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Bert
Advanced Member
484 Posts |
 Posted - 11 Apr 2015 : 13:24:42
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I think it very unfortunate that there are only nine nominations for the thirteen places on Angmering Parish Council.
All nine are for the Angmering Village Ward out of a possible eleven.
There are no nominations for the two places on South Angmering Ward.
There will therefore be no election for the Parish Council.
I am not surprised however, after the abuse the PC have received from a small minority, over the last three/four years.
It is a very sad reflection on our nice village. |
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neil
Forum Owner / Moderator
United Kingdom
2623 Posts |
Posted - 12 Apr 2015 : 15:53:19
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| Not all of the abuse has come from outside the APC, Bert. There has been much internal conflict and dissatisfaction. |
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Robinf
Senior Member
105 Posts |
Posted - 13 Apr 2015 : 15:10:37
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It seems that APC will be even smaller than it was prior to the elections if I read the nominations correctly. It appears that we will lose the following people:
Councillor Julia Graham
Councillor John Oldfield
Councillor Pat Turner
Councillor Colin Trott
But gain the following:
Don Harris
Mike Hill-Smith
John Oldfield.
Making a net loss of 1 from the current Council numbers - if I've got my maths right.
Perhaps some fresh faces will come with fresh ways of doing things. Hope springs eternal!!
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neil
Forum Owner / Moderator
United Kingdom
2623 Posts |
Posted - 13 Apr 2015 : 15:56:42
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Mike Hill-Smith was previously a Vice-Chairman of APC until his resignation in January 2007. You can read his press statement at the time of resignation at:
www.angmeringvillage.co.uk/news/0701_files/0701.htm
APC also issued a press statement at that time which can be found on the same page.
This was another example of in-house disagreements which are probably the most significant reason for loss of parish councillors over the years.
Don Harris was almost entirely responsible for demanding that APC built the Community Centre with the size of main hall that was finally constructed. Without his constant pressure, short mat bowls would never have been able to be played in the hall. This has been the single biggest contributor to the Centre's finances which has ensured that the Centre is economically viable. |
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rogp
Junior Member
United Kingdom
30 Posts |
Posted - 13 Apr 2015 : 16:26:04
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Robinf, you are correct the Council have a net loss of 1 councillor however the John Oldfield you have as a loss and a gain is in fact the same person!! :0)
Hopefully 'in house disagreements' will be a thing of the past once the new council beds in, particularly as over half of the council have joined up in the past year. Maybe the electorate will give the new councillors a chance to 'bed in' also.
It is still a big shame that more residents didn't feel that they wanted to put themselves forward to be a Parish Councillor, at least to force an election and also to get a wider representation of views on the Council. |
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westsussexbluenose
Average Member
43 Posts |
Posted - 15 Apr 2015 : 10:11:35
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| rogp - I think more residents would put themselves forward if they knew that they could influence any major decisions which effect the village as a whole. The recent neighbourhood plan is prime evidence of this - 42% of the village took time out and expressed their strong views on housing, schools and roads and these points had to be removed from the Plan for legal reasons! - I think the general view of APC is that for major issues and decisions they do not have any clout. This is my perception and I would gladly like to be proved wrong, but the recent lack of cooperation with SAV just reinforces my views. Parish Councillors are elected to express the views of the residents in their Parish and if on major issues they cannot then perhaps potential candidates who want to give the residents a greater say decide not to. On minor issues then APC do a fantastic job in difficult circumstances, on major issues they have very little influence. |
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rogp
Junior Member
United Kingdom
30 Posts |
Posted - 15 Apr 2015 : 13:42:48
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| I don't necessarily disagree with with anything you have said. Wether the parishoners think decisions that are made in the future are correct or not is up to them, everyone has the right to have an opinion, however currently the council is made up of 9 non elected people when we could have had 13 different and varied views voted for and elected by the parishioners. Those 9 people were the only ones that were prepared to give time and volounteer to try to make the village a better place. |
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westsussexbluenose
Average Member
43 Posts |
Posted - 15 Apr 2015 : 15:15:44
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I agree to a point rogp but let us not forget, these Councillors were elected to express the views of the people that they represent. Some may remember that for one meet the builder meeting at the rugby club there were no representatives from our Parish Council, the reason which was given was that they were not invited!Frankly that is not good enough, they should have been there representing the Parish that they were elected to serve.
Also, they are not volunteers they are elected to perform a role for a position they put themselves forward for. There is a massive difference between the function of a volunteer and the function of a Parish Councillor. Yes it is unpaid, yes the time they give is their own, but they are most definitely NOT volunteers. I agree to a point rogp but let us not forget, these Councillors were elected to express the views of the people that they represent. Some may remember that for one meet the builder meeting at the rugby club there were no representatives from our Parish Council, the reason which was given was that they were not invited!Frankly that is not good enough, they should have been there representing the Parish that they were elected to serve.
Also, they are not volunteers they are elected to perform a role for a position they put themselves forward for. There is a massive difference between the function of a volunteer and the function of a Parish Councillor. Yes it is unpaid, yes the time they give is their own, but they are most definitely NOT volunteers. |
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Angmering Parish Council
