Vision and objectives

Our Vision for the Future

The Council has a clear vision for the future of our City, a vision which we share with Cambridge citizens and with partner organisations.

Our vision is for:

• A city which is diverse and tolerant, values activities which bring people together and where everyone feels they have a stake in the community

• A city which recognises and meets needs for housing of all kinds - close to jobs and neighbourhood facilities

• A city which draws inspiration from its iconic historic centre and achieves a sense of place in all of its parts with generous urban open spaces and well designed buildings

• A city in the forefront of low carbon living and minimising its impact on the environment from waste and pollution

• A city whose citizens feel they can influence public decision making and are equally keen to pursue individual and community initiatives

• A city where people behave with consideration for others and where harm and nuisance are confronted wherever possible without constraining the lives of all

• A city where getting around is primarily by public transport, bike and on foot

• A city with a thriving knowledge-based economy that benefits the whole community and builds on its reputation as a global hub of ideas and learning

In this Annual Statement we state our vision for Cambridge and illustrate steps that we are taking and actions we will pursue, to help build that vision through the City Council’s leadership.

In common with all public services we face an uncertain financial climate. We will give priority to important services and functions of which the City Council is the only provider and will seek to protect the basic services provided for all citizens of the city. We will continue to apply new thinking and creativity to how we deliver services to make sure we achieve our ongoing programme of savings from efficiency.

We will continue to nurture the future development of the city, focusing on measures that we have only the one chance to get right. In a growing city, we will maintain our focus on the provision of affordable homes and homes for families, in locations close to public transport.

We continue to be fully committed to fairness in Cambridge. We believe that the future prosperity of the city should be shared by all, and will seek to secure this by enabling and attracting new jobs and housing through our planning policies.
We will play our part in tackling climate change, seeking environmentally sustainable solutions that are fair to future generations of Cambridge citizens and to those who have more precarious existences elsewhere in the world.

And finally, we will honour our commitment to transparent and accessible local democracy and maximising direct local input into local choices.