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Town Mayor's Report 2003/2004 Civic Year

I am honoured to present this Mayoral report at the end of my year of office; a year I have thoroughly enjoyed. The Council, which was elected in May 2003, has had a very busy interesting, and, at times, difficult year. It has however, at all times been focused on delivering its services and fulfilling its representational role in the very best interests of the community.

There were 52 Council and Committee meetings held during the period. These meetings attracted good attendances from the public, particularly for Council and Planning, and we are most grateful to those who support the work of the Council and give helpful and constructive criticism. Particular thanks must be given to the northern area planning team at Mid Sussex District Council who offer assistance on technical issues, to our regular attendees and to the local press who attend our meetings and who fairly report the proceedings.

The Planning Committee considered approximately 450 new planning applications during the civic year. The Committee gave detailed attention to all the applications and many Members visited the application sites and studied the plans in advance of the meetings. The District Council reported on some 407 applications and some 84% of the Committee’s recommendations were upheld at the District Council, a lower concurrency rate by 5% than achieved the previous year.

During the last year there has been much focus on the West Sussex Structure Plan, and the considerable public opposition locally to the proposed inclusion of a strategic development site for 2,500 houses west or south west of East Grinstead. This opposition was made particularly manifest at the Town Poll in June and later in responses to the Deposit Draft modifications to the Plan following the Examination in Public. The Town Council recognises the many genuine concerns at the extent of development proposed and the doubts of many whether the full range of infrastructure improvements proposed, including an effective, and sustainable relief road finishing south of Forest Row can be delivered in the way that the principal authorities have assured is possible. Members locally will remain vigilant to ensure that promises made regarding infrastructure are kept. Support for the scheme is strictly conditional and in this regard the continuing constructive dialogue with local community groups and organisations is welcomed as being in the best interests of the town

The Public Services Committee has considered a range of issues that impact upon the local community. The representational role is a most important one that can ensure the views of East Grinstead are taken fully into account by those responsible for ultimately making the decisions that determine the way services are delivered locally, and indeed whether they are delivered at all. Regrettably issues of closure and cutback seemed to predominate. Sub post office closures at North End and Lingfield Road, monstrously mishandled by the Post Office, cuts in CAB funding, reductions in grass cutting, in public toilets maintenance and withdrawal by the District Council without advance notification of their grant to the East Grinstead Youth Sport Initiative are all cases in point. However whilst the way some of these issues were handled by the body concerned could justifiably provoke criticism there is an understanding in this Chamber of the significant budgetary pressures that our colleagues at the District and County Councils have to face and the hard choices they are required to make in a climate of financial constraint on the one hand and an ever demanding call for new and enhanced services on the other. Accordingly this Council has made clear our willingness to engage in real and constructive dialogue with our partners at Oaklands and County Hall to help to frame the local agenda and determine those services that are of greatest priority to the people of East Grinstead, including where appropriate opportunities for devolution with an appropriate transfer of funding where overall benefits can be achieved.

Other matters considered by the Public Services Committee have included recycling, street sweeping, public rights of way, jobcentre services, the transfer of County Council care homes for the elderly, waste management and the Queen Victoria Hospital, and here I must say how proud we all were that our splendid hospital about which we are all so proud is in the first wave tranche of applicants for Foundation Hospital status. They also considered the highways works programme, concessionary rail fares, street lighting, the local pigeon problem, homelessness, a myriad of policing issues, the local transport plan and the Governments white paper on the future of air transport in the United Kingdom. This Council will remain extremely vigilant with regard to this last matter.

The Committee has contributed constructively on all of these issues and has made every effort to represent local views and concerns responsibly and fairly. The Committee has welcomed attendance of all local members of the District and County Councils representing East Grinstead to its meetings to exchange views and information in relation to those authorities. We thank those who have responded to this opportunity.

The Leisure and Tourism Committee is responsible for all buildings in the ownership of the Town Council. During the past year income targets were exceeded for the Meridian Hall, East Court Mansion, Old Court House and the Parish Halls. This latter facility is run by the Council as an independent charity.

During the year the rolling renewal programme of maintenance was continued. This saw further enhancements to the Parish Halls and a detailed programme of DDA works agreed for East Court Mansion . These works to provide a disabled toilet on the ground floor at East Court have now started. Other works including the provision of a lift will commence in the summer holidays and external redecoration of the Mansion will begin later this month.

The Town Council was both sorry and concerned to learn that Chequer Mead (Arts Centre) Trust Ltd had declared itself insolvent at a meeting of the Board on 24 March 2004 and had subsequently called in Sterling Ford, a firm of Business Recovery and Turnaround specialists.

Sterling Ford convened an initial creditors meeting, of which the Town Council is one, on 21 April but no decision to liquidate the company was made and efforts to affect a rescue of the company, possibly by means of a corporate voluntary arrangement, continue. In the interim the centre remains open, under the interim financial umbrella of the Town Council as agreed as Town Council policy, as a lettings facility and with especial emphasis on cost control.

The Town Council continues to maintain all its land holdings to a high standard. A highlight of the year was completion of the Jubilee footpath through the grounds of East Court providing an environmentally friendly and safe pedestrian route through the estate. Many complimentary comments have been made about Mount Noddy Cemetery and other land in our control. The two allotment sites at Mount Noddy and Imberhorne are maintained by Allotment Associations under agency agreements. This is a very successful arrangement resulting in high occupancy standards and a feeling of ownership by the tenants. Thanks are also expressed to East Grinstead in Bloom for their voluntary clean up campaigns and co-ordination of a range of campaign initiatives.

The Finance & General Purposes Committee has overall responsibility for Best Value and once again this last year our Best Value Plan received a clean bill of health at audit. No reviews were undertaken during the past year because of the emphasis being placed upon the organisational and structure review. However a best value review will be undertaken during this coming summer, with the subject matter to be determined by Members when the Committee considers the plan on 24 June. We were also pleased to receive our initial £45,000 best value grant in December and confirmation that this year’s grant of £30,000 will be honoured.

During the past year we saw the formation, under the chairmanship of Don Cooper, of the East Grinstead Community Partnership. The priority for this Group is to help deliver the East Grinstead Health check Action Plan. We are most grateful to Don, the members of the Partnership, and the Secretary Andrew Bass, for their commitment and hard work to this process.

In January I was delighted to be presented with a Quality Local Council award on behalf of the Town Council by the President of the Sussex and National Associations of Local Councils, Earl Litton. East Grinstead was one of the first twenty parish or town councils nationally to gain this award.

The Town Council’s finances are healthy. The Council has no borrowings, has over £200,000 in its revenue balances, a figure in line with the Council’s policy on reserves, and continues to maintain a responsible and viable capital programme. It is also worth emphasising that the Town Council is within the lowest decile of precepting authorities at Band D level amongst the 41 Councils who are subject to the statutory discipline of Best Value.

As Members know, partnerships are very important in East Grinstead and I would like to record particular thanks to the Town Twinning Association, Youth Sports Development Management Committee, the East Grinstead in Bloom Committee and the Christmas Lights Committee who do such sterling work locally. I would also commend our groundbreaking tourism initiative that is co-ordinated and largely funded by the Town Council. Thanks are also due to the various voluntary groups and organisations in the Town who do such excellent work, many of whom we support with grant aid and/or assistance in kind. Particularly I would mention the CVS, the Citizens Advice Bureau, Mid Sussex Volunteering, Age Concern, and the Access Group.

During the year I was pleased to raise funds for the Jubilee Ward at Queen Victoria Hospital and to a number of local groups and organisations doing valuable voluntary work locally for the disabled. I would like to thank those who attended the Saint Hill concert in the autumn and raised such significant sums, also those who attended my Charity Dinner Dance in the Meridian Hall, the charity evening kindly donated by the Azad Restaurant, those who participated in or sponsored the abseil and those who gave personal voluntary donations. I am told altogether over £14,000 was raised for my charities. I would now like to draw breath for a minute and present cheques as follows: £5,000.00 to Jubilee Ward of Queen Victoria Hospital, £2,000.00 to East Grinstead Library for a training programme to help disabled people use the super Nova programme on the assisted technology computer, £1,000.00 each to EG & District Access Group, Alzheimer’s, Greenstede Talking News & The Blind Club, £500.00 to St. Catherine’s Hospice and £250.00 to E.G. & District Pensioners Association and I hope you will all have a lovely Christmas party. Further funds will be allocated in the coming weeks.

In my year as Town Mayor I have attended 240 events, excluding Council and Committee meetings. I have been particularly grateful to Councillor Heasman who served as my consort and gave me such support throughout the civic year and who supported me at most of the official functions. David, Sarah, Wayne and my family have been a tremendous encouragement throughout my year of office. Although all the events I have attended have been special in one way or another, I would like to draw attention to a small number that have been particularly memorable to me personally, being introduced to Princess Anne at the Q.V.H. was such an honour and then to have my comments about how many sweetener’s she takes in her coffee printed will probably haunt me for the rest of my life! Meeting our young people through beavers, cubs scout and the rainbows, brownies and guides, not forgetting the N.T.C. cadets, seeing how much they do for others and how they are being taught life skills. They are our citizens of tomorrow and should be encouraged, so if there is anyone out there with time on your hands, I can find you a group who would love you to join them. I can quite honestly say that I have officially retired from ABSEILING. It was great to help other organisations raise money for their causes along with my endeavours. I am told that something in the region of £6,000.00 was raised that morning. And then to have William, 80 years young guinea pig with assistance come down the tower, put me to shame for being so scared.

I would also like to say how wonderful it was to meet the band from one of twin towns Schwaz and to be part of the Lions May Fayre with my specially made Tudor dress by Sandie Goman. All this would not have been possible without the help of my two very good friends and colleagues at the Help Point, the two B’s, Barbara Broadway & Barbara Stovold and I would like to publicly thank them for all their support.

I should like to thank Members of the Council for their contribution to its work during the year. I would like to pay tribute to them all, to thank them for the personal support they have shown me and for the hard work that they have put in on behalf of the Town, totally voluntarily and without any recompense whatsoever during the year. I am particularly grateful to my Deputy, Councillor Christine Mainstone for substituting for me at a number of engagements when I was unavailable and supporting on other occasions when we were both in attendance. She will I am sure make an absolutely splendid Town Mayor. Can I also thank our small but dedicated staff team for their support and assistance during the year, for the advice they have given and for carrying out their duties in accordance with Member policies. Finally and most sincerely I thank the public of East Grinstead for embracing me during my year as Mayor and helping to make it truly special and enjoyable.

Thank you.

COUNCILLOR BEVERLY HEASMAN
TOWN MAYOR
2003/2004 CIVIC YEAR