Census 2021 data has been released for parishes. The census happens every 10 years and gives a picture of all the people and households in England and Wales. The resulting information helps organisations make decisions on planning and funding public services in the area, including transport, education and healthcare. Figures for the 2021 census are rounded to the nearest 100.

According to census information on the ONS website the population for the parish of Eye in 2021 was 5,400 an increase of 24.4% over the 2011 census figure of 4,340. Over the same time period the population for Peterborough has increased from 183,600 in 2011 to 215,671 in 2021, an increase of 17.5%. For England the population in 2011 was 56,075,912, in 2021 59,597,542, a 6.3% increase.

The number of homes in the village has risen from 1,799 in 2011 to 2,300 in 2021 although car ownership is slightly down.

One of the big changes is to the number of people working from home which the 2021 Census shows it as 29.8%. This is up from the 4.9% shown in 2011.  Of course this has to be taken in context of the COVID-19 pandemic although does show a shift in the ways people are working.

Further metrics can be found on the ONS website. You see can previous census population statistics dating back to 1801 on the website’s population page.

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Today the fabulous new Eye village sign was installed. After 40 plus years and one renovation in 2008, the Parish Council decided it was time for a new village sign and depict another chapter in the history of Eye. The previous sign dated from the Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1977.

The new sign pictured with Chairman of the Parish council Andy Short, Parish Councillor Andrew Smith and Vice Chairman of the Parish Council, Adrian Martin.

While it has been quite a long process getting the new sign to this stage we hope you agree with us that the final result has been worth it, and we now have a sign that everyone can be proud of.

Andy Short, chairman of Eye Parish Council said: “It’s fantastic to see the new sign up at last. The Parish Council have been working on getting the sign to this stage for some time after the previous sign was damaged in poor weather in 2020. Former chair of the parish council Michael Holmes who sadly died in April 2022 was actively involved in the project and we hope he would of been pleased with the outcome. Thank you to everyone who was involved, we hope it will be a great feature for the village for many years to come.”

Andrew Smith, Eye Parish councillor said: “The Parish council looked at lots of historical photographs and narrowed it down to some of the industrial aspects that have impacted the village alongside the beauty that was and has since been preserved, for example the Church and the brick pits and their reinvention. Finding a traditional sign maker these days is quite a challenge but a husband and wife team near Thetford in Norfolk agreed to take a look. The deputy chair of the parish council, Adrian Martin and myself paid them a visit and afterwards we all agreed these were the people to use. The sign was cast in a hand crafted mould and the final result was achieved by an artist who hand painted the scenes.”

Adam Miller who came up with the design said “I sent my design to the Parish Council when I heard they where looking at installing a new sign. It’s only one part of the process but I was pleasantly surprised when they decided to use it. Having lived in the village for the majority of my life I was really happy the Parish Council wanted to capture some of the recent history of the village in the new design. The railway was something I’ve always been interested in, even though it closed some time before I was born. I also wanted to capture the swans and the nature reserve as they’ve become such an integral part of today’s village.”

You can read more about the sign here.

Thank you for to Dale McKean for the photos.

The renovation of the floor in the Leed’s Hall is now complete. The previous floor was looking a bit tatty after years of use so it’s great to see it looking as new again. Normal opening and events can now resume. Thank you for your patience.

To find further details on how to hire the hall visit this page.

We currently have vacancies for parish councillors. If you are interested in becoming a Parish Councillor for Eye then please contact the parish clerk below: eyeparishcouncil@btinternet.com

Why become a councillor

By becoming a parish councillor you become someone your community may look to for help, guidance and support – a community leader with the power to influence decisions for the benefit of the people you serve.

You can read more about the history of the parish council on this website. There is also a code of conduct parish councillors need to follow.

The council usually meet on the third Thursday of the month in the Leeds Hall in the village for two or three hours depending on what needs to be discussed. Meetings are open to the public.

If you’ve never been a parish councillor or been to a parish council meeting we do recommend you come to one of our meeting  and sit in the public seating area before applying to see what happens.

Peterborough Community First Responder (CFR) Group is looking for additional volunteers. Community First Responders are volunteers who are trained by the East of England Ambulance Service to attend certain types of emergency calls in the area where they live or work. Their aim is to reach a potential life-threatening emergency in the first vital minutes before the ambulance crew arrives.

Anyone can become a community first responder but you must:

• be physically fit
• be aged between 18-70
• agree to a disclosure and barring service check (DBS). This was previously known as criminal records bureau disclosure or CRB.
• have a sympathetic, caring nature
• agree to undertake training, which is provided
• have a full driving licence and access to a road worthy car.

For further information please visit: www.eastamb.nhs.uk/join-the-team/community-first-responders

The weather remained dry and a great evening was had by the 1000 residents who attended or took part in the parade. The parade which was organised by Peterborough Presents started at the community centre, travelling along Bath Road and the High Street before ending in the grounds of the church.

Who is Peterborough Presents? Peterborough Presents are a community-focused arts programme. We work in areas of the city for 2 – 3 years at a time, working with local residents to develop creative projects for local residents. You can find out more about our programme here: www.peterboroughpresents.org

Community producer for Peterborough Presents, Keely Mills goes into more detail: “Light Up Eye was our first big project in Eye and we chose a cultural memory from Eye’s recent past as a basis for a commission. This memory was of Drakes family Christmas displays, where they decorated their house with hundreds and hundreds of lights to raise money for charity. So many people across Peterborough remember coming to Eye at Christmas to see this and people in the village loved it too.  We knew we did not want to replicate this but the idea of people gathering in the dark months and bringing a little light into people’s lives was appealing.

“We worked with local residents who became our commissioning panel. They helped us to go through ideas from local and national artists. One of these was from La Septima, a French company, who approached us with the idea of a lantern parade. The Eye panel wanted a project that would be ambitious, brought lots of residents together, linked both the old Eye and new Eye families, highlighted Eye’s creativity and made people feel proud.

“We had no idea how quickly this would grow. Over the summer and into the Autumn we ran lantern making workshops with groups from across the village – with Eye W.I, the Rainbows, Brownies and Guides, The Spinney residential home, Eye Primary school and more. Even the most nervous left feeling astounded by what they had created. Together we made over 150 lanterns of brick works, flowers, planes, rabbits – even a jellyfish.

“On the night of the Light Up Eye, 400+ people lit up the village as they paraded through crowded streets with their lanterns, encountering performances by La Septima along the way. The  performances brought to life stories of Eye they had heard during the workshops – of the Jurassic fish the size of a whale, of the brick works and nature reserve. There were performances by Bright Lights amateur dramatics, EAPS and Pig Dyke Molly too. We thought that a few people would turn out to watch but the residents of the village came out in force to watch the parade. It was the residents’ generosity that surprised us the most though. People gave over their houses and garages as performance spaces along the parade. They invited the La Septima crew in for dinner, welcomed them into the local pub. We were loaned ladders, costumes but most of all residents gave their time to making this event happen.  Here’s a quick film of the parade: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAp9rXrl-YM&t=6s

“Light Up Eye has been such a lovely introduction to the village. It has shown that people really welcome the opportunity to get creative, especially when they get to have a say in it – and when it brings something to their community too.

“Peterborough Presents would like to say a huge thank you to Eye Parish Council, Manor Farm Community Association, Hannah Jarvis, Barbara Bryan, Eye WI, Dale McKean, Lilian Muxlow, Eye Youth Club, Clare Orbell, Eddie Mann, The Spinney, Emma White, Haydn Short, Andrew & Sandra Short, Donna Duffy, Eye Rainbows, Guides, Brownies, Lindsay Faull, Eye Primary, Judy Dawson, Bright Lights, EAPS, St Matthews Church, Paul & Gary Mills, The Blue Boar, Eye Coop, all residents on Bath Road & the High street and everyone who made & paraded a lantern!”

Peterborough Presents will be working in Eye on other creative projects over the next 2 years. If you want to get involved contact keely.mills@neneparktrust.org.uk.

Peterborough Presents are looking for your feedback if you came along or took part. Please spare five minutes and fill in this quick evaluation: https://form.jotform.com/220952778731363

Light up Eye is a free to attend, family oriented lantern parade. It’s an event the like of which has never been seen before in the village. On Saturday 12 November from 6.30pm a lantern parade will make its way through the centre of the village.

The parade will travel from Manor Farm Community Centre, along the back of Cleve Place and Merevale Drive, up Bath Road, along the High Street and ending at St Matthew’s Church.

Please register your free place through this Eventbrite link. Booking is essential.

Part of Eye High Street will be closed to traffic during the parade, find further details below.

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