The Parish Council would like to wish residents a Happy New Year!

Christmas Lights

Firstly we would like to send our congratulations and thanks to the Mayfield Christmas Lights Committee and Chamber of Commerce for their fundraising and organisation of the Christmas lights in Mayfield High Street. The High Street looked wonderfully festive over Christmas and the late night shopping event was great fun and very well attended too. Well done!

2016/17 Precept and Council Tax

As you are probably already aware, the total council tax contribution is shared between: East Sussex County Council, Wealden District Council, Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner, East Sussex Fire Authority and your local Parish Council. At the December Council meeting a resolution was passed to freeze the precept for 2016/17 at £105,000. The Parish Council component of the Council Tax for a Band D property for 2016/17 will be £55.26 per annum.

Queen’s 90^th Birthday Celebration

The Queen’s official 90^th Birthday falls on 11^th June 2016. A lot of parishes are organising celebrations on Sunday 12^th June and the Parish Council has decided to as well. We will arrange a village picnic rather like the one this year for the anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta that residents have informed us they enjoyed. We thought that local organisations would again like to take the opportunity to do some fundraising which will add to the enjoyment of the afternoon. Please contact the Parish Council office if you would like to be involved.

Natwest Banking Service

Natwest have informed us that the mobile banking service in Mayfield has been popular and they are hoping they will get a second mobile unit this year for the South East area. The service operates on Mondays from 13:15 – 14:45 in the Memorial Hall car park in Tunbridge Wells Road, Mayfield. Two parking spaces are reserved in the car park for this service and we request that residents do not move the parking cones which are put out on Sunday afternoons or early Monday mornings to enable Natwest to park where there is the best internet connection.

Mayfield Recycling Centre

Two wheelie bins have mysteriously appeared in the Memorial Hall car park in the recycling area. Wealden District Council is as perplexed as we are as to where they have come from. They are overflowing with household waste and annoyingly someone or some people are also dumping bags of waste next to them. Wealden District Council has raised a work order to remove the wheelie bins and tidy the area up. Please remember that the bins in the Memorial Hall car park are for recycling and any household waste should not be left there. It is unhygienic and gives a bad first impression of Mayfield to any visitors. There, moan over.

Library

East Sussex County Council is having a consultation starting in January 2016 on changes to the library service. This is driven partly by cost savings and partly by the change in the way the service is used by residents. Apparently the majority of users are retired, part time workers or students. The growth in use of their E-Service has increased by 568% compared with an 11% decrease in physical visits. The proposed changes to the Mayfield opening hours, that the Parish Council contributes towards, are modest – currently 12 hours a week reducing to 11 hours. The proposal is for the library to be closed on Mondays (currently 11.00-13.00) and to extend Thursday’s opening time by 1 hour (13.30 to 18.00 currently 14.30- 18.00).

If you are interested in joining East Sussex County Council’s online library please visit their website at :https://new.eastsussex.gov.uk/ and select ‘on-line library’.

Gatwick

Cllr Standley informed at the December 2015 Parish Council meeting that it is disappointing that the decision on the new runway in the south east has been further delayed especially when the indications were that Heathrow was likely to the favoured option. East Sussex County Council is lobbying for changes to the flight paths to reduce the noise impact on residents. This involves steeper descents on the final approach, alternating routes to lessen impact on particular areas and higher altitudes over East Sussex before the final approach.

Adoption of the Wealden District Council Community Infrastructure Levy Charging Schedule

On 25^th November 2015 Wealden District Council adopted the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Charging Schedule which will come into force on 1^st April 2016. You can view the Adopted Charging Schedule and supporting documents on their website at www.wealden.gov.uk/cil. Hard copies of the Charging Schedule can also be viewed at the Parish Council office.

A Message from the Wealden District Commander

As we near the end of 2015 we start to look forward to what 2016 will bring, and it promises to be another year of positive changes for Sussex Police. As part of our Serving Sussex 2015 programme we have already made cost savings of £50 million since 2010, and our Sussex Local Policing Model continues this work, with the goal of delivering policing more efficiently by using technology and working closer with our partners and other agencies to further reduce costs and engage with the public in ways that are even more inclusive and effective.

Part of these changes will inevitably involve further collaboration with Surrey Police and other partners but the principal aspects of our service will continue to be provided locally, focusing on protecting the community by relentlessly pursuing criminals and reducing the risk of people becoming victims of crime through prevention work.

Some structural changes are now starting to take place, notably around the management of our districts. As part of the programme a decision has been taken to have one District Commander leading Wealden and Lewes so this message is my chance to announce that I will be taking on this new role, as well as continuing as the Lewes District Commander. I would like to reassure people that despite this change it will be very much a case of ‘business as usual’ for both districts. No resources will be lost and each ward will still have a point of contact in the shape of allocated Police Community Support Officers.

I am looking forward to meeting the people of Wealden, and the many partners who help us to make the district an extremely safe place in which to live and work, over the coming months. Chief Inspector Gary Pike will be moving on to a new role within Sussex Police and I know you will join me in thanking him for all his hard work and wishing him the very best.

Chief Inspector Gary Pike said: “I have enjoyed my time at Wealden immensely and am proud of what my dedicated team of officers and staff have achieved during my time in the post. I know I leave the district not only in good shape but in very capable hands. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the partners and organisations who I have worked with while in Wealden – there are too many to mention individually – for their support and excellent work, which I know will continue for many years to come.”

As the days continue to get shorter I would encourage you all to visit http://www.sussex.police.uk/policing-in-sussex/your-community/operation-magpie for some tips on keeping your home and belongings safe this winter. From here you can find links to http://www.immobilise.com – where you can register all your property for free and increase your chances of being reunited with it if the worst happens – as well as stories from victims about the impact burglary has had on them.

You can also help us by reporting any suspicious behaviour that you see – no matter how ‘small’ or ‘insignificant’ you think it is. Information from members of the public is crucial in helping us to prevent and detect crime, and details of vehicles seen in suspicious circumstances are especially useful to us. As much detail as possible is the ideal, so all or some of the following are gratefully received:

• Registration number – either the full number or part of it
• Type of vehicle – is it a car, van or motorbike?
• Description – make, model, colour and any livery or distinguishing marks
• Condition of the vehicle – are there any scratches or dents?
• Time and location – when are where did you see the vehicle?
• Description of driver and/or passengers

Please email 101@sussex.pnn.police.uk, or call 101 with any information. If it’s an emergency or a crime is in progress always call 999. Alternatively you can contact Crime Stoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or visit www.crimestoppers-uk.org

PCSO Surgery

PCSO Julie Pearce-Martin will be holding her next surgery on Wednesday 13^th January 2016 at 11am in the Parish Council office.

Change of Council meeting venue

From 2016 Parish Council meetings that take place in Mayfield will be held in the Memorial Hall, Tunbridge Wells Road, TN20 6PJ. Committee meetings will continue to be held in the Parish Council office.