News from the Chairman

Chairman's Foreward - Saxmundham News September 2011

August is always a very quiet month as far as the Town Council is concerned as, in the past, it was found that attendance by members was low due to holidays etc.

On behalf of the Town Council, I attended the inauguration of the new Rector at St. John's Church on the 28th July, and had the honour to welcome Andrew Walton and his wife to Saxmundham.

It feels as if Saxmundham is a giant building site; the Hopkins Home development, East of the Fromus, and the site clearance in Church Street, for the new Tesco store, have both progressed in the last two months, and they should start laying the foundations for the new store this month.

One matter which concerns me, as well as a lot of the residents, is the lack of parking facilities within the centre of the Town.  There is a demand for all day parking from people using the railway station and from those who work within the retail sector.  I am of the opinion that the lack of parking facilities and the charges for these, put small market towns like Saxmundham at a disadvantage to large towns and their associated retail parks.  The Town Council will try to resolve some of these problems, but I fear that we will have an uphill struggle.  I, and the Town Council, would welcome any comments or ideas which you might have.

Peter Batho, Chairman, Saxmundham Town Council

Chairman's Foreword – Saxmundham News (Winter Edition 2010)

At the December meeting of the Town Council I was privileged to be elected as Chairman for the remainder of this municipal year Mark Palman having resigned as Chairman in November, due to his pending move from the area. Mark was a relatively “young” Town Councillor whose expertise and hardworking input to the Council over the last few years will be very much missed. We wish him and his family well in their new home nearer to Mark's work over the county border.

In May there will be Town, Parish and District Council elections in many parts of the country, including ours. If you feel you might like to be more closely involved in the running of the town and in shaping its future and want to have a more “hands on” role then please consider putting yourself forward for election to the Town Council in May. It can be very interesting and rewarding although at times, I have to admit, very frustrating! However, it can never be said to be dull – if you want to know more and feel you might have a valuable part to play please contact the Town Clerk for details: she will be very happy to put you in the picture and supply further details about the procedure.

What is certain is that every town and parish will be facing a difficult time in the coming year, and probably beyond. Important decisions will have to be made and with the County Council's decision to divest some of its services together with the Government's ambitions for “The Big Society” there will be much work to be tackled on behalf of our residents. There will be many challenges and some innovative and creative thinking will be needed, but one thing is certain – the Town Council has already agreed that it will, whatever happens, attempt to retain those services and features of this town's civic life which people have come to anticipate, expect and enjoy. We look forward to working together with the voluntary, commercial, business, retail and charitable organisations in the town because in this way we can make full use of the wealth of the very varied expertise that we have here to get through the difficult times, relatively unscathed. Many of us have been over this ground before. In some respects, things don't change!

As you can see, from the front page of Saxmundham News, on Saturday, 12 th February there will be an opportunity for many of you to recall another period of austerity when we are holding a nostalgic World War II event in the Market Hall. However, there will be nothing austere about our evening – break out your dancing shoes, dress the part and prepare to enjoy what we know will be a wonderful evening! See you there!

Marian Andrews – Chairman

January 2011 (report from the Clerk)

We welcome the news that Cllr Mrs Andrews has taken over as Chairman as she has several years experience as a Councillor and Cllr Glynn Moye is now our Vice Chairman.  I offer them both my congratulations and best wishes in their roles until May 2011.  There will be an election on Thursday 5th May 2011 and the number of Town Councillors for our town has been decreased from 14 to 11. If you think you can make a difference to our beautiful town and would like to stand as a Councillor please contact me.

Anyone who is an elector, over the age of 21 and a Commonwealth citizen can be become a councillor subject to certain qualifications. The rules allow a person to be a member of more than one council. Some of the qualifications necessary are that he/she has for the past twelve months before the day of election, or nomination as a candidate, either lives locally or within a three mile radius. Being either a tenant or an owner of any land or premises therein or working locally can also qualify. Parishioners elect councillors and unless they are disqualified for any legal reason councillors cannot be removed from office until the next election. It is essential that councillors are made aware of their role and responsibilities plus attend regular seminars to keep in touch with current publications and legislation. They are compelled by the Code of Conduct ( LGA 2000,s 52) to ensure they keep within certain boundaries and they should, when making decisions, go by the facts put in front of them and not be swayed by either political or other matters. They need to attend meetings and a non-attendance of six months would get them disqualified. Councillors live and work within the community and therefore should be in touch to serve and address the wishes of the people they represent.

Summer 2009 (report from the Clerk)

Cllr Barry Jones was elected as the new Chairman at the AGM on the 11th 2009 with  Cllr Mark Palman as the Vice Chairman.  Sincere thanks go to Cllr John Fisher the retiring Chairman who continues to work tirelessly for the Town Council and remains a Councillor.

Spring 2009

It is hard to believe that we are already nearing the end of my second term of office as Chairman, and it is time to pen another foreword for Saxmundham News.  The Council elects a Chairman annually at its May meeting.  Although there is no legal limit on the number of years a person may hold the post, in Saxmundham we have traditionally served two years, so perhaps I will soon be able to retire to the back benches.

I hope that the spring weather we are enjoying while I write this will still be with us when you read it.  As you will see our Saxmundham in Bloom team are already busy fundraising and preparing for this years display and I am looking forward to another colourful year.

On page 11 of Saxmundham News you can read about the work being done to rejuvenate our play areas and the visits we are now receiving from the 'Go with the Flow' youth bus.

You will find details of the programme which has been arranged for your enjoyment over the St. George's weekend on our events page of this website.

May I also invite you to attend our Annual Town Meeting at 7.15pm on 20th April when we receive reports from the schools and other organisations, and you will all have the opportunity to raise issues of concern.

Autumn 2008

I would like to start this foreword by thanking all those involved in getting Saxmundham blooming again this year. As you will have seen, we have received Silver Gilt in our category of the Anglia in Bloom Awards; a step up on last year's Silver. Well done to all of you. The Saxmundham in Bloom team will always welcome additional help, so if you wish to contribute please contact the Clerk.

  I also want to thank Victoria Burdett for all she has done during her term as Councillor, particularly for the younger people in the town. She has recently resigned for personal reasons and we have co-opted David Willett of the White Hart Hotel to fill the vacancy.

  Like many other local authorities we are spending a lot of time deliberating on how the Boundary Committee's proposals for reorganising local government in Norfolk and Suffolk will affect us. By the time you read this, the consultation period will be over and the Committee will be preparing their report for the Government who will decide early next year what action, if any, to take on the matter.

  Finally, I hope I will see many of you at the events planned for the sixth Annual Saxmundham Arts and Entertainments Festival, of which you will find more details on pages 18 & 19 

Spring 2008

I hope when you read this we are still enjoying as good weather as we have been up to the time of writing it. The early spring is getting us in the mood for doing things and the Saxmundham in Bloom team have been busy raising money for this year's display. At their wine tasting in February, Alan George, as well as being an excellent caretaker for the Market Hall, revealed hidden talent by winning the competition with his knowledge of grape varieties.
In January three of us attended the Felixstowe Youth Forum to observe proceedings there with a view to starting something similar in Saxmundham. These meetings are run by the young people themselves and we were very impressed with what they are doing. We have also met with local schools and will report on this project in the next issue.
We have just co-opted Bryony Peall onto the Council to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Sheridan Trotter-Langlois. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Sheridan for his contribution and welcome Bryony to the role.
In the centre of this edition you will find a pull-out supplement with a programme of the events arranged to commemorate St. George's Day. As this falls on a Wednesday, these take place on the previous weekend, 18th to 20th April. Please do try to support the events that the organisers are working hard to put on for you.
We are currently planning an information point to be placed outside the Market Hall for the benefit of both residents and visitors. In the meantime the Town Clerk will be pleased to assist you with your enquiries.

January 2008

Welcome to our new edition of Saxmundham News which we have brightened with some colour. I would like to express our heartfelt thanks to former Councillor Gerry Wright for all the work he has put into the compiling of this magazine for the last five years. With the new electronically produced version we have brought the production in-house and it is now being done by the Clerk (as if she didn’t already have enough to do). See the latest news here.

I recently had the pleasure of attending the 100th birthday celebrations of Saxmundham resident Jimmy Balls. Mr Balls was chairman of Saxmundham Urban District Council in 1957/58, the year in which Wilfred Pickles recorded an edition of his radio programme “Down Your Way” in the Market Hall.

We now need to look forward to the next hundred years and Councillor Moye has suggested we initiate a Youth Council for Saxmundham. To this end we will shortly be attending a Youth Council meeting in Felixstowe to see how things are run there. The idea is that the new Youth Council will have some say in the spending of part of our budget thereby directing it to some of the things that they themselves would like.

By the time you read this we will have decided the Town Council precept (our portion of the Council Tax) for the coming year and this is likely to be in the region of £47,000.

May I take this opportunity of wishing you all a very Happy New Year and we look forward to assisting you with any matters that may be causing you concern.

John Fisher (Chairman)
Saxmundham Town Council