A statement from Cllr Bethia Thomas, Leader of the Vale of White Horse District Council
Looking back, I think it is fair to say that it has been another challenging year – but like many previous years, I feel we have all shown great resilience and responded with determination to everything that has come our way, celebrating our achievements when they have presented themselves and taking on any setbacks with dignity and consideration.
It is hard to believe a year has gone by since the government announced its Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation plans. Working with other councils, in an effective partnership, we have successfully submitted our Two Unitary Authority Proposal to the government at the end of November. I want to take the opportunity to express my immense appreciation to everyone who contributed to the proposal, including over two thousand people and organisations who took part in our extensive engagement exercise over the summer. We’re confident we have a strong, positive, cost-effective proposal that meets the government’s criteria and protects and enhances what’s great about our communities. We will continue to strengthen message when the government publishes its consultation for our area in the spring, and we intend to be ready to keep the momentum up!
It has certainly been a challenging year for our Joint Local Plan. The JLP is an exceptional plan, and we are proud of the work that has gone into producing it. Although we faced a huge set-back in the autumn with our Planning Inspectors’ initial conclusions about the Duty to Cooperate, recent developments have suggested there may be a positive way forward. We are pleased that the Minister’s recent correspondence confirms that the Duty will not be saved going forward, therefore asking the Inspectorate to engage in dialogue with councils like ours with plans at examination. We received a letter from our Inspectors to start that dialogue, and I would like to announce that our councils have now sent a reply setting out that our wish is to ask them to resume the hearings and progress the Joint Local Plan through examination and, all being well, to adoption.
Challenges aside, there is indeed much to celebrate. This was the year that our ambitions to take action on climate and nature came to fruition as we are close to completing work on a multi-million-pound decarbonisation project at our leisure centres in Abingdon and Wantage. Both sites have been fitted with air source heat pumps and hundreds of solar panels to provide clean, green energy, which will bring down Vale’s carbon emissions by a quarter, as well as the energy bills.
Our joint Nature and Climate Action Plan with South was also published this year. This set climate and biodiversity targets for the district and the councils themselves. Earlier this year Vale found national recognition for its work when it was rated among the top ten district councils in the country for its action on climate and nature by environmental organisation, Climate Emergency UK. In autumn, the Climate Action Fund has once again proved incredibly popular with a wide range of local groups successfully applying for a total of £100,000 for projects which ranged from restoring a wetland area in Sunningwell to funding a free garden tree giveaway for residents across the district. As ever we were surprised and delighted by the ambition and enthusiasm of people looking to take action on nature and climate.
It's been a busy year in our Community Hub, who have supported hundreds of residents with cost-of-living concerns, including providing financial support and sharing advice on free or affordable food and health and wellbeing.
Preventing homelessness remains a strong focus for us with huge impacts for our communities, and our new Joint Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy sets how we ensure support reaches people when they need it most. Over the last year our housing team prevented 264 households in the district who were at risk of becoming homeless, from becoming homeless. We’ve also enabled many low-income families stay in the local area through our White Horse Lettings service which supports tenancies and landlords.
For organisations and charities experiencing financial strain, our White Horse Community Lottery is a helping hand, which has so far this year generated over £27,000 for local good causes across our district.
We continue to provide heartfelt support for people fleeing conflict and seeking sanctuary - including Ukrainian and Afghan households living in the Vale. In partnership with many others, we help ensure a warm welcome for everyone and embrace integration, supporting independent living for those staying in the county.
As we head into our holiday break, if you (or anyone you know) need help or want to find out the details of our services over the Christmas period, including emergency support information, please head to our website. And if you’d like to book something special to look forward to in the new year, I can thoroughly recommend checking out The Beacon Arts, Entertainment and Community Centre’s new website which includes lots of shows to keep you entertained – from live music, comedy nights, theatre productions, and film screenings.
And finally, my heart-felt thanks to all our local volunteers, community groups and charities that have been working tirelessly to help vulnerable individuals and families. I also couldn’t go without thanking my Cabinet, all councillors and everyone at the council in helping us to deliver our high-quality support and services.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Cllr Bethia Thomas
Looking back, I think it is fair to say that it has been another challenging year – but like many previous years, I feel we have all shown great resilience and responded with determination to everything that has come our way, celebrating our achievements when they have presented themselves and taking on any setbacks with dignity and consideration.
It is hard to believe a year has gone by since the government announced its Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation plans. Working with other councils, in an effective partnership, we have successfully submitted our Two Unitary Authority Proposal to the government at the end of November. I want to take the opportunity to express my immense appreciation to everyone who contributed to the proposal, including over two thousand people and organisations who took part in our extensive engagement exercise over the summer. We’re confident we have a strong, positive, cost-effective proposal that meets the government’s criteria and protects and enhances what’s great about our communities. We will continue to strengthen message when the government publishes its consultation for our area in the spring, and we intend to be ready to keep the momentum up!
It has certainly been a challenging year for our Joint Local Plan. The JLP is an exceptional plan, and we are proud of the work that has gone into producing it. Although we faced a huge set-back in the autumn with our Planning Inspectors’ initial conclusions about the Duty to Cooperate, recent developments have suggested there may be a positive way forward. We are pleased that the Minister’s recent correspondence confirms that the Duty will not be saved going forward, therefore asking the Inspectorate to engage in dialogue with councils like ours with plans at examination. We received a letter from our Inspectors to start that dialogue, and I would like to announce that our councils have now sent a reply setting out that our wish is to ask them to resume the hearings and progress the Joint Local Plan through examination and, all being well, to adoption.
Challenges aside, there is indeed much to celebrate. This was the year that our ambitions to take action on climate and nature came to fruition as we are close to completing work on a multi-million-pound decarbonisation project at our leisure centres in Abingdon and Wantage. Both sites have been fitted with air source heat pumps and hundreds of solar panels to provide clean, green energy, which will bring down Vale’s carbon emissions by a quarter, as well as the energy bills.
Our joint Nature and Climate Action Plan with South was also published this year. This set climate and biodiversity targets for the district and the councils themselves. Earlier this year Vale found national recognition for its work when it was rated among the top ten district councils in the country for its action on climate and nature by environmental organisation, Climate Emergency UK. In autumn, the Climate Action Fund has once again proved incredibly popular with a wide range of local groups successfully applying for a total of £100,000 for projects which ranged from restoring a wetland area in Sunningwell to funding a free garden tree giveaway for residents across the district. As ever we were surprised and delighted by the ambition and enthusiasm of people looking to take action on nature and climate.
It's been a busy year in our Community Hub, who have supported hundreds of residents with cost-of-living concerns, including providing financial support and sharing advice on free or affordable food and health and wellbeing.
Preventing homelessness remains a strong focus for us with huge impacts for our communities, and our new Joint Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy sets how we ensure support reaches people when they need it most. Over the last year our housing team prevented 264 households in the district who were at risk of becoming homeless, from becoming homeless. We’ve also enabled many low-income families stay in the local area through our White Horse Lettings service which supports tenancies and landlords.
For organisations and charities experiencing financial strain, our White Horse Community Lottery is a helping hand, which has so far this year generated over £27,000 for local good causes across our district.
We continue to provide heartfelt support for people fleeing conflict and seeking sanctuary - including Ukrainian and Afghan households living in the Vale. In partnership with many others, we help ensure a warm welcome for everyone and embrace integration, supporting independent living for those staying in the county.
As we head into our holiday break, if you (or anyone you know) need help or want to find out the details of our services over the Christmas period, including emergency support information, please head to our website. And if you’d like to book something special to look forward to in the new year, I can thoroughly recommend checking out The Beacon Arts, Entertainment and Community Centre’s new website which includes lots of shows to keep you entertained – from live music, comedy nights, theatre productions, and film screenings.
And finally, my heart-felt thanks to all our local volunteers, community groups and charities that have been working tirelessly to help vulnerable individuals and families. I also couldn’t go without thanking my Cabinet, all councillors and everyone at the council in helping us to deliver our high-quality support and services.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Cllr Bethia Thomas
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