Tthe Parish Council would like to wish all the residents of Kessingland a Happy New Year With the start of a new year peoples aspirations take on a fresh outlook and the Parish Council is no different.

Work will be starting on the new Community/Library/VSH complex in Hall Road and when completed in 2009 it will provide benefits and services for all of the Community.

In November 2007 the Emergency Plan and Protocol Document was published. It was accompanied by a circulation of the first Emergency Newsletter, circulated  to every household together with a guidelines document. This had a self adhesive wallet so that it could be located in a suitable place for easy reference. The publishing of this        document could not have been better timed, as within a week there were the high tide surges along the East Coast and over the two days that the coastline was under threat, it was possible for the Parish Council, through the Emergency Committee, to have people on stand-by, should it have been necessary to evacuate people from their homes.

Plans are in hand to have the Village Sign, (currently on the High Street), to be renovated and relocated to the junction of the High Street / Whites Lane - opposite Livingstones.

The Parish Council also want to promote more community based events and are seeking ideas from the Community, whether it be a Fun Day, Village Fete, anything that will bring the Community together. Depending on the responses there could be more than one event. Any ideas can be forwarded to the Parish Clerk for consideration.

The Parish Council will also be looking again at the Parish Plan, with a view of updating it, there will be a Community based consultation on this project.

There is still a vacancy for 1 person on the Parish Council. Kessingland Parish Council works extremely hard and decisions taken are for the benefit of all the Community whether they be popular or not. Therefore if you feel that you wish to be part of that decision making process and can give some of your free time then please contact the Parish Clerk for further details.

KESSINGLAND   FOOTPATHS

Over the past few years we have all noted how quickly our grass grows both in our gardens and on our village footpaths. We are told this is down to climate change and longer growing seasons. In our gardens it means the lawnmower comes out almost every week, if you are a keen gardener, as some of you are, it may have meant two cuts a week.

Footpaths don't quite work in the same way. Under Suffolk County Council "P3" scheme the Parish Council have received two payments per year to cut and maintain all the public footpaths in and around Kessingland. These two payments are to pay for two cuts between 1^st May and 30^th      September in the financial year. The Parish Council have until now precepted for 1 further cut to make a total of 3 cuts a year. Our contractor has undertaken to do one further cut during the    summer at his own expense. This makes a total of 4 cuts a year.

This program of work has not pleased all our residents, as we know from the telephone calls we have received about the height of the grass on the footpaths. This year we also received a petition from some residents mainly in the beach area, about the condition of our footpaths. It has therefore been agreed by the Parish Council to advise Suffolk County Council that from May 2008 ALL     designated public footpaths in and around Kessingland will be handed back to them for care and maintenance.

We are currently asking for quotations for the maintenance of the Parish owned land in Marsh Lane and the local footpaths, that DO NOT appear on the designated footpath maps, to be kept cut

PARISH COUNCIL ALLOTMENTS

The waiting list is being compiled again for the Parish Council Allotments.

Anybody who wishes to have their name put on the waiting list should in the first instance contact the Parish Clerk.

THE SUFFOLK HEDGEROW SURVEY

The Parish Council have been asked by The Suffolk Coastal Greenprint Forum to highlight The  Suffolk Hedgerow Survey. The survey seeks to record not only the existence of all hedgerows, but also through detailed surveys of representative sample lengths of each hedge, the number of   hedgerow species present, the way in which the hedgerow is managed and its relationship with Data sent to the Suffolk Biological Records Centre.

Volunteers are being sought to assist in carrying out this survey. It requires a minimum of 5 half days per year between May and October, with an invitation to attend one of the training sessions on either the 10th or 17th May to get practical field training on methods and species identification.

It is open to all organisations, youth groups or individuals, and anybody interested is asked to  contact the Parish Clerk for further details.

RECYLCING FOR SUFFOLK

With your help, Suffolk is doing really well at recycling and composting, and is one of the best performing counties in England.  But we need to do more !!!

How can I reduce  - Buy in bulk  - Avoid excess packaging  - choose loose fruit and vegetables

 Compost at home  - order your reduced price bin on 0845 077 0757

How can I reuse    - Take reuseable bags when you shop  - Use charity shops, car boot sales and           www.freecycle.org to pick up bargains or offer unwanted items  -  use long life energy efficient and rechargeable products.

How can I recyle   -   Use your kerbside collections  - clean, dry and loose items and no carrier bags    plastic film  -  Household Waste Recyling centres now accept drink and milk  cartons including Tetra Pack, plastic bags and electrical items for recycling  -  Buy recycled products, this makes your efforts to recycle worthwhile.

Councillors Details.