Please see this latest information from North Yorkshire Council Parish Liaison Teams:
This is the first e-mail from Parish Liaison at North Yorkshire Council. It is intended that this will be one of a number of regular communication methods to provide opportunities to engage and discuss issues with North Yorkshire Council. There will be more information available shortly about our ambition to facilitate improved engagement generally and the specific opportunities that will be developed, this e-mail provides details about the following:
- Parish Liaison Overview
- Boundary Commission Parish Sector Briefing – Thursday 29 August at 7pm
- Forthcoming consultation opportunities
- Home Upgrade Grants (Free Energy Efficiency Improvements) – Ending soon!
- Parish Liaison Overview
All Council services liaise and engage with the Parish Sector as part of their usual business operations. Through recent restructures Parish Sector Support is also provided through Democratic Services and in the Parish Liaison, Local Devolution and Community Rights Team within Localities. The two teams work together to support the approach and implementation of arrangements in relation to Parish Sector consultation and liaison.
In Democratic Services there are three Democratic Services Area Teams based on the Area Committee Boundaries and within each of these Teams there is a lead Democratic Services Officer supporting Parish Councils and maintaining information held on the website, they are also the first point of contact for any day-to-day enquiries from Parish Clerks. There is also a Local Area Support Team which oversees the work, supporting the Parish Sector and linked infrastructure organisations to assist with Parish and Town Council complaints and standards issues and associated training. They help make connections with the local element of council democracy such as Area Committees, Community Partnerships and individual members.
In Localities a new Parish Liaison, Local Devolution and Community Rights Team has been created to work with the Parish Sector to develop and implement the Parish Charter, support Parish consultation and liaison/information exchange/relevant communications and provide an initial North Yorkshire Council ‘front door’ for the Parish Sector including the development of a portal to support the relationship. The team also support the devolution of assets/services to the Parish Sector and community organisations and manages the Council’s statutory responsibilities in relation to Assets of Community Value and Community Right to Challenge.
Information will be shared on a regular basis about Parish Liaison developments, initiatives and opportunities.
If you need any further information about Parish Liaison please e-mail : parishliaison@northyorks.gov.uk
If you need any further information or support about Assets of Community Value please e-mail: AssetsofCommunityValue.NYC@northyorks.gov.uk
- Boundary Commission Parish Sector Briefing – Thursday 29 August at 7pm
The Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) is due to begin an electoral review of North Yorkshire Council.
The LGBCE is a parliamentary body established by statute to conduct boundary, electoral and structural reviews of local government areas in England. The Commission is independent of government and political parties and is directly accountable to the Speaker’s Committee of the House of Commons. An electoral review examines and proposes new electoral arrangements for the whole local authority. These are:
- The total number of councillors that should be elected to the local authority in the future: (called the ‘council size’)
- The total number of divisions, division boundaries, names and the number of councillors to represent each division.
As such, the review is likely to have implications for North Yorkshire Council and its constituent parishes. The new electoral arrangements will come into effect at an all-out election which will take place at the next county elections in 2027.
To broaden your knowledge of the review, the LGBCE has agreed to undertake a briefing which is open to all parishes and community groups across North Yorkshire. The briefing will take place at 7pm on Thursday 29 August remotely through Microsoft Teams.
Ahead of the briefing, if you have any questions, please direct those tojonathan.ashby@lgbce.org.uk
Please Note: A separate Teams invite will be sent out
- Forthcoming Consultation Opportunities
North Yorkshire Council would like to thank all in the Parish Sector for their hard work in sharing its consultation and engagement opportunities with communities so that local residents can participate. We understand some of the difficulties involved and do our best to provide the appropriate support for each consultation and engagement opportunity, including the toolkits provided. It is hoped that you find the support, information and toolkits useful however, if you have any suggestions for improvement or comments please let us know using the e-mail address below.
One way the Council is trying to improve consultation opportunities is to put together a calendar of planned county-wide Consultations, it should be noted that this will change and there will be other priority consultation activities that will be required at short notice. It is anticipated, however that there will be a current list that will be circulated regularly to the Parish Sector.
The schedule of county-wide consultations and engagements coming up in the last half of 2024 is as follows (the dates are subject to change).
- Let’s Talk Rubbish – Live now until 16 Sept – Toolkit provided 8th July.
- Cultural strategy consultation – this week until Autumn
- Let’s Talk Active North Yorkshire – Autumn
- Let’s Talk Money – the annual budget consultation – late Autumn
- Mobile library consultation – Autumn/Winter
Please go to the North Yorkshire Council website for our current consultation and engagement information https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/your-council/consultations-and-engagement
Contact LetsTalk@northyorks.gov.uk for further info.
- Home Upgrade Grants (Free Energy Efficiency Improvements) – Ending soon
The Home upgrade grants scheme is coming to an end on 13 September 2024, the leaflet attached to this e-mail provides further information, the main details are below:
- The Home Upgrade Grant offers free home upgrades to households in North Yorkshire to help lower energy bills.
- The council can offer fully funded installations of energy efficient upgrades such as loft or wall insulation, solar panels or heat pumps.
- Houses must not be heated by mains gas and have a gross household income of £36k (or below), or someone in the household receives a means tested benefit
- Householders on the scheme have saved up to £610 on their bills with the upgrades
- The scheme is managed by YES Energy Solutions on behalf of North Yorkshire Council
The YES Team can help to advise if residents are eligible and residents are encouraged to contact the Projects Team:
Telephone: 01422 880100
Text HUG to 82228