View from the Chair

The View from the Chair – June 2026

I am writing this article immediately after submitting the Parish Council’s and my own responses to the New Towns Draft Programme Consultation. This has been a core activity over the last month or so, and more on that in a moment, but there are also plenty of things, other than the New Town, to update you on.

Annual Parish Meeting

We held our Annual Parish Meeting for 2026 on Wednesday 6th May and it was great to see such a large turnout of residents – although I realise that was in part due to the topics we were discussing!

Community updates were provided by Thames Valley Police on local crime stats; the Parks Trust on plans for the Wetland Arc; the Chair of Haversham Village School on core school activities; Rev Lowe on the local LAMP group of churches; and lastly, an update from the Chair of Haversham Social and Community Centre. It was great to hear about what our local community bodies are doing, and thanks to them all for both presenting and answering questions.

We then had an informative update from a senior officer from MKCC on the soon-to-be constructed Household Waste Recycling Centre at Old Wolverton; who also took the time to listen to resident concerns and discuss mitigations. I will share more news on the HWRC below.

The final part of the evening was an update from myself and the Clerk on Parish Council matters – we shared the achievements of last year, most notably the completion of the Playground Rejuvenation Project, summarised our finances and budget; followed by a discussion on the plans we have and challenges we face in the future – including, of course, the New Town.

I appreciate it was a longer meeting than normal, as we had lots to cover and had many great questions and discussions on the varied topics. To those present, thank you for staying and for the contributions you made, which genuinely give us extra food for thought for the coming year.

You can find my Chair’s Annual Report which covers the Parish Council’s update, plus the annual crime figures and presentation from the Parks Trust at www.havershamlittlelinfordpc.gov.uk/apm The draft minutes of the meeting will be added shortly.

New Town for MK North

Without doubt the biggest challenge the Parish faces in the coming months and probably years is the potential for Milton Keynes to be designated a New Town and for up to 21,500 houses to be built in the fields that surround us – known as MK North. The map shows the land areas controlled by three developers who are working together to promote it as the MK North part of the ‘New Town’.

By the time you read this the government’s consultation will have closed, but I hope that everyone in the Parish is aware of the proposal given the communications, leafleting, door knocking and social media posts we shared. It is very clear that the community values the rural nature of our Parish and have serious concerns about the possible impacts such a development would have on all our lives.

I will not go into all the detail of the proposal nor the rationale and arguments against here, but information can be found on our website at www.havershamlittlelinfordpc.gov.uk/newtown including the template responses we shared, which I know formed the basis of many of the responses submitted, including our own comprehensive objection that was submitted to the Government

We are not alone as a Parish in this fight; our immediate neighbours Castlethorpe and Hanslope PCs both submitted detailed objections, as did a number of other Parishes around the city. We also had the support from our Ward Councillor throughout. I and others spoke to residents from all over the north who were incensed by this proposal and together we have reached out to many of the local wildlife and conservation bodies to encourage them to object. We had a particularly supportive reaction from BBOWT who own and manage Little Linford Wood (which would be completely surrounded by housing should the proposal go ahead) who have objected. Whilst I was aware of the Channel Tunnel Railway Dormice being relocated to the wood, I found out that David Attenborough had helped raise funds when the wood was first acquired by BBOWT – quite a significant patch of ancient woodland!

Sadly, as those of us who were at the Annual Parish Meeting heard, The Parks Trust did not object, as it is their policy not to comment on matters of planning other than to ‘assess whether proposals include adequate provision for new green infrastructure and/or whether the strategy or proposal will make a positive contribution to enhancing the city’s existing network of parks and green spaces’.

Whilst the last four to six weeks has been a frantic drive to help residents respond, we now go into a period of quiet, whilst we wait for the outcome of the consultation. The government intends to publish final proposals and confirm the New Town programme locations later in summer 2026. We hope that they listen to the arguments and take MK out of the proposals as they finalise the locations.

Other Planning Matters

MK City Plan 2050 was submitted to the Planning Inspectorate for examination on 22nd April 2026 and in due course feedback will be provided to MKCC along with any recommendations for change, prior to a final plan being produced and adopted. If we have any news we will share at www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/planning-and-building/planning-policy/mk-city-plan-2050.

On the Neighbourhood Plan site in the old village, Gade Homes held a public consultation event on 22nd April and expect to be submitting their planning application shortly. Based on the expected timetable for the planning application process and pre-build ecological mitigations required, if approved, it is likely that the build will not start until the spring of 2029. We will share further information as we receive at www.havershamlittlelinfordpc.gov.uk/npsitenews.

Recreation Ground Works Update

We are still trying to find a suitable contractor to do the ‘hot-lining’ on the basketball court – challenging for such a small job – and still plan to install a new net at the same time. We are aware of the problem with the new tarmac on the court and hopefully that will be sorted shortly.

We have also had the rather large dip in the goal mouth filled and reseeded and now we have had a bit of rain hopefully that will start to grow back.

Household Waste Recycling Centre

After the MKCC update at the Annual Parish Meeting, both myself and Paul Nagle-Smith attended the MKCC HWRC Community Liaison Group (CLG) last week, along with other residents and members of Wolverton and Greenley’s Town Council to discuss the upcoming construction phase.

After a tour of the site, we discussed solutions being developed to mitigate noise, odour and light pollution as well as the construction approach and timetable. Construction is scheduled to start on 26th May, and will run for 20 weeks. The major earthworks will be in the first six weeks as the site is remodelled into two distinct levels.

MKCC have promised to share regular updates and provide us with contact points for any issues during construction, so if there are problems send a message via the usual channels. We will share information received via the Parish News section of the website and Facebook.

Concern remains that the restricted highways access will affect both construction and operations – so that is something we will continue to keep a close eye on.

Further meetings of the CLG are planned during construction and into full operation. The new site is anticipated to open around the end of 2026.

Highways and Road Safety

Speed reductions to 40mph on Haversham Road and 30mph on Haversham Hill should be implemented shortly along with new signage and road markings.

MKCC have launched a consultation on extending the 40mph limit between Old Haversham and Little Linford to include the double bends, past the junction with Little Linford Lane and down Little Linford Lane. Details are at www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/consultations/proposed-40mph-speed-restrictions-haversham-tro-475 They are also looking at ‘solar studs’ in the road to better warn drivers of the double bends to help mitigate cars ending up in the fields.

We continue to chase on various repairs of potholes, streetlights etc. across the parish as well as solutions to some of the other concerns such as flooding issues and further news on when Little Linford Lane will re-open – noting it is still published as opening by 30 June 2026.

If you see a maintenance issue locally, don’t forget to use the ‘Report It’ page on the MKCC website, https://www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/pay-report-and-apply/report-it.

Allotment News

We have two plots remaining for rent – please get in touch if you would like more information or a tour. If you want something smaller, then the Community Plot may be for you? The Community Plot Team have provided an update elsewhere and please contact the Clerk to find out more. They are also planning this year’s Allotment Open Day on Sunday 5th July.

Other News

Haversham Social and Community Centre:

The HSCC have their own update on their AGM and recent events, but I just wanted to say how much Pam and I, along with a group of friends and neighbours enjoyed the Easter Afternoon Tea. It was great being involved in such a wonderful and well attended community event – well done Claire and Alex!

London Marathon:

Congratulations to our three local runners, Holly, Shannon and John, who completed the 2026 TCS London Marathon on a rather warm 26th April. Holly is sharing her story elsewhere in the magazine.

Giant Tree Circle Project:

We have been considering an offer for trees from the Giant Tree Circle Project to plant in the Parish. One option was to plant a group of fruit trees on The Crescent Green and we asked residents for their views. We have had both positive and negative responses, and whilst no firm decision has yet been made, we are also considering alternatives. If you have any views, please share them with us. For more information on the project see www.gianttreecircle.org.

Resident of the Year:

We are launching our annual search for our ‘unsung hero’ of the Parish, who will be presented with the Rose-Stimpson Cup at the Village show. More details elsewhere in the magazine.

Parish Magazine Content and Advertising:

This magazine thrives on its variety of content, so we are always happy to receive local interest stories, charity news, eye-catching photos from the Parish and contributions from our younger residents. Please feel free to send something in to our editor at carol.langham@havershamlittlelinfordpc.gov.uk for inclusion in the next or a future issue. If you run a small business, or you have used a local business that you think could benefit other residents maybe an advert will help? We offer a quarter, half or full-page adverts and the rates are extremely competitive. To discuss advertising, please get in touch.

Parish Councillor Vacancy:

We have one vacancy and would ideally like to increase representation from across the Parish, in particular the old village and Little Linford. If you are interested in joining the team please contact the Clerk at clerk@havershamlittlelinfordpc.gov.uk, or if you would like an informal chat before deciding to make an application then please email me.

Contacting Us and Helping Out

In today’s world, we know we have to support a number of methods of communication with residents. First and foremost, if you want to get in touch to raise an issue or volunteer for one of our initiatives please contact the Parish Clerk, at clerk@havershamlittlelinfordpc.gov.uk.

We use our website www.havershamlittlelinfordpc.gov.uk to share information as well and are starting on a plan to improve this site. We also use Facebook www.facebook.com/HcLLParishCouncil to post timely updates and you can also message us via Facebook messenger plus we are starting to use the recently introduced WhatsApp channel which you can join at www.tinyurl.com/HcLLPC-WA. Whichever method you use to contact us, we do our best to respond promptly, and hopefully the new WhatsApp solution will appeal to many.

Thank you all for reading my update; we continue to do as much as we can to make our Parish the best it can be. I will update you again here in a couple of months.

Cllr Richard Pryor

Chair