Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge’s Mayor has this week looked back at her first year in office during the Town Council’s annual meeting.
Cllr Lesley Millard gave her annual report at the start of Tuesday’s annual towns meeting, which was held at Highbridge’s Morland Community Hub.
The Mayor said: “What an amazing year we have all had. We have celebrated the Queen’s Jubilee and will soon be celebrating the coronation of the King. This council took office during a time of major change nationally, locally and within the council.”
“Nationally we have all been managing the cost of living and energy crisis both personally and throughout our workplaces. We are also just recovering from a major pandemic. These factors have played a large part in the councils work last year. We organised Cost of Living Information Days offering our residents support from a large number of local organisations. We also set up a directory of information on the council website. We have a working party looking at Homelessness and how we can provide support locally.”
“We have a Climate and Ecology Action Plan in place which also addresses these needs. The Energy strand has been led by Burnham and Weston Solar Energy CIC who have now provided an Energy Information Officer who supports individuals in the towns helping them identify ways of reducing their energy bills. They are also going to provide Information Hubs in both towns so that our residents can seek out information on reducing their energy.”
”Our Sustainability strand is going to encourage the Recycle, Reuse, Repair theme of the Somerset Waste Partnership. We have now set up a new Steering Group to re-engage with the Plastic Free agenda. The Ecology Strand will be enhancing our environment encouraging our residents to engage in environmental activities to support their health and well-being. Our Transport Strand will encourage active transport opportunities such as walking and cycling. I would like to thank our working group of both community and council members who are working hard to drive this agenda throughout both towns.”
“Our local businesses are starting to rebuild after the impact of the pandemic. The Tourist Industry was one of the areas most affected. The High St was already struggling before the pandemic as society moved to online shopping. The pandemic increased this effect and many small businesses closed. We will be using the High St Taskforce government initiative working with the local community to explore ways of supporting the High St and creating a High St that people enjoy visiting. Although Sedgemoor DC were unsuccessful with the Levelling up bid for Highbridge regeneration, we will be taking the opportunity to look at the Regeneration Framework agreed by Sedgemoor and now accepted by Somerset CC. We will engage with the local community and Somerset CC, to take a new look and plan a way forward for the scheme to be fulfilled. Like many theatres in the country, the Princess Theatre has struggled financially over the last few years. We are now going to create a Strategic Plan that will explore the best way for the theatre to deliver a service to the community. This will entail looking at an independent report and deciding the best way for the Theatre to be managed to ensure a strong business that provides excellent community facilities.”
“Locally we have been managing the move to a Unitary Authority and the New Somerset Council. We have relied on our District and County Councillors to keep us informed of these developments. The Town Clerk and I have been attending regular briefings from Somerset CC. I would like to thank our District Councillors for all their hard work over recent years and look forward to working with Somerset County Council. The Local Community Networks should provide us with a useful link to the new council. There are still many processes to be completed and we will continue to play an active part in representing our local residents during this uncertain period.”
“Our Town Council has also been through a period of change as we settled in a new council and recruited staff. We have been pleased to welcome a full -time permanent Town Clerk who has already had an impact on the way that we work. We aim to provide better accommodation for the council and are actively seeking alternative options.”
“I would like to thank both councillors and staff for all their hard work as we have worked together to serve our community. It has been a steep learning curve for some of us but we have learnt a great deal and enter this next year with more confidence.”
At the beginning of my term in office as Mayor, I set myself 3 main targets;
- To raise awareness of the need for more support for people suffering poor mental health
- To give young people a voice by re-establishing a Youth Town Council
- To raise awareness of Climate and Ecological Change
“I have already spoken about the Climate and Ecology Working Group and their amazing commitment. It has been a pleasure leading that work.”
“I chose Somewhere House Somerset as my charity for this year. I have learnt such a lot from my work with them. They are reaching out into the community to meet the needs of all ages who are in crisis. They are accessible to all as they only ask for donations. The need has increased during and after the pandemic. Their work is a major resource for our community and I am very grateful to them.”
“I have also found other community groups stepping up to help our residents. The Waffle Hub at Burnham Methodist Church, Morland Hub, King Alfred’s Amateur Boxing Academy, Burnham and Hope Baptist Churches and the foodbank continues to deliver an amazing service to the community. The council has been able to support some of these groups with grants to enable them to develop their work. Over £36,000 has been given to local community groups this year.”
“I have also been able to visit the Princess Theatre which provides a variety of excellent activities to support health and well-being. I recently had the pleasure of joining the Highbridge Festival of the Arts for their 75th year of operation. I am looking forward to their celebration concert in April. They have done an amazing job over 75 years in providing opportunities for people of all ages to take part in dance, music, speech and drama. All activities that support our health and well-being.”
“Turning to the Youth Town Council, one of my greatest joys during this last year has been visiting and getting to know the Youth Groups in both towns. I have enjoyed getting to know both my cadets, one from the Sea Cadets and the other from the Air Cadets. I have seen them both working in situ at the units and met their Commanding Officers. I have also visited the Youth Clubs in the Morland Hub and Bay Centre. I also attended an Open Day at King Alfred’s Amateur Boxing Club. We have many adults who give up their time and energy to ensure that our young people are offered wonderful opportunities in a safe environment.”
“I have also taken great pleasure in getting to know the staff and students at The King Alfred’s School. I have been involved in many events there and also spoken to groups of students about having a Youth Town Council and becoming involved in our Climate and Ecology Action Plan.”
“Sadly, our Youth Groups were unable to elect a representative this year and so the Youth Town Council will start based at King Alfred’s School. We will go to the Community Groups each year asking for representatives and hopefully in the future we will have a more varied representation. We have now set the date of an inaugural meeting for the new council in April. I am looking forward to watching the students take this opportunity to be more involved in the decision-making in our 2 towns. They never cease to amaze me with their lateral thinking and enthusiasm. We will learn a lot from them.”
“I would like to thank all the councillors for their support during this year. We have now created a Strategic Plan for the next 4 years which will enable us to continue to work for the lives of residents in our towns.”
“It has been an amazing year. I now know the two towns better. I have met a great many people who are working hard for our community. They are a role model for us all. It has been a privilege to serve as Mayor for 2022 – 2023.”
