Understandable

-

 


"We are everyday people, we are not politicians." 

 

There is a new buzzword gaining rapid traction; 'hyper-local' describes organised independents like us who get together to fight for their area. The quote at the start could easily greet you when you land on our website homepage, but actually comes from Radcliffe First's who now have 5 of their area's 8 seats on Bury Borough (District) Council. Like us, they are one of the 349 registered political parties in the UK. This is not unusual anymore, nearer to home, my school in Elmbridge Borough is controlled by several hyper-local groups working together.

 

This week's interesting reads include a Sussex drive that is reminiscent of driving through rural Italy, Cissbury Ring and it's wild ponies being compared to the New Forest and David Walliams spotted locally. Don't forget parts of his new comedy series and the Repair Shop are filmed here. As Summer is round the corner, Surrey's top 10 nearby Best Beaches to visit, of course, are headed by one of ours: my students rave about Selsey, colleagues about Bracklesham and the Witterings. 

 

On a more cautionary note, Monkeypox has been found in the UK. 

 

We have previously mentioned the growing food crisis. The Food Foundation conducts regular research, and have found that more than 2 million adults in the UK have gone without food for a whole day over the past month because they cannot afford to eat. In our area, the Trussell Trust features heavily in terms of foodbanks. 

 

Indirectly linked to this, is an opinion on the Levelling Up White Paper by the Chair of the Rural Services Network. 

 

If you are interested in the Government’s Help to Buy schemes and how they apply to our District, First Homes must be sold on a freehold basis at a minimum discount of 30%, and the property cannot initially be sold for more than £250,000 once the discount has been applied. They must also not be sold to households with an annual income of more than £80,000.

 

Children's Services in West Sussex have been a local concern for some time. The latest OfSTED monitoring visit has shown the experience of children in care across the County has improved significantly and is continuing to improve. 

 

We are in Mental Health Awareness Week. Around 1 in 4 people will have issues with  mental health at some point in their lives. Life experiences, ongoing chronic medical conditions, biological factors and loneliness can all contribute to mental illness. It can come and go, or be ongoing and long lasting. The important thing is to realise that there is help. The Sussex Partnership NHS Trust has a helpline - they can help anyone concerned about their own mental health or that of a relative or friend. 

 

Residents and visitors are being asked to nominate their favourite family business as part of a national campaign being run by ShopAppy, an online shopping platform that can be used to browse and buy products and services from local businesses. Nominations need to be made by 12 June and each person nominating will be entered into a free prize draw to win £50 to spend on ShopAppy.com or ShopLocalOnline.org.


One business will be selected by a panel of judges to receive a professional photography session for their family and an award as the UK's Favourite Family Business. Family businesses in each area will be informed that they have been nominated which can be used in promotions to help boost their business. The winner will be announced on 27 June 2022.


Don't forget businesses can either apply for a Growth Project Grants of up to £2,000 or a Start-up award of up to £500. Guidance is here, and needs to be fully read before submitting any application.

 

Please remember the link about helping Ukraine near the bottom of our website homepage, between tbe Facebook and Twitter feeds, above the CDC news feed. 


Finally: - 


As always, from the whole Team, stay safe.


Tim

Comments

Post a Comment