March 1, 2024
Welcome once again to this week's blog and, as always, thank you for sparing the time to have a read.
It's been just over a week since Patrick's funeral. Donna, Mick Val, Ian, AIi and Andrew were there - unfortunately I had a parents' evening at school. It was heartening to hear stories about Patrick's younger years, and how thrilled he was to be elected. We will certainly miss him.
Last Saturday, Donna and I joined Mick and Val at the Full Up Bingo benefit night in the Selsey Club. (They are holding a children's Easter egg hunt and further benefit from 12:00 on Easter Saturday.) It was an enjoyable evening and helped to raise much needed funds for Full Up. On Wednesday, Val had CDC’s General Licensing Committee in the morning which I had to miss because cover is high at school; meanwhile Donna had CDC’s Development Planning and Infrastructure Panel in the afternoon before an STC Personnel meeting with Ian, Andrew and myself in the evening. The ‘main event’ in terms of meetings this week, though, was the Full CDC budget meeting on Tuesday. (You can watch all public CDC meetings here and, if you are also interested in WSCC, can watch theirs here.)
At the Full Budget meeting the Leader, Cllr Adrian Moss, and his Deputy, Cllr Jonathan Brown, thanked Officers as they introduced their first budget, which raises CDC’s part of a typical Band D Council Tax by £5.41. In response, as Leader of the Opposition, I said: -
“I also want to start by thanking Officers including Mr Ward and Mrs Bellenger, and would like to go further and thank Mr Buckley for his lead on finding efficiencies. In May I promised we would be a critical friend, so it is right for me now to publicly acknowledge that this budget reflects the situation the new administration inherited and the National context.
Without entering the debate on public vs private, as Housing accounts for nearly a fifth of this budget, it is clear the cost-of-living crisis has made our use of private providers for temporary accommodation very expensive, so I welcome any steps taken to reduce our dependency upon them. I also welcome the greater urgency this administration has shown in considering options for this building, which is larger than we now need and a significant expense. Let us hope it is repurposed in a way to help address our housing needs and improve our future finances.
In closing, residents across our District are looking forward to seeing what the next year might bring. We hope for more action on social housing, and in view of our District’s dependency on leisure & tourism, incentives to encourage greater footfall particularly off-season, while playing our part to combat the climate crisis.”
Adrian Moss reaffirmed that housing was a massive priority for his administration and that he wanted more in the centre of the city to increase its vitality. David Betts, Cabinet Member for Housing, confirmed a new Housing strategy would be published this year.
Donna welcomed the continued commitment to “Supporting You” and relayed the gratitude a resident had shared with her for the lifeline it provided them.
There were two non-budget items on the agenda: the Southbourne Modified Neighbourhood Development Plan was made part of the Development Plan for our District (excluding the SDNP) and it was agreed to grant our Green colleague Sarah Sharp a dispensation until June 15 because of her ongoing family illness - something I thanked Council for on behalf of our group.
This coming week’s meetings include Health & Social Care at WSCC and Planning at CDC (for Donna) on Wednesday - the latter includes applications from Rolls Royce, Southbourne and Runcton. That evening there is an Extraordinary Full STC regarding works to Manor Green followed by STC's Planning Committee; on Thursday, there is STC’s Finance and Administration group. There are also meetings of CDC’s Cabinet on Tuesday, which is held in public, and CDC’s Strategic Risk Group on Thursday, which is not.
With National Empty Homes Week starting on Monday, CDC is urging owners of empty properties to find out how they can help bring these much-needed homes back into use. Empty Homes Week puts the spotlight on the important work that is being done to reduce the number of homes that have been empty for six months or longer. To mark the week, CDC is reminding people about the wide range of support that is currently available to turn unused properties into valuable homes, including grant funding and a reduced VAT rate on renovation materials. Funding is available to help give properties that have been vacant for more than a year a new lease of life. Owners can access up to £10,000 of funding, which would only need to be repaid if the property was sold within 10 years. If people are looking to refurbish a property that has been empty for two years or more, then they can buy most renovation materials at a reduced VAT rate of 5%. To access this, they can request a letter from the council’s Revenues and Benefits team by emailing: taxation@chichester.gov.uk
Many if you appreciate our work, since before Christmas, helping the Manhood Classics who, without it being realised by CDC, were using East Beach car park for publicly advertised gatherings, at which they proudly showed off their cars. Officers are working on a policy to address issues this has raised. Tuesday’s Full CDC allowed Donna who is leading on this, and I to network with Members to try and build support for a positive outcome.
Don't forget CDC is still placing shingle around the beach from Marine Car Park and WSCC is encouraging people to take part in their survey about health and wellbeing in West Sussex. The results will help them plan services and take action to support the health and wellbeing of residents. The survey is open to all West Sussex residents until 8 March.
For several years it has been clear that Southern Water have been pumping sewage out in places it would be better they had not. We have shared concerns about this across the Peninsula but there are other places in our District that have been negatively affected too. Over the years we have had several enjoyable walks by the River Lavant. Sadly sewage has blighted it with fungus so Southern Water hopes to stop pumping into it in six years time - read more here.
At the same time, a survey has found that declining water quality is having a major impact on coastal communities.
Somewhere Donna and I visited for the first time during Half Term was Standen House Near East Grinstead. It is a lovely spot and slightly unusual because the present house was created by effectively merging three smaller homesteads. This is an interesting read about it.
In 2018 Stephen Fry was diagnosed with prostate cancer and has commented on King Charles’ diagnosis.
“You never know how you’re going to react when you get that kind of news, and very sadly, it’s something 1 in 2 of us are going to go through. The King’s recent news shows this so clearly and I think he has done a real service to the country in being open and honest about such a personal experience. It’s got us all talking and thinking about cancer and wondering what we can do. Cancer is a verb – it moves and acts quickly – and so must we if we want to save our loved ones. Since 2020, 225,000 people have waited too long for cancer treatment, and these waits can be deadly. If, like me, you want to help, here’s what you can do. Join me and sign up, to the #CatchUpWithCancer campaign petition.”
National No Smoking Day will take place on 13 March this year. Quitting smoking is one of the best things that you can do for your health, but many smokers who want to quit aren’t sure about the best way to go about it. It is worth reminding you there is support including tailored advice from CDC’s Wellbeing team. People are three times more likely to quit if they have professional support from an advisor so CDC provides a free one-to-one confidential service for 12 weeks, face-to-face or over the phone. They can also help you access free Nicotine Replacement Therapy or other options, to help you quit smoking if this is required.
Finally: -
As always, from the whole Team, stay safe.
Tim
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