely on it for everyday services. Its poor condition therefore has an impact well beyond Great Shelford.

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The situation is similar on Tunwells Lane and Cambridge Road, with extensive defects and worn surfaces. To illustrate the problem plainly: are you content with the state of the roads for a journey from Tunwells Lane to the Cambridge University Botanic Garden? This short drive provides a stark example of road conditions that fall below acceptable standards for Cambridgeshire.

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Engagement Without Delivery

Over the last couple of years, two senior officers with Highways responsibility have attended Full Parish Council meetings, set out a vision for improvement, and invited suggestions for the most urgent remedial works. The Parish Council duly submitted a prioritised list and has continued to engage constructively. We are still waiting for tangible delivery arising from those discussions.

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Impact on the Parish Council and Residents

The continuing underperformance of the Highways team has a direct impact on the Parish Council, which spends an inordinate amount of time chasing road and footpath issues. We are not the paid hands, nor are we responsible for their upkeep in law. Our County Councillors, despite their efforts, appear to have limited visibility and influence over schedules and delivery, and often cannot obtain clear answers on what, where, and when works will happen. Quite frankly, we have had enough of excuses and want action, not bluff.

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Statutory Duty

As you know, the County Council has a legal obligation to maintain highways in a safe condition. We expect the authority to exercise this duty through effective inspection regimes, timely repairs, and clear public information on planned works and timescales.

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Call to Action

We ask for the following, with named accountability and clear deadlines:

1. Immediate mobilisation of the LHI scheme for Church Street, with interim safety measures (e.g., temporary traffic management/signage and stricter parking enforcement) within 4 weeks, and a published programme for permanent works.

2. Delivery schedule for both PFHI schemes, including the installation of double yellow lines outside the Co op on High Green and the gateway/dragon’s teeth measures, with confirmed start and completion dates.

3. Rapid repairs to priority defects on Woollards Lane, Tunwells Lane, and Cambridge Road, and re marking any washed off repair markings, within 20 working days; plus a pavement condition review and a plan for remedial works.

4. A meeting within 4 weeks between senior Highways officers and the Parish Council to agree an accelerated plan and improved communications, with attendance from the leads for LHI and PFHI delivery.

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Please treat this as a priority. We expect a substantive response within 10 working days, including named leads and dated schedules. If we cannot secure progress, we will escalate through the appropriate governance routes and the media.

Yours sincerely,

Cllr Malcolm Watson

Chair

Great Shelford Parish Council

Posted Jan 9 2026

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This is the response to the letter Cllr Malcolm Watson sent to the Chief Exec at Cambridgeshire County Council.

Dear Cllr Watson,

Re: Urgent Action on Highways and Road Safety in Great Shelford

Thank you for your recent letter dated 23 December 2025, regarding the improvement projects and maintenance requests that the Parish Council have ongoing with our Cambridgeshire County Council (CCC) highways teams. This letter provides a response to each of the points raised within your letter; and provides an update to the progression of that respective item, including details for the next steps towards the delivery of the work or closure of the issue respectively.

We take the concerns of our communities very seriously, and we trust this information will be both useful and reassuring to yourself and the Great Shelford residents. The response is split to address each of your points raised individually.

Church Street – Immediate Safety Risk
Thank you for expressing your honest frustrations with the delay to the Church Street LHI project. As you mentioned, the project was awarded funding in October 2024 at Highways and Transport Committee meeting, with a proposed 18-month timeline for delivery. We accept that there could have been better communication following that award until early summer 2025 and apologise for that not being in a recordable manner. Detailed design work for this project began in June 2025 following the in-person site visit on 19 May 2025. It was agreed that both this LHI project, and the privately funded highway improvement (PFHI) project to install gateway features etc. on Church Street would be coupled together for efficiency.

The LHI funding was awarded to the initial feasibility brief for this project to install a priority give way feature(s) and associated parking restrictions and additions. The Parish Council have been consistent with their preference for the arrangements to be signalised, as confirmed at the 9 July 2025 in person meeting with Nicola Webster (former parish Clerk) and John Stanton. As a result, there has been iterative development of detailed design to develop a proposal that is acceptable with the specialist CCC traffic signals team. We have been advised that the concluded draft design will be available for review from week commencing 12 January 2026. These will be shared with the Parish Council for consideration and a discussion with Officers will be arranged.

Once a design is mutually accepted by all parties, the next step for the project is to proceed to pricing. This project cannot proceed to the formal Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) consultation stage without acceptance of the additional financial contribution required to deliver the signalisation from the Parish Council. On current timelines, the soonest the TRO could be advertised would be two months from acceptance of the financial contribution.

The next stages of the project would be review of the TRO consultation. And if that has a positive outcome, then works could be operationally delivered within the next available school term holiday period, which could be the 2026 Summer Holidays.

We appreciate that the parish and community are feeling frustrated by the length of time developing this project has taken, but the appropriate processes must be followed accordingly.

Delays to PFHI Schemes
The double yellow line scheme on the A1301 Cambridge Road/High Green and Granham’s Road was approved at design and estimated cost stage by the Parish Council at their meeting in July 2025; and Nicola Webster confirmed acceptance of this with the Officers on 17 July 2025. It then became apparent that the project had not yet been included in our Policy and Regulation TRO programme for consultation, so this was added immediately.

This was an oversight on our part, and as stated was due to a change in lead officer and miscommunication. Further to previous officer correspondence, I apologise for this oversight by Officers and the subsequent delay and frustration caused. I am pleased to confirm however that this instance has led to a review of our process in this area and will be preventable in future.

Notwithstanding the above, coordinated delivery of these road marking works are now scheduled to be installed during the forthcoming capitally funded carriageway resurfacing programme. This will provide a cost efficiency to Great Shelford Parish Council upon completion and less disruption to residents and road users.

As mentioned in the paragraphs relating to the LHI on Church Street, the PFHI to create a gateway to the west of the village, entering on Bridge Lane/Church Street has been coupled into the design for the complex priority feature, again to create greater efficiency on delivery costs and to reduce disruption to local stakeholders.

Unsafe Road and Pavement Conditions – Woollards Lane, Tunwells Lane, Cambridge Road
We recognise the importance of these routes, particularly Woollards Lane as Great Shelford’s principal commercial and retail centre, and the impact that poor road and pavement conditions have on residents, businesses, and visitors, especially cyclists and other vulnerable road users.
Woollards Lane.

Partial works have been completed on Woollards Lane. The route will be soon reinspected to identify any additional issues requiring attention. I have asked the Highways Maintenance Officer (HMO) for the area to also access all footway in line with the Highways Operational Standards.
Tunwells Lane and Cambridge Road.

Tunwells Lane and Cambridge Road form part of a connected route with High Green. Reactive maintenance works have been ordered on these carriageways to be completed by the end of January. Furthermore, planned and proactive resurfacing and surface dressing are scheduled for the early Spring as part of our capital maintenance programme. I have asked the HMO for the area to also access all footway in line with the Highway Operating Standards.

Next steps
A parish meeting this month would be welcome, with senior highways officers to attend, alongside technical leads. My assistant will be in touch to schedule this.

Thank you for taking the time to raise your concerns and I hope that the above satisfies your request for information.

David Allatt
Service Director: Infrastructure and Project Delivery Place and Sustainability

Posted Jan 15 2026