Following recent flooding events from storms across the United Kingdom, we would like to encourage residents & businesses to be prepared for flooding in the District. We advise the following preparations before any further severe weather occurs:
- Regularly check road or surface water drains are not blocked near where you live. If they are, use the Kent County Council “Report a Problem” tool to get it cleared https://www.kent.gov.uk/roads-and-travel/report-a-problem.
- If there are any water courses that are blocked or partially blocked with rubbish or weeds, report it to the Environment Agency via email enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk or telephone 03708 506506.
- It is wise to have a sufficient stock of sand bags or flood sacks ready to deploy when there is a threat of flooding. Bags of sand and flood sacks can be bought from local DIY stores or off the internet. Sevenoaks District Council Direct Services also sell sand bags, but payment must be made first by calling 01732 227000 before you collect them.
- The Kent Prepared website offers advice on how you can protect your home or business, including a ‘Personal Flood Plan’ template and links to Environment Agency documents: https://www.kentprepared.org.uk/flooding.
- Register to Floodline to receive the latest information for your area during a flood by calling 03459 881188.
Sevenoaks District Council will only provide sand bags to residents in emergency situations. Unfortunately, with flash flooding incidents, it is normally too late to stop flooding reaching your property. More information on how we serve our district during flooding and a video on how to lay sandbags and floodsax can be found at www.sevenoaks.gov.uk/flooding.
Town and Parish Councils can contact Direct Services direct.services@sevenoaks.gov.uk if they have the facility to take their own stock of sandbags to assist residents in a flooding event.
If you would like any further advice on how to protect your home during flooding you can call the District Council Emergency Planning service via our main switchboard at 01732227000 or you can talk to the Kent Resilience Forum on 01622 212409. You can also find more information on the Government website: https://flood-warning-information.service.gov.uk/what-to-do-in-a-flood.
Gatwick expansion
The impact of the expansion would be –
- More noise for HPC residents from a 35% increase in the number of flights.
- Further congestion on road and rail networks in the area and on routes to Gatwick (54% increase in car parking at the airport).
- Increased air pollution.
- More pressure on local housing and infrastructure, on assumption that Gatwick’s claims re job creation are accurate, and that there are sufficient people to carry out such roles.
- Climate change – Gatwick Obviously Not figures suggest a 50% increase in the production of CO2 from the plans and that by 2038 Gatwick would be responsible for 5.5% of total UK CO2 emissions.
- There would be no change to flight paths meaning a large increase in flights over HPC when flights arriving from the east (2019 – 60 air movements per hour at peak increasing to 81 per hour as per Gatwick plans / projections).
https://www.gacc.org.uk/gatwick-expansion.php Example summary responses and more information.
https://www.gatwickairport.com/business-community/future-plans/northern-runway/documents/
https://www.gatwickairport.com/globalassets/company/future-plans/northern-runway/2021/summary.pdf
Consultation questionnaire or you can also just send an email to: – feedback@gatwickfutureplans.com
Applications are invited for the position of Parish Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer to manage the administration, personnel and finances of Hever Parish Council.
The Clerk provides all the administrative functions of the Council and is the principal point of contact for Hever parish residents, other local councils, contractors and professional organisations. This includes preparing minutes, agendas and project plans, all correspondence and financial matters/annual audit and planning applications. Maintaining the parish council website/noticeboards/social media also required. The Clerk is also the Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer of the Council.
The post is interesting and varied and the successful applicant will be required to provide professional guidance in respect of all aspects of the Council’s work. It is not essential to have experience of working in Local Government.
Evening meeting attendance will be required for ~ 6 evening parish meetings per year, the rest of the hours (20 hours per week in total) can be worked flexibly from home.
The salary will be in the range of £11.76 – £16.75 per hour depending on experience and annual appraisal. There is a generous pension and working from home allowance.
The Council – Hever Parish Council has 10 Councillors, who make decisions and represent ~ 1,200 residents in Four Elms, Hever and Markbeech, Kent. See www.hever.org The Council owns and maintains two play areas/recreation grounds, one closed cemetery, a pond and surrounding bank and a large “hut”.
The Role/The Person: The successful applicant will be a highly motivated and forward-thinking individual who can promote the interests of the community by forging strong local partnerships. They will manage the statutory obligations of the council, including its financial responsibilities. Ideally the candidate will have previous office-based experience with excellent computer literacy skills, the ability to multitask and provide both written and numerical support to the council and have some knowledge/interest of the area. The Clerk provides independent support to the Councillors, who vote on decisions. Confidence in basic accounting finance is also required.
We are looking for someone with a professional attitude, excellent time management skills together with flexibility and a can-do, hands on, proactive attitude and who is confident that they can work on their own using their own initiative. They must be an excellent communicator with good interpersonal skills
Whilst relevant experience is preferred, specific training will be provided where required e.g. finance, planning, local government. There will be a comprehensive handover and support from the Council members and experts.
The Offer: 20 hours of work per week will be flexible. All the work is from home, so it is essential to have good broadband access. A computer/webcam will be provided and there is professional IT support.
Interested applicants should contact the Clerk asap, Christina Divall (clerk@hever.org) with any queries and for a formal job description and subsequently send a brief CV and set out reasons for applying in a covering letter.
The closing date for Applications is 30th November – which may close early subject to interest, with interviews provisionally planned for week commencing 6th December.
Start date asap.
Volunteers required
Are you looking for a new challenge and the opportunity to help people in your local community ? We will give you full training and ongoing support.
Are you:
A good listener
Digitally capable
Open minded and non-judgemental
Keen to help others
Able to commit to at least one day a week
We are looking for volunteers to give advice, help with admin support or get involved with our research and campaigning work.
Interested ?
To find out more please email: training@edenbridge.cabnet.org.uk
Please help increase community resilience within local parish and town councils by taking part in one of the initiatives put in place for local residents to help monitor and report fire hydrant defects and water provision issues within their local area, ensuring issues are resolved in a timely manner.
This is in addition to the checks that are already made by KFRS.
Please see document below for further information and how to report any issues.
Sevenoaks District Council Strategic Planning Consultations
SEVENOAKS DISTRICT COUNCIL CALL FOR SITES 2021
The emerging Local Plan is being reviewed to take account of new government guidance, updated housing requirements, the challenges of climate change and changes brought about by COVID-19. The review provides an opportunity to update our evidence base of potentially suitable and available land for a range of possible uses, which the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires us to keep up to date.
We have therefore launched a call for sites, and are inviting local residents, landowners, developers, businesses and other interested parties to submit sites for potential future development within Sevenoaks District. The Call for Sites is being undertaken in two stages:
Stage 1: The Council is requesting the submission of sites that are located within settlements and not in the Green Belt. The Stage 1 Call for Sites is now open.
Stage 2: Following an assessment of the Stage 1 outcomes, the Council will request the submission of sites located in the Green Belt. You will be able to submit sites fitting this criteria from 25 November 2021.
Please visit our website www.sevenoaks.gov.uk/callforsites for further information, including a handy Guidance Note. Sites can be submitted via the quick and easy online form or by downloading and completing a PDF form.
Please note that if you have previously submitted a site as part of the 2015-2018 Call for Sites, or even before then as part of the Core Strategy (2011) or Allocations and Development Management Plan (2015) you will need to submit your site again using the new form. This ensures we assess sites based on the most up to date information available.
The Stage 1 and Stage 2 Call for Sites will close at 5pm on 20 January 2022. Submissions will not be accepted after the closing date.
All submitted sites will then be assessed to determine their suitability for development – for example, whether they are subject to planning constraints. The deliverability and developability of sites will also be considered. Further information about the assessment of sites will be made available on the Council’s website.
If you have any further queries or questions in relation to the Call for Sites please email the Planning Policy Team at sites@sevenoaks.gov.uk or call 01732 227000.
SEVENOAKS DISTRICT CHARACTER STUDY
To identify and enhance the character of the District, Sevenoaks District Council is running a three-week survey to find out what residents think about where they live.
The Council is preparing a character study that aims to document the history, people, landscape, streets and buildings of the District and how they make the area special. As a starting point, an interactive map, called a ‘Storymap’, has been produced, which residents are being asked for their views on. The responses from participants will be incorporated into a new study that will be used as part of the local planning process. We hope you will contribute to the character study and help build up a picture of each unique part of the District.
The survey runs from 18 October to 8 November 2021. Visit www.sevenoaks.gov.uk/sdcs to complete the survey. If you would like to stay involved, please leave your email address at the bottom of the online survey.
Telephone or paper surveys are available for people without internet access by calling 01732 227000 or emailing planning.policy@sevenoaks.gov.uk.
What happens next?
Following the survey, there will be an online workshop on Wednesday 17 November 2021, 5:30– 7pm. Visit www.sevenoaks.gov.uk/sdcs for more information.
A follow-up workshop is planned in mid-January 2022. This will result in a report and the completed Storymap detailing the findings of the character study in February 2022.
Should you have any queries regarding the Sevenoaks District Character Study, please do not hesitate to contact the Strategic Planning Team on 01732 227000 or please email planning.policy@sevenoaks.gov.uk
Yours faithfully
The Strategic Planning Team
Sevenoaks District Council
Please help SDC shape local public services and tell them what is needed to make Sevenoaks District a better place to live, work and travel.
More information here – https://www.sevenoaks.gov.uk/communityplan
Survey closes 5pm 31st December 2021
09.15 – 10.00 FOUR ELMS village hall
10.15 – 11.00 HEVER bottle bank area next to Henry pub in coach car park
11.15 – 12.00 MARKBEECH village hall
The Freighter cannot accept white goods, washing machines, dishwashers, fridges, freezers, cookers, cast iron boilers or baths, long metal poles, building materials, manure, large parts of engines or vehicles or hazardous waste or compostable garden waste.
Hazardous waste now includes items like fluorescent tubes, televisions & computer monitors, batteries, oil tins and filters, paint and paint tins and chemical containers. These items cannot be accepted on the Saturday Freighter service and must be taken to your nearest Household Waste Recycling Centre.
Please do not leave any rubbish unattended. Please DO NOT arrive early or leave items on site, otherwise will be classed as flytipping and information passed to the police, thank you.
This is a service free to residents, funded by Hever Parish Council and provided by Sevenoaks District Council.