INVITATION TO BECOME A DIRECTOR OF NORFOLK ALC
We have sent our recently nominated member council representatives an invitation to apply to stand for election as a Director of our new organisation. However, any councillor of a member council is entitled to apply to stand for election as a Director, by initially contacting us via countyofficer@norfolkalc.gov.uk for an application pack. Clerks - please ensure all your councillors get this message.
If your council has not nominated a Representative, you should ensure that we are notified as soon as possible, as otherwise your council will be effectively disenfranchised in the upcoming election for board members. If you have no time to select a representative then please send us the email address of your chairman so we can pass the ballot papers to the chairman when the time comes. Thank you
OUR NEW PATRON
We are pleased to announce that Lady Dannatt MBE, HM Lord‑Lieutenant of Norfolk, is now our Patron. We look forward to working with her team, and are confident that this will be a productive relationship for all of us in serving our communities across the county.
POLICE LIAISON MEETINGS
Our two remaining Q&A sessions are on Tuesday 15 December at 6pm (South Norfolk & Broadland) and on Tuesday 26 January at 6pm (Breckland).
Contact wellbeing@norfolkalc.gov.uk for a ticket, mentioning the session you want to attend.
CUT A TONNE IN 21 CAMPAIGN
Our Climate Action Project will encourage everyone in Norfolk to make a cut in their carbon emissions of 10% during 2021 to coincide with the COP 26 summit in Glasgow in November. We will both enable you to do this and also hopefully actually save you money. We are working with several partners, one of which is GIKI. To hear more about this, to meet some of the partners and to see how you can become involved, come to our launch on Thursday 7 January 2021 on Zoom at 7pm.
To book a ‘ticket’ email wellbeing@norfolkalc.gov.uk with the subject/title of Cut a Tonne’
TRAINING
Have you tried our booking system for our training sessions yet? You can now book onto our courses directly, have a record of those you have attended and see future bookings. Our courses are also being regularly updated. If the course you want is not there, let us know!
In summary, you click and we will deliver for you at https://bookwhen.com/norfolkalc
WASTE WEBINAR RECORDING
We held a very interesting, well attended webinar on waste last Thursday – including dealing with how a parish council can reclaim recycling credits. The recording can be downloaded from https://we.tl/t-Zxm4fmwJ6z and the presentations from https://we.tl/t-9ndrE3srix
NALC MODEL STANDING ORDERS – 2020
The NALC Model Standing Orders have been revised this year. The changes are predominately formatting and layout. The only content change relates to the increased threshold levels at SO 18 (f) and (g) – contracts and public procurement. Councils might wish to consider utilising the revised Model as the basis of their adopted Standing Orders document, when it comes to review time. We recommend that the Model is adopted without change, but should be personalised to individual councils as per the drafting note guidance. Any orders that do not currently apply to the Council should simply be struck through, leaving the text in place, should they subsequently come to be relevant. The updated version can be found in our website documents folder.
AVIAN INFLUENZA
Further to my earlier message, the Chief Veterinary Officers have agreed to bring in new measures to help protect poultry and captive birds. The new housing measures announced on the 3 December 2020, which will come into force on the 14 December 2020, mean that it will be a legal requirement for all bird keepers to keep their birds indoors and to follow strict biosecurity measures in order to limit the spread of and eradicate the disease. All bird keepers (whether they have pet birds, commercial flocks or just a few birds in a backyard flock) will be required by law to take a range of biosecurity precautions. As Norfolk has one of the largest commercial flocks in England it is important that we get this message out. You may like to share posts on Twitter and Facebook that are put out by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) - https://www.facebook.com/APHAGov Twitter - @APHAgovuk. You can find files useful to support this message at https://we.tl/t-f1LfFsWuFU .
FACE VISORS
They have nearly all gone! Thanks to everyone involved, especially to Panel Graphic for supplying them, to NCC’s PPE distribution team, to everyone who has shared them within their local communities and to Angela and Elaine who organised things! Remaining ones can be obtained by emailing angelamakinson@gmail.com
SCAM AND FRAUD PREVENTION
Norfolk and Suffolk Constabularies each have booklets and leaflets on how to combat scams and other cybercrime. We have collected these together and they can now be downloaded from https://we.tl/t-xEAd8duLoE. The allotments security document contains useful links to other areas such as village halls and the Little Book of Big Scams series is a veritable treasure trove. We suggest you download these for reference and also pass them to other organisations and people locally.
NCCRESIDENTS’ PANEL
Norfolk CC are setting up a Norfolk Residents’ Panel. This will enable local people to share their views on how Norfolk County Council can best provide and improve services to residents. The panel members will be invited to participate in surveys, focus groups and online sessions throughout the year on a range of topics. This will help Norfolk County Council make decisions and improve services. Members of the panel will be recruited to be representative of demographics and of where they live in Norfolk. For more information on the panel and to register, visit www.norfolk.gov.uk/residentspanel
NORFOLK CC WINTER SUPPORT SCHEME
Norfolk County Council’s new Covid Winter Support Scheme offers a package of support in the run up to Christmas and over the winter months for those suffering from financial hardship. This includes food vouchers for the schools holidays and emergency food ingredient boxes, as well as help with fuel costs and everyday living expenses. See website www.norfolk.gov.uk/covidwintersupport for an opportunity to get information out to people who need it in your community.
KICKSTART SCHEME
Town and Parish Councils can both benefit from this scheme and provide help to young people as well. You can also encourage other employers locally to use the scheme. The way it works is that employers offer a 6-month work placement designed for a young person claiming Universal Credit and the government will cover the costs of the placement, up to a maximum of 25 hours per week at the National Living wage. Additionally, up to £1,500 per placement is available for wrap-around training support and the cost of setting up the placement (including uniforms and IT). NCC are offering a gateway service to all organisations who are willing to take on placements through the scheme, and are available to discuss your requirements with you. If you are interested in the scheme, please visit www.norfolk.gov.uk/Kickstart for more information or contact kickstart@norfolk.gov.uk to talk to their dedicated team.
ADULT LEARNING LAUNCH FREE CREATIVE CHRISTMAS WORKSHOPS
From 14-23 December you can learn how to make handmade decorations, wrapping paper and cards, draw and paint the changing landscape or take part in some festive French cooking, all delivered by Adult Learning’s expert tutors. Cllr Margaret Dewsbury, cabinet member for communities and partnerships at Norfolk County Council says:
“These workshops are a great way to get creative and keep our minds active in the run up to Christmas. It’s always a treat to either give or receive a handmade gift and these workshops will help Norfolk residents to make something special this year.”
The demonstrations will be delivered via Zoom and will last between 1-2 hours. Participants will be encouraged to share their works in progress during the session. These courses are open to Norfolk residents over 19 years of age and advanced booking is required.
To sign up for free go to www.norfolk.gov.uk/humbug
OURCHRISTMAS ARRANGEMENTS
We will be reasonably contactable over the Christmas period, starting from 21 December – leave a message and we will get back to you.
Meanwhile, we look forward to seeing many of you at the SLCC Xmas event on Friday and maybe sharing a virtual mince pie or two with you.
KEEPING IN TOUCH
Our sessions are on Wednesdays now at 2pm for clerks and at 5pm for chairpersons. If you would like an invite, contact countyofficer@norfolkalc.gov.uk.
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