LVCA Chairman’s Update

The hall improvements continue, we are fast approaching the refurb of the ladies’ toilets, work taking place from August 12th – 25th is to bring them to the same look and standard as the gents and access toilet. We have been very fortunate to obtain government funding via Cherwell District Council which has given us the bulk of the costs, while we’ll also be using our own funding to pay the difference.

We have submitted a grant application for an upgrade to a heating control system that works with our online booking system that identifies what the required temperature is and uses indoor and outdoor probes to know when to put the heating on and for how long to heat the room to the required temperature. Within this grant application we have asked for more loft insulation. We hope to get an answer soon.

We will be starting in the autumn to apply for grants in the hope we can raise enough funding to upgrade the kitchen and install a dishwasher, hopefully this will complete the refurb for the next few years.

The VAS (vehicle speed indicator) unit has been along by the school for several weeks now and we have the first stats reports which will be published on facebook and our website shortly. It’s been a very useful tool and hopefully reminds people about their speed. We still have a few ‘boy racers’ who spoil things for the rest of us. We will continue to move the unit around as a reminder to continue the good speeds that the vast majority of people are adopting on the estate.

We now have agreement to replace all the street name signs on old Langford that are still the original ones. These will be done in batches hopefully during the financial year, all of which smartens us up and makes it once again easy for visitors to read the street names.

The general election has delayed the exhibition of the proposed two London Road options and as yet we don’t know when these will now be revealed. Please watch our facebook for updates.

We have had more changes to the 108 bus service through Langford. These started on July 1st, we have published the new timetable on our website for viewing or downloading a copy. You can click here to do so right now.

Finally, LVCA is in need of some help in the form of a person with a few hours to spare to assist in the administration of the classes we now run. This can all be done from home and just requires IT literacy. There must be someone amongst the 5,500 residents of Langford that can help with this.

Please contact me via email or phone if you’d like to discuss:

chairman@lvca.org.uk (tel: 07811 283257)

Carole Hetherington

Chairman, Langford Village Community Association (LVCA)

The Welcome to Langford leaflet is here

Do you know of new people who’re moving onto Langford Village?

Langford Village Community Association and FLTR Coffee have recently worked together to produce a leaflet with essential local information to assist all Langford newcomers as they start to settle in here.

All our local Bicester estate agents and letting agencies now have supplies of the leaflet to hand out and there are also some in FLTR and at the Langford Village Community Centre Hall, in Nightingale Place, OX26 6XX.

Please ask any new residents if they’ve received a leaflet and, if they haven’t got one, encourage them to pick up a copy soon – or you could help out by dropping a copy to them.

Many thanks,

Carole, Chairman LVCA

Preparing for the next EWR consultation

Understanding the formal process for a solution to London Road Crossing

Every person on Langford Village should be involved with the process beginning in June regarding the EWR proposals for the solution to London Road Crossing. 

On May 9th we all get a chance to understand this process before we see the proposals in the following month.

EWR are holding an event at Weyland Hall in Bicester from 2.00pm to 7.00pm on that day which is open to all.

This event is designed to help people understand the statutory consultation and Development Consent Order (DCO) processes. Members of the EWR DCO and engagement teams will attend to answer any questions and queries people might have.

These sessions are not formal consultation events and there will be no specific design information or proposals available to view, however that design information will of course be available at the statutory consultation, where there will then be the opportunity to share feedback about the proposals.

June will see the first phase of the statutory consultation and we will have sight of the first plans of the two proposed sites for a bridge for access to town to replace the London Road crossing at which people will be able to give feedback.

One of the proposals, as far as we know, is to have a bridge over the railway at Gavray Drive, anyone backing on to or near Gavray needs to be ready to comment as it would mean Gavray being turned into much busier road with an extra 7.000 vehicle  journeys daily. it also means we have lost an access road into town as that would feed into Launton Road.

The other proposal, as far as we know, is a curved bridge alongside London Road cutting through the carparks near the ambulance building and coming down along Station Approach, a much more sensible option retaining an existing road into town.

Whatever happens will have a huge impact on everyone south of London Road Crossing.

Carole

Chairman, Langford Village Community Association

Your LVCA progress report (February 2024)

✅ We have spent nearly three years battling with Thames Water regarding the state of the paths around Jubilee Lake. At long last they have repaired some of the damaged surfaces around the lake. Sadly, they ignored the pathway from Avocet Way to the lake, and the pathway from the post box opposite Shearwater Drive to the lake. They have been incredibly difficult to deal with.

✅ We hope you like the improvements to the play area in Langford Park, we worked with Bicester Town Council (BTC) and are delighted with the upgraded play equipment. 

✅ We are loving the new signs erected to Langford Park, plus the information board, the two new seats, and the information posts to encourage children to find out information. Again, we have been involved with BTC on the improvements

✅ Over the next few weeks you will see some road name signs replaced, we have worked with Cherwell District Council to bring this about. We hope gradually to get all the old signs replaced however have concentrated on the worse ones.

✅ We have obtained another socket for the speed awareness device, which will be situated near the school. Once this has been installed, we will move the device to this location.

We are currently trying to obtain grants to undertake the refurb of the ladies’ toilets in the summer holidays plus a grant for loft insulation which is needed.

We hope you approve of the things we are tackling to improve Langford Village and the Community Centre for us all to enjoy. 

Carole Hetherington

Chairman, Langford Village Community Association (LVCA)