Author: Andrew Taylor

Public Newsletter – 18 May 2018

Mid Sussex District Councillors have changed the structure of the Council and placed an even greater focus on supporting economic growth.

A new Finance and Performance Cabinet position has been created to allow the Cabinet Member for Economic Growth to spend more time developing the local economy. The Cabinet now comprises the Leader and six portfolio holders.

At the Annual Council meeting on Wednesday 9 May, the number of Cabinet Members was increased by one, with Councillor Judy Llewellyn-Burke taking on the new role of Cabinet Member for Finance and Performance.

The Cabinet is now as follows:

• Leader – Councillor Garry Wall
• Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Economic Growth – Councillor Jonathan Ash-Edwards
• Cabinet Member for Finance and Performance – Councillor Judy Llewellyn-Burke
• Cabinet Member for Service Delivery – Councillor Gary Marsh
• Cabinet Member for Customer Services – Councillor Mandy Thomas-Atkin
• Cabinet Member for Community – Councillor Norman Webster
• Cabinet Member for Housing & Planning – Councillor Andrew MacNaughton

There are also changes to committees and other working groups as new chairs have been elected.

Councillor Bruce Forbes was re-elected as Chairman and will hold the position for the next 12 months, during the civic year that runs until next May. Councillor Colin Trumble was elected as the new Vice-Chairman.

“Our new structure will enable Councillor Ash-Edwards to dedicate more time, and focus more council resources, on helping the Mid Sussex economy thrive,” said Councillor Garry Wall, Leader of Mid Sussex District Council.

“We are working hard to create a positive business environment in Mid Sussex; helping small companies to grow; providing grant support and tax relief; funding local business associations and buying services from local businesses.

“The next 5-10 years are going to be a really important period of growth for Mid Sussex and represent a real opportunity for us to ensure our towns and villages are fit for the future. It’s essential that we secure the right level of infrastructure funding and our new Cabinet structure will enable us to spend more time lobbying national Government for extra money that will ensure all future growth is sustainable.”

On Saturday 5th May East Grinstead hosted the first leg of the  Mid Sussex Marathon (The three towns, three races challenge that make up the classic marathon distance of 26.2 mile). Running for the 7th time the three races had record entries this year, with the East Grinstead seeing over 400 on the start line.

Runners were able to enter each race individually but those completing all three received a special commemorative Marathon Weekend medal as well as their individual race medals.

In addition to the main races, there were Mid Sussex Mile races and a Mid Sussex Fun Run open to all, including younger runners and those seeking a more leisurely distance.

East Grinstead’s 10 mile race, starting and finishing at the rugby club, has been recognised from the beginning  as being the most challenging of the three, although equally the most scenic and it lived up to its reputation this year, with sweltering heat and  a couple of exceptionally muddy sections to negotiate. Many runners crossed the line covered head to toe in mud, but most had a smile of relief on their faces.

The annual event hosted by  Mid Sussex District Council and the Town Councils of East Grinstead, Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill, is managed by Places for People and race management company Nice Work and relies on many volunteers to safely marshal the courses. Thanks as ever, was extended to all of them.

All the runners were congratulated over the line and presented with a medal by East Grinstead Town Mayor Cllr Julie Mockford and Chairman of Mid Sussex District Council Cllr Bruce Forbes.

Anyone interested in completing this challenge in 2019 should visit www.midsussexmarathon.co.uk and look for entry details.

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Mid Sussex District Council has installed new security measures at two community pavilions in Burgess Hill and Haywards Heath to help deter criminals.

St John’s Park pavilion in Burgess Hill and Clair Park pavilion in Haywards Heath have experienced a number of break-ins over the past two years. The pavilions have been repeatedly targeted at night by vandals who have caused significant damage to the inside of the buildings.

The pavilions are used regularly by local volunteers to provide sports and recreational activities for local people. Mid Sussex District Council owns both buildings and representatives from local sports clubs approached the council to ask if any security improvements could be made.

The council has listened to the concerns of the local community and has fitted stronger uPVC windows and doors at both pavilions. Internal security screens have also been installed behind the windows and doors that users can slide across at night to provide an added deterrent to intruders when the buildings are closed.

The new windows and doors have been constructed to Secure by Design standards, an official UK Police flagship initiative that combines the principle of ‘designing out crime’ with physical security.

Councillor Jonathan Ash-Edwards, MSDC Cabinet Member for Resources and Economic Growth said:

“Local volunteers give up their free time to organise sports and social activities for the benefit of the whole community, so it’s infuriating when mindless idiots try to destroy everything they have worked so hard to build.

“Our community leaders don’t deserve to have their hard work thrown back in their face by the actions of a few selfish criminals. I hope the security improvements we have made at these pavilions make the vandals think twice about causing any more trouble and help to prevent any further break-ins.”

Matt Jones, Chairman of Haywards Heath Cricket Club added:

“Everyone at the club is absolutely delighted with these improvements. We are very hopeful that these endless break-ins are finally now a thing of the past and we can now fully concentrate our resources on the 170 plus children we have involved in our junior programmes and our very successful senior league sides.

“Our sincere thanks go to everyone at Mid Sussex District Council that has made this possible, including local councillors Sandy Ellis and Jonathan Ash Edwards”.

A local landlord has been prosecuted for failing to properly maintain and manage his property, which put the health and safety of his tenants at risk.

Mid Sussex District Council carried out an inspection of Grove House, Copthorne after receiving a number of complaints from tenants. The property, which is a House of Multiple Occupation, was found to be in an extremely poor state of repair.

The issues were so serious that the Council undertook immediate emergency repair works to ensure the safety of the tenants. The Council repaired unsafe electrics, removed combustible items from the stairwell, repaired a faulty fire alarm system and reinstated hot water and heating in the building.

Mid Sussex District Council issued the landlord, Mr Hamedur Choudhury, with an Improvement Notice that required him to rectify an extensive list of further defects and instructed him repay the cost of the emergency repair works. The property had serious problems with damp and mould growth, excess cold, pests and refuse, sanitation and drainage, electrical hazards and fire safety but Mr Choudhury failed to correct these issues.

On 25 April 2018, Mr Choudhury pleaded guilty at Crawley Magistrates Court to failing to comply with the terms of an Improvement Notice, as well as offences relating to the breach of the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation Regulations and failing to licence a House of Multiple Occupation. The Magistrates’ Court fined Mr Choudhury a total of £17,012.89, including the Council’s costs.

Everyone deserves to live in a safe and decent home,” said Councillor Norman Webster, Cabinet Member for Community. “The living conditions we discovered at this property were completely unacceptable. It was a real House of Horrors that put the health and safety of the occupants at serious risk.

“All rented accommodation must provide a safe and healthy environment for tenants and their visitors. If these standards are not being met our advice is always to inform the landlord first, to give them the opportunity to fix any problems. However, if a rogue landlord refuses to take their responsibilities seriously then we won’t hesitate to take action against them to ensure that they comply with the law.”