Welcome to TDC’s The Wave

Welcome to the second issue of our updated Thanet District Council e-newsletter, The Wave.

We hope that you’ll find The Wave both informative and interesting. In each edition we’ll share the latest updates on things that are happening in the District. You’ll also find a link to the upcoming council meetings.

 

Message from the Leader

Dear Residents,

Local people have told us they want the council to be “efficient, trusted and transparent”. As part of this, we’ve held Finance Surgeries inviting the public to view the council’s ‘statement of accounts’ and ask questions about how we’ve managed our money over the past 12 months. The document is available for public inspection each year, but the ability to speak directly with the finance team outside of office hours is a new initiative. This is to ensure we engage with more people around our finances.

Did you know, for example, that for every £10 of Council Tax collected, we receive just £1.29? The remaining money goes to: Kent County Council – £7.08, Kent Police – £0.97, Kent Fire & Rescue – £0.43 and Parishes (11 in total): £0.23.

Two sessions have already taken place but there’s still time for you to attend on Monday 8 July. Sign up here by Monday 8 July at 10am to secure a place. I do hope that some of you will be able to come along.

Best wishes, Cllr Bob Bayford
Leader of Thanet District Council

 

Message from the Chief Executive

Dear Residents,
When you live anywhere for a long time, or possibly a lifetime, you will see lots and lots of change. If you’ve lived in Thanet for a while you’ll know that six years ago, Dreamland was almost derelict – a neglected shell on the seafront. A successful Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) brought the site into council ownership in 2013 acting as a catalyst for the park as it is today. We are now reviewing this and as part of that process, Cabinet members will consider a proposal to sell the freehold and return the site to private ownership.

This has been announced on our website and will be discussed at Cabinet on Thursday 1 August. As always, these meetings are open to the public and we encourage you to attend and listen to the discussion.

Best wishes, Madeline Homer,
Chief Executive, Thanet District Council

 

Heads Up!

New ‘A Day With’ Twitter series
Do you follow us on social media? We’re launching a new series called ‘A Day With’ which will show some of our council officers doing their day-to-day jobs. Look out for this in July.

So, if you’ve ever wondered what a Civil Enforcement Officer gets up to as they patrol the District, or you would like an insight into the way our Street Cleansing Operatives undertake their duties, then tune in to our Twitter channel @ThanetCouncil. You can also follow us using the hashtag #ADayWith.

Our Twitter and Facebook channels provide lots of up to date information about the work of the council, so please connect, follow or have a conversation with us.

Dreamland

Cabinet members will meet in August to consider the next steps for Dreamland which includes a proposal to sell the freehold of the site to the current lessee, and operator of the park, Sands Heritage Limited. Conditions would be attached to any sale of the site to ensure that the listed heritage structures are protected and to restrict future use of the site to leisure – in line with current planning policy. Read more

New ticketless parking pilot

We know that parking matters to you. Last year, car park users told us they wanted a more streamlined and convenient service.

As such we are piloting a new ticketless digital parking system in the Trinity Square Car Park in Margate, which is now live.

The ticketless system reads the vehicle registration number, allowing users to only pay for the amount of time that they are parked for rather than tickets being set by the hour.
If you are a regular user, or park there when attending events at the Winter Gardens, it might be worth registering your vehicle for an AutoPay account:
www.thanet.gov.uk/digital.

 

Ellington Park’s archive project needs your help

Are you passionate about local history and preserving our heritage? If so, you might be interested in volunteering for Ellington Park’s archive project. We have six volunteer places and are looking for people to support with digitalising over 2,000 historic documents of events held there between 1100 and 2012.
You will receive training on cataloging items; recording ownership; digital scanning; image resizing; adding images to the online catalogue and managing the website.

If you are interested, please email [email protected].

A big thank you if you were part of the Spring Clean day in June. Two van loads of waste and recycling were cleared, making way for the digital archive hub which will appear this month.

Prosecution of landlord and managing agent

In May, at Canterbury Magistrates’ Court, a London based agent and Broadstairs based managing agent pleaded guilty to failing to make selective licence applications for two rented flats on Northdown Road and were fined £1,000 each, plus costs.

If you’re not familiar with our Selective Licensing scheme, it was introduced in parts of the electoral wards of Margate Central and Cliftonville West in 2011.  Now in its second phase, the mandatory scheme requires all landlords and managing agents renting out homes in the area to license their properties with the council. This has helped to improve management standards in the private rented sector and to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of tenants. Read more.

Summer bedding planted across the district

In June, our Open Spaces team were working hard to install summer flower bedding and re-plant any suitable winter ones in the wildlife areas at the cemeteries.
The hanging baskets have also been put up in Cecil Square, Westbrook and Cliftonville and the large planters on Margate seafront are due to be planted up soon.

Let’s Be Frank

You will probably have read about the hedge maintenance work carried out by a contractor at the Winter Gardens last month.

We want to reassure residents that we are committed to safeguarding Thanet’s coastline and enhancing our natural environment. Indeed, Kent Police concluded that there was no evidence of any disturbance or damage to nesting birds.

However, we have taken people’s criticisms seriously and have committed to a review of our hedge and tree maintenance processes in the future. We are also intending to recruit to a new officer post in the coming months to oversee the management of hedgerows, trees and natural open spaces across Thanet with a view to ensuring that the environmental and conservation considerations around this work is a priority. This, along with a number of other actions as part of the internal review we have undertaken, will ensure that we have a new and positive environmentally focused approach to open spaces management as far as is possible.

In the meantime, we have also confirmed that there will be no further extensive hedge / tree maintenance carried out until 1 October (unless there are urgent health and safety concerns or we are served notice by Kent County Council under the Highways Act).

 

What’s On?

Active Thanet:
Rule the Courts
Active Thanet is a scheme run by the council to support and improve health and wellbeing across the District. As part of this, a number of events are hosted weekly to encourage residents of all ages to get involved.
The hugely popular community football competitions ‘Rule the Courts’ returns this summer in Partnership with Yo! Street Zone, a Margate based, professional football skills organisation. There are two more competitions taking place on Sundays 28 July and 25 August. Find out more about the activities and events on offer by visiting the Active Thanet Facebook page.

 

Ramsgate Week
Ramsgate Week is hosted by the Royal Temple Yacht Club and is often referred to as a friendly alternative to Cowes Week. So if you fancy enjoying the breathtaking views and taking in some of the action, come along and watch the Regatta from the Shore between Sunday 21 and Friday 26 July Learn more.

 

Westgate Day 
On Sunday 21 July, Westgate-on-Sea Town Council is putting on a day of celebration with fun activities; entertainment; crafts; a fun fair and food festival. The event is taking place between midday and 9pm across Sea Road, Ethelbert Square and Adrian Square Gardens. Learn more.

 

Battles for Victory
In its new home at Quex Park, this popular living history event has plenty to see and do for the whole family – from vehicles; re-enactments; arena events to stalls and entertainment.  You can go for the day or enjoy a weekend of camping. Saturday 13 – Sunday 14 July Learn more. 

 

Spotlight On

Overview and Scrutiny Panel
The Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Panel looks at the work of Cabinet, both advising them and acting as a critical friend when they make decisions.

The panel, which is made up of backbench councillors across all political parties, can look at virtually any issue affecting Thanet. It can also hear from witnesses and members of the public when considering issues.

The panel meets around eight times a year and dates can be found on the Scrutiny website. You will find the details of which topics are under discussion at these meetings in the Agenda.

If you would like to speak at a meeting of the panel on one of the topics under discussion, or if you would like to suggest a topic to be scrutinised then please get in touch by emailing: [email protected].

 

Council Meetings

Come to a council meeting
If you would like to know more about how decisions are made and the work your local councillor does, please come along and find out. There are around 40 seats in the public gallery and attendance is on a first come first served basis. We recommend that you arrive 15 minutes before the meeting starts.

Click here to view the calendar of council meetings

 

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