Annual Report
Message from the Chair 2017/18
This review gives us the chance to reflect on the previous year, to hear from people and groups that have been successful with grant applications and to review the achievements and opportunities of the parish council and ways we are looking to move forward to the forthcoming year.So 2017/18 has for the whole been a great successful year. However, we have lost some great councillors with years of valuable local experience but as ever, we have been able to replace with new eager councillors. As such we now have a great team of volunteer councillors trying to a. move this council forward and b. make this a parish one to be proud of. I'm grateful to all the efforts made by all councillors and staff alike and hope that in 2018/19 we will keep pushing the council forward to the right direction. Building on the positive work we have already achieved. We've started rebuilding the community spirit. So, what have we done this past year. and in particular order.
We've taken on a replacement for James one of our Ground staff - Martin has joined the team almost a year ago now. And later last year, July, we signed off to increase the ground staff team with Luke, our apprentice. - We've replaced the company logo with a new modern image, this rebranding exercise shows we are serious about changing the parishes image. Out with the old and in with the new.- New branded uniform workwear for the staff, increasing their visibility around the parish thus showing we are actively looking after the parish we live in. Before no one knew who our staff were.
I've already mentioned the new councillors but without them volunteering to steer the parish forward we wouldn't have the Parish council at all. We've approved a continuous development policy for Councillors and staff alike ensured that the councillors have all signed up to continued development, as various training courses spring up throughout the year. We are also making sure that councillors are better equipt with relevant skills and appropriate knowledge to better the council.- We've finally (started to fully embrace) embraced technology, safeguarding all our data by installing secure backup facility. all councillors now have unique Parish council email addresses, safeguarding councillors from having to use personal email accounts. Migrated over to GSuite for staff and councillors. Started the new Parish council website and Intranet to be rolled out in the next couple of months. New TV system for parish meeting allowing public and council to broadcast data throughout council meetings.
Cllr Van Niekerk's ambition was to drive forward a literary event within the parish. and instigated the Jane Austen event in the Abbey ruins. This was a first working with English heritage and was a great success for the Parish! - Light up Netley and Lantern parade. For the past 3 years this event has been growing and each time more successful than the previous year. This year being no exception with the change in venue, we had close to 1000 people attend this now annual event! an awful lot of planning by David our clerk and his team and the the planning has already started for a bigger event this year! Bring on Christmas…- The Parish council has become more community focused and willing to put ourselves out in the community, more than ever before. We now try and attend most events within the parish from having a presence at the summer school fete, the light up Netley, pumpkin festival and the first inter parish rounders match! we lost against Bursledon. held down on the cricket field. - We've become more efficient in the council meetings.
Grown in the understanding of the importance of respecting our fellow councillors and staff members alike.. We've outsourced our HR requirements (and have a professional company supporting us with our H&S) to ensure we comply with the rules and regs, All this creates a stronger Parish council and and a happier environment to work in. - The start of 2018 saw EBC start the process of the governance review, looking at the parish boundaries and asking the parishes for any suggestions of change. We highlighted that we would like a small boundary change, bringing all the Hamble school into Hamble catchment, and another boundary change handing some land back to Hamble along the Hamble water boundary currently ours. We have unfortunately had to defend hostile land grabbing from Bursledon Parish council in this process and as such taken our complaints back to EBC, and Bursledon PC. Their request if upheld will have a massive negative effect on the precept for parishioners and split the parish of Hound in 2. Something we are strongly against! - We as ever face hostile planning applications and will continue to fight these as best as we can. We have strongly argued the point for better Enforcement from EBC over illegal development and will continue to chase this and hope the EBC can start to enforce the building works that have happened without prior planning consent.
One of the more important points I'd like to highlight is that we have taken a hard inward look at ourselves and started to think of our strategic position including a creating a strong and achievable 5 year plan. We are currently looking into the possibility and feasibility of redeveloping both Abbey & Hound Parish Halls. Its early days in the process and of course nothing will happen without public consultation. But we want to become more self sufficient and bring the halls into the 21st century and make our assets become more financially viable. As I've said its early days in the process but it's a process we've started and will fully explore. - And finally I'd like to make a special thank you to David Nevin and staff for all the hard work they undertake on a daily basis, and for putting up with the chaos that generally comes from trying to handle 12 councillors. I truly believe we have made a massively positive impact on the day to day challenges within the parish over the past year. It has been a privilege to be chair and I'm excited with the team we now have in place and look forward to the forthcoming year.
Thank you.
This review gives us the chance to reflect on the previous year, to hear from people and groups that have been successful with grant applications and to review the achievements and opportunities of the parish council and ways we are looking to move forward to the forthcoming year.So 2017/18 has for the whole been a great successful year. However, we have lost some great councillors with years of valuable local experience but as ever, we have been able to replace with new eager councillors. As such we now have a great team of volunteer councillors trying to a. move this council forward and b. make this a parish one to be proud of. I'm grateful to all the efforts made by all councillors and staff alike and hope that in 2018/19 we will keep pushing the council forward to the right direction. Building on the positive work we have already achieved. We've started rebuilding the community spirit. So, what have we done this past year. and in particular order.
We've taken on a replacement for James one of our Ground staff - Martin has joined the team almost a year ago now. And later last year, July, we signed off to increase the ground staff team with Luke, our apprentice. - We've replaced the company logo with a new modern image, this rebranding exercise shows we are serious about changing the parishes image. Out with the old and in with the new.- New branded uniform workwear for the staff, increasing their visibility around the parish thus showing we are actively looking after the parish we live in. Before no one knew who our staff were.
I've already mentioned the new councillors but without them volunteering to steer the parish forward we wouldn't have the Parish council at all. We've approved a continuous development policy for Councillors and staff alike ensured that the councillors have all signed up to continued development, as various training courses spring up throughout the year. We are also making sure that councillors are better equipt with relevant skills and appropriate knowledge to better the council.- We've finally (started to fully embrace) embraced technology, safeguarding all our data by installing secure backup facility. all councillors now have unique Parish council email addresses, safeguarding councillors from having to use personal email accounts. Migrated over to GSuite for staff and councillors. Started the new Parish council website and Intranet to be rolled out in the next couple of months. New TV system for parish meeting allowing public and council to broadcast data throughout council meetings.
Cllr Van Niekerk's ambition was to drive forward a literary event within the parish. and instigated the Jane Austen event in the Abbey ruins. This was a first working with English heritage and was a great success for the Parish! - Light up Netley and Lantern parade. For the past 3 years this event has been growing and each time more successful than the previous year. This year being no exception with the change in venue, we had close to 1000 people attend this now annual event! an awful lot of planning by David our clerk and his team and the the planning has already started for a bigger event this year! Bring on Christmas…- The Parish council has become more community focused and willing to put ourselves out in the community, more than ever before. We now try and attend most events within the parish from having a presence at the summer school fete, the light up Netley, pumpkin festival and the first inter parish rounders match! we lost against Bursledon. held down on the cricket field. - We've become more efficient in the council meetings.
Grown in the understanding of the importance of respecting our fellow councillors and staff members alike.. We've outsourced our HR requirements (and have a professional company supporting us with our H&S) to ensure we comply with the rules and regs, All this creates a stronger Parish council and and a happier environment to work in. - The start of 2018 saw EBC start the process of the governance review, looking at the parish boundaries and asking the parishes for any suggestions of change. We highlighted that we would like a small boundary change, bringing all the Hamble school into Hamble catchment, and another boundary change handing some land back to Hamble along the Hamble water boundary currently ours. We have unfortunately had to defend hostile land grabbing from Bursledon Parish council in this process and as such taken our complaints back to EBC, and Bursledon PC. Their request if upheld will have a massive negative effect on the precept for parishioners and split the parish of Hound in 2. Something we are strongly against! - We as ever face hostile planning applications and will continue to fight these as best as we can. We have strongly argued the point for better Enforcement from EBC over illegal development and will continue to chase this and hope the EBC can start to enforce the building works that have happened without prior planning consent.
One of the more important points I'd like to highlight is that we have taken a hard inward look at ourselves and started to think of our strategic position including a creating a strong and achievable 5 year plan. We are currently looking into the possibility and feasibility of redeveloping both Abbey & Hound Parish Halls. Its early days in the process and of course nothing will happen without public consultation. But we want to become more self sufficient and bring the halls into the 21st century and make our assets become more financially viable. As I've said its early days in the process but it's a process we've started and will fully explore. - And finally I'd like to make a special thank you to David Nevin and staff for all the hard work they undertake on a daily basis, and for putting up with the chaos that generally comes from trying to handle 12 councillors. I truly believe we have made a massively positive impact on the day to day challenges within the parish over the past year. It has been a privilege to be chair and I'm excited with the team we now have in place and look forward to the forthcoming year.
Thank you.
