The Returning Officer of Colchester City Council has issued official Notice of elections. Affectionately known as ‘Star Wars day’ by some, the elections will take place on May 4th 2023. This affects the Lexden & Braiswick Ward of the City Council and, potentially, West Bergholt Parish Council.
Photo ID
Registered electors will need to show Photo ID (or Voter Authority Certificates as per 6 below), for the first time in Great Britain. The list of valid ID is long and with some idiosyncrasies as mentioned in this article.
Today the Parish Council resumes in-person meetings. You can find out what they’ll be talking about in detail on the Parish Council Agenda Page. In summary they will appoint Vice Chairs, Responsible Finance Officer and standing committees and other representatives. Committees & CBC Councillors will be giving updates, Audit report and other financial documents will be reviewed. Planning looks at 3 applications and receives an update on the NEEB appeal.
If a member of the public or press wishes to attend this meeting, please email the Clerk as soon as possible so that suitable Covid-secure arrangements can be made. A zoom link will also be made available for those who prefer to attend remotely.
Seeing Red with an Illegal & Problem Parking Blight
The Parish Council are seeing red about illegal parking around the Zebra Crossing on Chapel Road and have placed 2 huge red banners to remind illegal parkers not to do so.
Day 15 and after two weeks of lockdown it almost seems like the new normal! But, things keep changing. First, there was no recycling, then there was and, the good news, there will be again tomorrow but read on. Also, there were no council meetings but, watch this space! And, again, a little light relief at the end.
Residents showed lots of interest in the future of the Methodist Church & Hall with 75 attending our recent consultation event. The next step is to participate in an online survey established by the Parish Council and St Mary’s Church to build on the event. The deadline for completing the survey is 10 pm on Sunday 30th June.
What future the Methodist Church & Hall face depends in significant part on what the community want to happen. The Parish Council & St Mary’s Church are jointly hosting a consultation event in order to stimulate this conversation. This takes place in St Mary’s Church Hall on Saturday 15th June between 9 am and 12 noon.
Following a public notice published by Colchester Borough Council, no election to fill this vacancy has been requested by the electors within this parish. Therefore, the Parish Council will fill the vacancy by the process of co-option.
The Neighbourhood Plan meeting that took place earlier this month resulted in much progress with an almost completed first draft plan. The picture on the right shows the Contents page to give some idea of what to expect when the final report is published (click on it for larger picture).
You will notice that a lot of the the section headings have blank ‘App Buttons’ and, since the plan will impact the children’s future, the NP group are running a competition for the pupils at Heathlands to design what the blanks should be filled in with.
There are 8 categories and these are listed below, there will be a winner and a prize selected for each App Button. The Categories are:
Example of what the ‘App Button’ could look like for Housing & Planning
Following the public notice published by Colchester Borough Council, no election to fill this vacancy has been requested by the electors within this parish. Therefore, the Parish Council will fill the vacancy by the process of co-option.
If you are interested in being co-opted as a Parish Councillor, then we would like to hear from you, please contact the Chairman or Clerk for further details. Familiarisation sessions will be arranged, and should there be more than one person interested, selection would be made by a vote of the Parish Council as required by the regulations.
The Parish Clerk on 01206 240772, [antibot mailto=”[email protected]”], or
The Chairman of West Bergholt Parish Council, Chris Stevenson, [antibot mailto=”[email protected]”].
A vacancy has come up for a parish councillor. If enough electors ask for one by 21st August, the Council will hold an election to fill the role. Failing this, the council will be able to co-opt somebody suitable. The Official Announcement is as follows:
Notice is hereby given pursuant to Section 87(2) of the Local Government Act 1972 that Rachel Howard has ceased to be a member and that a casual vacancy exists in the office of councillor for the West Bergholt Parish Council.
If by 21 August 2015, ten electors for the said parish make a request for an election to fill the vacancy in writing to the proper officer of Colchester Borough Council, an election will be held to fill the said vacancy. Otherwise, the Parish Council will fill the vacancy.
Opportunity to review the Neighbourhood Plan exhibition boards
Much debate between members and villagers
The opportunity to talk to councillors was definitely taken up
2015 Parish Meeting Well Attended
The 2015 Parish Meeting saw over 100 local residents attending to receive the annual report from the Parish Council, the draft minutes of the meeting have already been published online but the following are highlights of the event.
Chairman’s Report
In his last Annual Meeting as Chairman, John Gili-Ross reflected on the importance of the Neighbourhood Plan in ensuring West Bergholt develops in accordance with the wishes of the local community. On the subject of community, John also discussed the important part played by the many local volunteers:
Our future lies firmly within the many volunteers who help provide a vibrant and interesting village life. Imagine how different our village would be without the many volunteers who provide our village with clubs, recreational pursuits, youth organisations, church communities, institutes and associations. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to all our village volunteers.
Other areas he covered included the Superfast Essex broadband project, the achievement of the Local Council Quality Award, and the commitment of local councillors. In winding up his Introductory messages he gave thanks to Val Walsom who will be retiring as Parish Clerk after many years, also to Vicky Beckwith-Cole, Halls Administrator and Stephen Cook, village handyman.
Committee Reports
Environment & Highways
Harry Stone reported on the wide span of responsibility this committee covers including:
The Allotments where he addressed the improvements in management and support with the rotavator and replacement of water tanks,
The Village Green & Poors Land which require regular maintenance,
The 3 ponds which need regular clearance of reed mace,
General maintenance in and around the village,
Traffic congestion and parking, updating on progress with the Traffic Safety Plan,
Highway Maintenance, liaison with Essex Highways attempting to prioritize those areas most needing attention,
MUGA & Sports facility which, whilst well used, has sometimes been abused but remedial action appears to be working,
Dog Fouling, Snow Clearance and Tree Conservation.
Premises & Recreation
Phil Walby reported on the halls and the high levels of lettings and events, not least by regular groups. Projects undertaken in the past year included the resurfacing and new LED lights for the car park, interior hall redecoration and provision of all-weather football facilities. Projects planned for the upcoming year (funds permitting) include safety improvements to play equipment, stage curtains, floor treatments and introducing new regular events such as film nights.
Planning & Development
Chris Stevenson reported that the busiest part of this portfolio related to 43 planing applications in the past year (20% higher than the previous year) where the committee supported 19, objected to just 5 but made observations on a further 19. Longer term, more strategic, activities included consultations with the Borough Council on Local Planning and provision of design guidance. The committee was also deeply involved with the Orpen Hall car park resurfacing project.
Parish/Neighbourhood Planning
Chris Stevenson was able to report that most elements of the Parish plan, produced in 2008, have now been addressed and that progress has been made on its successor, the Neighbourhood Plan, through collection of evidence, analysis and eventual plan production – it is planned for a draft consultation document to be issued by the end of 2015.
Finance, Policy & Personnel
Andrew Savage reported that the 2013/14 accounts were signed off by the external auditor. Financial activities in the past year were dominated by the Orpen Hall car park resurfacing which cost over £60k, but other projects have also been progressed including new chairs for both halls. Projects like these are often fully or partly funded by grants, and indeed, some grant income did support these, but these are becoming increasingly difficult to secure and so to continue moving forward a small increase in the parish precept has had to be made.
