June 6, 2025

Welcome to this week’s blog - as always, thanks for having a read.

Although Summer Half Term only finished a week ago, the big exams are mainly done. Ironically my GCSE students were early on while my A Level Computing ones are near the end. Once the public exams are over, whilst  halls are still set out with the individual desks, many schools have mocks for Years 10 and 12, so our thoughts are with them too as they prepare to sit them in a week or so.

Steve had Chichester District Council’s Standards Committee on Wednesday and Val General Licensing on Thursday. Today, Friday, Donna’s West Sussex County Council’s Appeals Panel has been moved to Friday of this coming week. Next week Donna and Val have Chichester District Council’s Planning Committee  on Wednesday. That evening, Val will be joined by Mick, Ian, Andrew and Gareth for Selsey Town Council’s Planning Committee.  You can watch council meetings live: CDC and WSCC.

A few years ago we mentioned Chichester had been favourably named as a place to live. That aroused a little debate. The Guardian has considered a variety of factors such as transport, infrastructure and crime, as well as cinemas, theatres and museums, pubs and libraries, to suggest a range of spots across the country which it feels are the happiest place to live,. Chichester is among them in no small part due to its proximity to the South Downs National Park and, of course, the Peninsula. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/ng-interactive/2025/may/17/the-happiest-places-to-live-in-britain 

West Sussex County Council Trading Standards has prosecuted the director of Krakow Market store in Crane Street, Chichester, for a number of food and tobacco related offences. Trading Standards officers conducted inspections between March 2024 and May 2024 and found that a significant proportion of food items on sale lacked mandatory English labelling. Despite being given clear advice and a 28-day deadline to rectify the issue, the business failed to comply. An Improvement Notice was issued but a follow-up inspection revealed continued non-compliance, food items on display that were well past their use-by dates and repeated breaches of tobacco and vaping regulations. Mr Hoshmand Mahmood was ordered to pay £2,043, which includes a deprivation order for all tobacco and vape products seized and victim surcharge. He was also given a community order with 190 hours of unpaid work to be completed in 12 months. 

AI-powered chatbots and voicebots are transforming how we interact with technology. From handling customer service queries to assisting with daily tasks, these intelligent systems help provide fast, personalised assistance around the clock. Donna recently told me how West Sussex Adult Social Care are beginning to use them for answering queries. However for some individuals, AI (or Artificial Intelligence) can be daunting and confusing, so West Sussex Library Service have produced a guide offering an explanation on what AI is, where and how it is often used, and how to interact with AI chatbots and voicebots

Finally: - 

• Selsey Sea Defences

• Report potholes

• Supporting You

• WSCC Meetings

• CDC Meetings

• STC Meetings

As always, from the whole Team, stay safe.

Tim