Annual Report
Municipal Year
2010 - 2011
CONTENTS
Section / Page1 / Parish Council’s contact details / 2
2 / Council’s Mission Statement & Corporate Objectives / 3
3 / Introduction / 4
Brief history / 4
What is the Parish Council / 5
Parish Councillors / 5
Committee structure / 5
The community of Lancing / 6
What the Parish costs / 6
Community assets / 6
Corporate programme 2009 - 2010 / 7
4 / The Business of the Council / 8
(a) Full Council of the Parish / 8
(b) Amenities & Environment Committee / 9
(c) Finance & General Purposes Committee / 9
(d) Planning Advisory Committee / 10
5 / Councillor Attendance at Committee Meetings 2008/2009 / 11
6 / Lancing Parish Council Councillors – 2008 to 2012 / 14
7 / List of Council Officers / 16
8 / Summary of the Annual Accounts of the Parish Council year ending 31st March 2010 / 17
9 / Chairman's Annual Report / 19
10 / Items discussed at Council and Committee meetings / 21
Appendix 1 – Full Council / 21
Appendix 2 – Amenities & Environment / 22
Appendix 3 – Finance & General Purposes / 23
Appendix 4 – Planning Advisory / 24
1. CONTACT DETAILS
Address: - Lancing Parish Council,
Lancing Parish Hall,
South Street,
Lancing.
West Sussex
BN15 8AJ
Tel: 01903 753355
Fax : 01903 765096
E-mails:
Office hours – Weekdays 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Fridays to 4:30 pm
Information on the Council, meetings, events etc can be obtained by visiting our web site: www.lancingparishcouncil.gov.uk
2. MISSION STATEMENT
The Council's Mission Statement is:-
Working in partnership with the local community to make Lancing a great place to live, work, visit and enjoy.
Corporate Objectives
The Council's Corporate Objectives are:-
· To engage, whenever possible, in an open dialogue with residents, to understand their needs, and to explain how the Council will address these needs within the resources and powers available.
· To understand the issues and aspirations of residents and promote these ideals for the future.
· To provide high standard cost-effective services.
· To enable, assist and encourage other local organisations and agencies to provide services.
· To promote and represent the best interests of the village for the betterment of the local community.
· To encourage and promote the economic and commercial vitality of the village through partnerships and other means.
· To encourage and promote social and community values in the village by working in co-operation and supporting, where practicable, local organisations and groups.
· To embrace progress, improve the quality of life and healthy living.
3. INTRODUCTION
This Annual Report outlines the workings and operations of the Parish Council during the last municipal year 2010/11.
The aim of the report is to give a better understanding of the role the Council plays in issues relating to Lancing, and its communities, as well as the work the Council has been involved in, and carried out, over the past year.
To understand the role and responsibilities of the Parish Council, in relation to other Councils and bodies, it is useful to have some knowledge of its operations and make up, and in this respect it is hoped that the information below will offer a brief but informative guide to what the Parish Council is, and does.
Brief history:
Lancing is credited as being the largest Village in England. The Parish Council has been in existence since 1894 and has been representing the communities of Lancing continuously since that time.
The current Parish Hall in South Street is partly built on the site of the old Lancing Fire Station which dates back to the late nineteenth century. The most recent addition was the building of the Jubilee Hall which was opened in 1976.
Lancing was the home of the Lancing carriage and wagon works from 1911 until 1965. The works were purchased by the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) to relieve the pressure on their Brighton works at that time and covered an area of some 66acres (270,000m2) of land.
Because of the rural situation of the new factory it was necessary for the railway to operate a special daily train from Brighton for the workforce. This became known as the Lancing Belle.
Lancing was visited by Oscar Wilde in the 1890s when he stayed at nearby Worthing. The working title for his masterpiece The Importance of Being Earnest was Lady Lancing. Wilde's friend and lover, the poet Lord Alfred Douglas lived in nearby Brighton and died while staying at Monk's Farmhouse in Lancing. Lancing was also visited by another poet, Algernon Charles Swinburne, who stayed at The Terrace in the 1880s.
What is the Parish Council?
The Parish Council is the third tier of local government – the first tier being West Sussex County Council and the second Adur District Council.
Lancing Parish Council makes every effort to represent the views of, and provide the best possible service to residents of Lancing, through its own operations and by close liaison and partnership working with the District and County Councils and other representative bodies and agencies in the community.
Parish Councillors
There are sixteen (16) Councillors that sit on the Parish Council, and these are democratically elected on a four year cycle basis. A new Council was elected and formed in May 2008 and will be in office until May 2012. Details of the current ward Councillors can be found later in this report.
The sixteen Councillors represent the four electoral wards of Lancing (four for each ward) which are Mash Barn, Manor, Churchill and Widewater.
Committee Structure
The Council has three programme Committees which deal with the varied and extensive activities and issues that are carried out, and affect, residents of Lancing.
The Full Council has all sixteen Councillors represented on it, while the Amenities & Environment, Finance & General Purposes and Planning Advisory Committees have seven Councillors each. The Chair and Vice Chair of the Council are ex-officio members of each programme committee with voting rights. Each Committee meets on a monthly basis (except in the August recess) with the exception of the Planning Advisory Committee which meets twice monthly.
The public can attend any of these meetings and ask questions on any item on the agenda or stay behind after the meeting and ask questions on any areas of Council activity.
Agendas and dates of meetings can be found on the Lancing Parish Council Notice Board at the Parish Hall or by visiting the Lancing Parish Council’s web site www.lancingparishcouncil.gov.uk.
Copies of agendas and minutes are also available for public inspection at the Parish Hall, Lancing during office hours and upon request and are also placed on Council’s web site.
One other Committee exists, which is the Human Resources Sub-Committee, and meets on an adhoc basis as necessary to deal with confidential staffing matters. The dealings of this Committee are held in camera session and minutes are not available for public disclosure. There are five Members of the Council who sit on the sub-Committee and include the Chair and Vice Chair of the Council.
The Community of Lancing
Lancing covers an area of 3.65 miles² (946.4hectares) and serves a population of 19000 (Census 2002), 14,680 of whom are on the electoral register. There are approximately 6000 dwellings in the area
The area spans from the lower part of Western Road in the west northwards to Lancing Ring, east to the River Adur with the southern boundary being the English Channel.
What the Parish Council Costs
The Council spent £365,814 last year (2010/11) to carry out its operations and works in the community and generated £141,205 in income from assets and bookings.
This compares with £398,301 expenditure and £135,556 income in 2009/10.
The balance is raised through a precept on the Council Tax, and currently equates to approximately £32.31 per household per year or 62 pence per week. Residents in the neighbouring Parish of Sompting pay slightly more.
In comparison with the Council Tax bill for 2010/11 for a band C property in Adur generally, the difference is only £14.85 (approximately 29 pence per week per household) as some services, normally carried out by Adur District Council in Lancing are undertaken by the Parish Council.
In 2010/11 the Council precept did not rise and remained at £220,000.
Community Assets
The Parish Council, on behalf of the community of Lancing, is responsible for, and operates, a large number of assets.
These include:-
· The Parish Hall Complex (incorporating the local Citizens Advice Bureau).
· Lancing Beach Green (other than the public toilets).
· Monks Recreation Ground (other than the public toilets).
· Croshaw Recreation Ground.
· East Lancing Recreation Ground.
· 259 Beach Hut Sites (but not the huts).
· 2 Public Car Parks at Beach Green and Widewater.
· Widewater Local Nature Reserve.
· 2 Beach Kiosks at Beach Green and Widewater.
· Allotments at East Lancing.
· 4 Childrens Playgrounds (all located within the above Recreation Grounds).
· Play Wall, Youth Shelter and Basketball Facility at Croshaw Recreation Ground.
· A Multi Use Games Area (MUGA) at East Lancing Recreation Ground
· Works Depot.
· 4 Adult and 2 Junior Football pitches.
· 2 pocket gardens (Headborough & Wencling).
The Council is responsible for the maintenance and enhancement of all the above facilities.
Capital Programme for 2010 - 2011
The Council, as part of its annual budget setting process, implements Capital Programmes for the provision and refurbishment of Community Assets.
Those carried out last year included:
(i) Parish Hall
· Refurbishments of the ladies and gents toilets,
· internal decorations and electrical improvements,
· Refurbishments to the Jubilee Hall flooring
· Improvements to the caretakers flat
· Car park repairs
(ii) Outside Facilities
· Restoration of Beach Green
· New car park barrier and bollards at Widewater car park
· Additional litter bins at Widewater and Beach Green
· A kite surfing club house
· An additional nine beach hut sites
· A beach patrol service.
4. THE BUSINESS OF THE COUNCIL 2009 - 2010
The following are reports on the works and operations of the Council.
This is laid out by Programme Committee, for ease of reference, and for the reader to gain an understanding of each Committee’s responsibilities, the issues they discussed and the decisions they subsequently made during the course of the past year.
Full Council
Representation 16 Councillors
Chair: Cllr Ann Bridges
Vice-Chair: Cllr Fred Lewis
Meetings: Monthly (other than August) on the first Wednesday of each month.
Business: the overall policy & decision making body of the Council.
The report of the Chair of the Council can be found later in this document under section 8.
A summary of all issues discussed by the Full Council during the municipal year (2010- 2011) can be found under section 10 Appendix 1
Amenities and Environment committee
Representation: 7 Councillors (excluding 2 ex-officio members)
Chairman: Cllr Brenda Collard
Vice-Chairman: Cllr Mary Hamblin
Meetings: Every other month on the second Wednesday of the month (other than August)
Business: Maintenance, management & improvements of:-
· Sports Pitches & Pavilions
· Playgrounds
· Play Equipment
· Allotments
· Beach Hut Sites
· Car Parks – Widewater & Beach Green
· Council Works Depot & Vehicles
· Widewater Local Nature Reserve
· Seats
· Recreation Grounds & Booking of assets and facilities
· Headborough & Wenceling Gardens
· Environmental Issues
· Youth Issues
A summary of all issues discussed by the Amenities & Environment Committee during the municipal year (2010 – 2011) can be found under section 10 Appendix 2
Finance and General Purposes committee
Representation: 7 Councillors (excluding 2 ex-officio members)
Chairman: Cllr Fred Lewis
Vice-Chairman: Cllr Andy Barnes
Meetings: Monthly - on the second Wednesday of each month.
Business:
· Parish Hall & its Operation
· Payment of Accounts
· Financial Audits
· Budget Collation & Setting
· Personnel & Human Resources Issues
· Budget Planning/Annual Budgets including Setting of Fees & Charges
· Capital Projects & Spend
· All Licences/Leases and Agreements
A summary of all issues discussed by the Finance & General Purposes Committee during the municipal year (2010 - 2011) can be found under section 10 Appendix: 3
Planning Advisory committee
Representation: 7 Councillors (excluding 2 ex-officio members)
Chairman: Cllr. Brenda Collard
Vice-Chairman: Cllr Mary Hamblin
Meetings: Twice Monthly - on the first and second Wednesday of each month.
Business:
· All Planning Applications relating to Lancing
· Highways Matters & Issues
· Public Transport
A summary of all issues discussed by the Planning Advisory Committee during the municipal year (2010 - 2011) can be found under section 10 Appendix: 4
Human Resources Sub-committee
Representation: 5 Councillors
Chairman: Cllr. Ann Bridges
Vice-Chairman: Cllr Fred Lewis
Meetings: as necessary
Business:
· Confidential matters concerning staffing
All matters are discussed in camera and minuted but are not for public disclosure.
5. COUNCILLOR ATTENDANCE AT PARISH MEETINGS 2010 - 2011
No. of meetings / Attended / Apologies / Absent
Andy Barnes / 11 / 7 / 3 / 1
Patrick Beresford / 11 / 2 / 1 / 8
Melvyn Blackband / 11 / 11
Kim Bonnett / 11 / 1 / 9 / 1
Anne Bridges / 11 / 11
Simon Bridges / 11 / 6 / 5
Richard Burt / 11 / 78 / 3
Brenda Collard / 11 / 9 / 2
Mary Hamblin / 11 / 6 / 5
Fred Lewis / 11 / 11
Stephen Martin / 11 / 9 / 2
Morgan Nahid / 11 / 4 / 5 / 2
Tony Nicklen / 11 / 3 / 8
Lorna Read (resigned) / 9 / 3 / 2 / 4
Ann Terry / 11 / 9 / 2
Norman Wright / 11 / 8 / 1 / 2
Lionel Parsons (elected March 2011) / 1 / 1
Amenities and Environment Committee
No. of meetings / Attended / Apologies / Absent / Sub
Melvyn Blackband / 7 / 7
Anne Bridges* / 7 / 7
Brenda Collard / 7 / 5 / 2
Mary Hamblin / 7 / 6 / 1
Fred Lewis* / 7 / 7
Steve Martin / 7 / 5 / 2
Tony Nicklen / 7 / 7
Ann Terry / 7 / 4 / 3
Norman Wright / 7 / 6 / 1
* Ex-officio members of Committee