Something to be grateful for
Our thoughts are with anyone affected by yesterday's fire at the Angel Hotel in Midhurst. Since 2019 Donna and I have found common ground with their District Councillor, a fellow Independent, and since her election to WSCC in 2021, Donna has found their County Councillor particularly supportive. We are hoping to soon decide what we are doing in May's elections, which is quite appropriate because most parishes like Selsey Town Council have held their final Full Council meetings - CDC’s is on Tuesday. You may recall we delayed things because, pleasingly, more of you have come forward to help ensure what we have achieved since 2019, is not undone. We know that many of you hope we can stand more candidates than in 2019, particularly for CDC. Again, thank you to everyone who has been so encouraging.
Having a solid majority on Selsey Town Council has given Donna and myself more influence at CDC, but we have had our defeats as well as victories. You may recall the votes of the Peninsula's national party Members helped twice defeat our proposal for a post-Covid Peninsula Recovery Group. We have also not got very far in regards to parking charges, something we are not alone in considering are contrary to encouraging footfall as this article demonstrates.
Donna has been looking back too, as you may have read: "Looking back over the last four years, and what has been achieved, something which particularly stands out is the setting up of the Love from Selsey Shop at Cove. I recall meeting via Zoom, the Park's original management team, I picked my moment, and asked if they could help us with a shop for our local artisans. They agreed, and the rest is history. I recall, later that day, going into the Town Hall office exclaiming,'We've got a shop!' It was, and still is, very exciting. There's a Love From Selsey Craft Market at the Town Hall on 18th March, from 10am, so if you can make it, please pop in and say hello. They're an exceptionally talented bunch."
Last week we told you that the team was pleased Selsey Town Council’s Band D precept is roughly two thirds of CDC’s, half the Police and Crime Commissioner’s and significantly less than a tenth of WSCC’s. The actual amounts are STC £123.78, CDC £181.07, Police £239.91, WSCC £1633.41. Without boring you with every Band’s breakdown, the range from Band A to Band H is STC £82.53 - £247,58, CDC £120.71 - £362.14, Police £159.94 - £479.82, WSCC £1088.94 - £3266.82.
Details on your Council Tax bill, wherever you live in our District, are here.
We have had a lot to share with you in recent posts. March 4th would have been Sir Patrick Moore's 100th birthday. Neither Donna or I never actually met him, the nearest Donna got was attending one of his garden parties, but her son was fascinated by astronomy, so The Stars at Night was regular viewing and his books were on their bookshelf. Little did Donna realise that years later, we would live in his much loved Selsey, and she would play a very small part in ensuring a quirky and unique nod to the man who contributed so much to our knowledge of the universe, in the form of one of our Selsey Seals. He once said that there was nothing particularly special about planet earth, 'we are an ordinary planet going around an ordinary star', a humbling thought.
If you have memories of Sir Patrick, after May's elections, Donna would be happy to put them together for Selsey's archive, so if you recall anything please get in touch.
We are also making you aware that St Peter's Church in Selsey needs some funds, and contrary to what many believe, our Churches these days have to pretty much self finance - there is no pot of money to dive into. My father is a retired clergyman, so we know just how hard it is to keep things going these days. St Peter's has been part of our area’s wider community for a very long time - most of it was originally built at Church Norton to replace the then Cathedral when it was relocated to Chichester. St Peters has therefore played a pivotal part in many people's lives so any help you can offer would be appreciated, either with a contribution to their crowd funder or to help with fundraising stpetersrestorationpcc@gmail.com
With the King’s coronation coming up, Selsey Town Council has made available £2000 for any of our community groups which might like to take part in the ‘Big Lunch’ on 7th March. STC is asking that no application exceeds £250. Applications close on 11th April and should be made here.
Local schoolchildren have been learning important skills whichApplications close on 11th April and should be made here will help them maintain their happiness and wellbeing thanks to an ongoing project delivered by START in partnership with CDC’s Wellbeing team. Five Ways to Wellbeing sessions have recently been running at North Mundham Primary School; Portfield Primary School in Chichester; Midhurst Primary School; and Seal Primary Academy in Selsey, amongst others within our District. The project has been running successfully for several years and supports the mental health of Year Five primary school children, teaching them how to incorporate five positive actions into their daily lives and as a part of their communities.
The Five Ways are:
Connect: encouraging children to strengthen and broaden their range of relationships and social networks. It encourages them to spend time with their friends and family whilst staying safe on the internet.
Be active: stresses that being active is for people of all ages and does not need to be intense physical activity, you just need to raise your heartbeat and have fun.
Keep learning: learning can be taken out of the classroom, skills and ideas can be learnt everywhere.
Take notice: asks children to take time to stop, become aware of their surroundings and listen to their thoughts and feelings about them.
Give: focuses on how giving and receiving acts of kindness, whether small or large, can make people feel happier and more satisfied about life.
Following the pandemic, all the sessions have returned to face-to-face. As well as the workshops being fun, they are an interactive way to learn how to improve and maintain wellbeing and be able to support others. All the activities help the children and their ability to work together, increase positivity, and learn new skills which they can then use in everyday life.
£1 million of funding from the Government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is being spent on a variety of projects across our District, with the hope that more funding is on its way. The funding has been awarded to CDC to encourage economic growth and improve the quality of life for people. The UKSPF is a Government allocated fund of £2.6 billion that is intended to support places and communities through encouraging pride in the local area and increasing opportunities for residents and businesses. The money has already started to be spent on a number of projects to improve public areas, including the removal of graffiti, the introduction of new signage and to deliver events, including Culture Spark and the popular Light Extravaganza, along with providing support to businesses in the district.
CDC is encouraging community groups to apply for funding for community projects and improvements. Businesses can also apply for funding to help them thrive, innovate and grow. £50,000 is available from 2023/24 and this will increase to £438,000 in the following year. CDC has also bid for a further £718,000 from the Rural England Prosperity Fund and is hoping that this will provide further opportunities for our District over the coming months. This money is provided by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and can only be allocated to rural areas so some locations, such as the City, Westbourne and Southbourne, are excluded from this particular funding pot, due to their size and proximity to other hubs.
Finally: -
As always, from the whole Team, stay safe.
Tim
Comments
Post a Comment