Transforming Breckland Autumn 2017

Transforming

Autumn 2017

Breckland A Breckland Council publication for all residents

Supporting Breckland’s communities From collecting your bins to hosting school holiday activities, we’re here for you every day – p6&7

Inside this issue: Improving our online services – p3 Mileham’s new homeowners – p4 Green energy is go – p5 Market Town Initiative – p9 Community lottery coming soon – p11 Smokefree Sidelines launches – p15

www.breckland.gov.uk

First Words

Welcome to the autumn-winter edition of Transforming Breckland The days might be getting shorter and the nights drawing in but the future looks brighter than ever for our district.

I

some TLC (page 9).

We’ve had some fantastic results so far and the response from property and land owners has been really encouraging, as they I’m delighted to see a whole range of are as keen as we are to programmes launched that benefit communities sort out eyesores in our in the district. One such initiative is our arts tour beautiful district. called The Silver Social, which aims to improve the wellbeing of older people in rural We’re always looking to provide the right communities, who may be vulnerable or at risk services, at the right time and in the right way, of isolation (page 8). This got off to a great start and one innovative way of sharing how we do in September, with various artists going into this with all of you is our new #ourbreckland villages around Breckland and holding free campaign (page 6). Our aim is to showcase the workshops. diverse work we do each day to benefit residents, as well as our local environment, so We’re also committed to supporting Breckland’s we have been sharing photos of our day-to-day market towns to develop and thrive, which is activities on social media, using the hashtag why I was excited to get our Market Town #ourbreckland. Follow us on Twitter and Initiative up and running this year (page 9). We Facebook (@BreckCouncil) to get a feel for have committed £230,000 to this programme, the huge variety of work we do to strengthen which will strengthen the economic, social and and boost communities. cultural standing of our district’s five market towns, as well as their surrounding areas.

We hope you enjoy this issue. If you have any feedback, let us know at contactus@ Another aspect of doing our best to make breckland.gov.uk.

Breckland a safe and pleasant place to live is our new Unsightly Sites project, in which we Best wishes work closely with the owners of certain sites Cllr William Nunn, Leader that have been identified as being in need of t’s been a busy year for Breckland Council, with numerous exciting new initiatives launched and a great deal of planning for projects that will be set in motion over the coming year, and beyond.

Contact us...

Transforming Breckland brings you news and information on the services and support provided by Breckland Council and its partners. Your comments and ideas are very welcome.

Email contactus@breckland.gov.uk or call 01362 656870. If you need this magazine in large print, or in an alternative version, please contact Breckland Council on 01362 656870.

Link-Up: Blind or partially sighted, or know someone who is? Transforming Breckland can be sent on a memory stick with the independently produced Link-Up, a free, fortnightly audio newsletter. To subscribe, email: contact@linkupbreckland.org.uk or call 01842 755131.

Delivery issues? If you know someone who has not received their copy of Transforming Breckland please contact us on 01362 656870. Transforming Breckland is printed on chlorine-free paper from managed forests.

www.breckland.gov.uk 2

Digital Want to share a website suggestion?

Email webteam@breckland.gov.uk

Better broadband in Breckland continuing to W e’re support efforts to get as many homes and businesses connected to fast broadband as possible, following our £950k contribution to support the delivery of the Better Broadband for Norfolk project last year.

Currently, 84.8% of Breckland properties have access to Superfast broadband (24Mbps+).

This percentage is updated regularly and you can check how Breckland is doing via Think Broadband www. thinkbroadband.com

Improving our online service of styling changes as well as the launch of a A number ‘My Breckland’ feature are currently being worked on for our website. These will enable you to easily find information about our services in your area, such as your bin collection day, nearby planning applications and who is your ward member.

Visit www.breckland.gov.uk regularly to take advantage of the latest developments to the new website.

We also recently recruited some helpful volunteers to share their experiences of using our website so that we could make sure future versions of our website are as user-friendly and useful to you as possible.

A diverse group of testers, who were selected because collectively they represented the district’s population, completed various tasks on our website while sharing their experiences with an independent assessor, including how easily they found their way around the site.

Their feedback is helping us focus on the sort of changes that will benefit residents and businesses accessing our website to find information and carry out transactions, such as subscribing to our garden waste service and paying council tax online. See the directory on the back page for examples of what you can do through our website.

Providing the right services, at the right time and in the right way

3

Growth

Home sweet home housing development in a village A new near Dereham is being extended, offering

more opportunities to prospective homeowners.

Three extra new homes are in the process of being built in Mileham in a second phase of the Burghwood Drive housing project. It is being delivered by Breckland Bridge, a joint venture partnership between Breckland Council and development experts The Land Group.

Phase one, comprising 11 homes including four shared-ownership houses, were completed in early summer. The housing development represents the first time in many years that new homes have been built on Breckland Council-owned land. The first homeowners moved into their house in July, and two shared ownership houses and four private sale homes have now completed. Five houses (not including the new houses under construction) remain on the market with William H Brown. Call 01362 692238 for more details.

The first owners to move in, Jayne Willoughby and Tom Butler, were presented with a welcome gift by representatives from Breckland Council and The Land Group.

Happy anniversary, Riverside I

t’s almost been one year since Thetford Riverside opened and, since then, hundreds of thousands of people have flocked to the £8m leisure complex to enjoy the restaurant and cinema, or stay at the Travelodge based there.

The Grand Central American Bar and Grill, and the three-screen cinema run by The Light, have proved to be huge hits with visitors. We are discussing other opportunities with potential occupiers in the relevant market and we are keen to make an

4

announcement about what else will open at the complex as soon as we can. Keep an eye on www.breckland gov.uk for the latest updates.

Thetford Riverside, on Bridge Street, was delivered by Breckland Bridge, a joint venture between Breckland Council and The Land Group. The initiative has seen the regeneration of a key site in the town and created new jobs and leisure opportunities for our residents. The project also brings in income to the council from commercial rent, which reduces our reliance on central government

funding. In recognition of our innovative, commercial approach, we were thrilled to win the award for the ‘Commercialism in the Property Estate’ category of the Municipal Journal (MJ) Awards 2017 earlier this year. This accolade acknowledges excellence in councils that use collaboration and commercialism to create income from their property assets. We use this income to protect frontline services.

Developing the local economy to be vibrant with continued growth

Green energy plant opens in Snetterton energy plant which has brought millions of A biomass pounds to the local economy and created jobs for local people officially opened in September.

The £173m Snetterton Renewable Energy Plant generates electricity through the burning of straw and woodchips, which is good news for local farmers who have been recruited as suppliers, and saves more than 300,000 tonnes of CO2 a year.

We worked closely with the plant’s owners, BWSC East Anglia Ltd, through its development. During its two-year construction, 350 people were employed, many through local contractors, and since it was completed, 31 permanent jobs at the site have been filled – largely by people from this region. The plant also uses a number of local suppliers that, in turn, use haulage firms from the area, delivering even more benefits to East Anglia.

Developing businesses in Breckland S

upporting and developing the district’s economy is a priority for us. That’s why we’re visiting local businesses to learn more about their aspirations, and find out how we can help and support them.

Information on the renewable energy plant and local business opportunities are available online at www.snettertonbiomass.com

Snetterton Heath business boost are committed to improving the power supply at W eSnetterton Heath, as full utilisation of the site has the potential to create 1,700 new local jobs while safeguarding a further 1,450.

We are currently working with the Snetterton power plant owners, local Snetterton land owners, UK Power Networks, and other partners to develop a scheme that will improve the power capacity at the site.

The trips are being organised by our Inward Investment team, which works closely with local businesses; companies visited recently include Warren Services, Banham Poultry and Easy Cleaning Co (formerly Jeyes).

Pictured above: Deputy Council Leader Sam Chapman-Allen at Easy Cleaning Co.’s factory in Thetford, which they visited in August.

Supporting Breckland to develop and thrive

5

Community

#

Serving every day

I

f you follow us on Twitter or like our Facebook page, you may have seen that we’ve been sending out updates about the work we do to improve, support and serve Breckland communities using the hashtag #ourbreckland.

The aim is to show the type of work that our Localities Officers within the Community and Environmental Services Team do and, as you’ll see from our social media feeds, it is diverse – ranging from collecting households’ recycling or clearing up litter, to organising children’s activities during school holiday periods and hosting social events for older residents.

Our aim is to show all of our residents, often with your help, what we are doing to benefit the district. This is why the social media posts in this campaign are branded with #ourbreckland – it’s about us coming together to strengthen and boost our communities, whether it’s through tackling fly-tipping or providing grants to fund projects that benefit the local area, to name just a few examples.

Follow us on facebook and Twitter (@BreckCouncil) to be part of #ourbreckland and see what we’re helping to make happen in your neighbourhood.

1 2 1

3

We regularly go out and about in Breckland to investigate and clear up fly-tipped rubbish. This picture was taken by one of our Enforcement Officer in Watton Brook on Great Cressingham Rd.

2

D id you know that grandparents can swim with their grandchildren for free at Dereham Leisure Centre?

Contact the centre for details and follow us on Twitter for our latest offers and promotions (@BreckCouncil).

3

O ver the course of the school holidays, 743 youngsters at 60 rural venues enjoyed fun activities such as including dodgeball, rounders and British Bulldog as part of another successful Breckland Holiday Activities Programme. This returns in Easter 2018.

6

#

breckland

4

A Localities Officer visited residents at Abbey Neighbourhood Centre Thetford recently to talk about an issue with recycling, so that we could work together on solving the problem.

4

5

Have you seen our leaflets and posters about The Silver Social in your area? We launched this exciting arts programme for older residents in September. See p8 for more.

6

One

of our Localities Officers inspected a fallen tree at Foxglove Road, Thetford, and arranged for works to be carried out.

5

6

7

Breckland has lots of play areas for all ages of children. We recently painted all the equipment at this one on Sandy Lane in Dereham and added new flooring and swings.

7

Share in #OurDay you’ve seen some of the services we provide, N ow join us on Twitter as we showcase a day in the life of your Council on 21 November.

We are taking part in #OurDay, a national social media event highlighting the diverse work everyone who works or volunteers in public services do for local communities every day.

Organised by the Local Government Association, #OurDay trended nationally at number one last year and reached over 20 million people. We want to help make #OurDay 2017 the biggest yet, so follow @BreckCouncil on Twitter to be part of the celebration.

Providing the right services, at the right time and in the right way

7

Leisure

Let’s get social!

THE

SILVER S O CI A L

T

he Silver Social Project launched this autumn, with artists welcoming residents in community venues across Breckland. This exciting new programme of free daytime events, including workshops and performances, is aimed at older people in rural communities, who may be vulnerable or at risk of isolation.

Throughout October, artists continued their residencies in five villages – Matishall, Ashill, Harling, Necton and Shipdham – inviting locals to come and explore a dynamic range of disciplines, including sewing, cyanotype printing, dancing and poetry.

In these engaging workshops, artists were keen for residents to share their stories of the local community and listen to anecdotes relating to their village. These stories were incorporated into the artists’ work and exhibited within the community at the end of October.

The Silver Social intends to improve the overall wellbeing of some of Breckland’s most vulnerable residents; whether you want to meet new people, or you know a friend or relative who would benefit from a new experience, our aim is to bring high quality accessible arts to a friendly, familiar space. We’ll even supply plenty of tea and biscuits!

The project, which will continue for the next two and a half years in

Take to the skies E

ver wanted the chance to challenge your family and friends to prove who would be the ace pilot in a dog fight?

Well, we have the prize for you!

Sim Fly Combat, based at Old Buckenham airfield, specialise in combat flight simulations and offers you the chance to test your flying skills without ever having to leave the ground. They’ve kindly given us two group passes to give away, each giving you and up to three friends the chance to hop into four

8

various Breckland locations, is funded by £185,700 from the National Lottery through the Art Council’s Strategic Touring Programme, as well as Norfolk County Council Public Health and Breckland Council. If you would like to support it, there are also volunteering opportunities.

Find out more online at www. thesilversocial.com or email community@breckland.gov.uk

linked simulators, which are based on Spitfire and Messerschmitt cockpits, to battle it out in the virtual skies.

To be in with a chance of winning one of the passes, valid for a group of four to battle it in a one-hour simulator session, simply send your name, age, address and contact details, quoting ‘Flying Competition’, to: communications@breckland. gov.uk or Flying Competition, Communications Team, Elizabeth House,

Walpole Loke, Dereham, NR19 1EE. You must be 18 or over and living in Breckland to enter.

Anyone using the flying simulator must be at least 12 years of age.

Entries must be received by 30 November 2017. Winners will be chosen at random from all valid entries. Full competition terms and conditions at www.breckland. gov.uk/Ts-and-Cs

Enabling stronger, more independent communities

A thriving district

A bright future for our towns have committed W e£230,000 to a programme which will strengthen the economic, social and cultural standing of Breckland’s five towns and their surrounding areas.

Our Market Town Initiative will look to develop a number of partnership projects that will support the sustainability of Thetford, Dereham, Attleborough, Swaffham and Watton in the long-term, helping the towns and their hinterlands to develop and thrive.

and are places people choose to visit. We’ll be seeking investment for projects that will benefit our towns and link with our partners to develop our plans.

We want to ensure that our towns have a distinct sense of identity, are economically vibrant, are attractive,

In the meantime, we already have a number of schemes underway as part of the Market Town Initiative.

These include our Unsightly Sites campaign, work to tackle flytipping, and the introduction of Public Space Protection Orders. Read more on these below. Other ongoing work includes reducing business rates for local businesses (page 13) and our new community arts project (page 8).

Making your Help us tackle the ‘tippers towns safer F Council’s B reckland Designated Public

Place Orders (known as alcohol exclusion zones) became Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) on October 27 in all five market towns within the district. These PSPOs are can be used to place restrictions on a wider range of anti-social behaviours in order to make our town centres more welcoming.

We held a consultation ahead of this in Thetford, and the next consultation will be in Watton in November 2017 – check our website and social media if you want to get involved.

Consultations will be held with other market towns as needed and we are in discussions with the Town Councils to produce tailored PSPOs.

ly tipping is illegal and varies from leaving a single bin bag of rubbish by the roadside to large quantities of waste dumped from vehicles onto land without the owner’s permission.

It blights our beautiful district and we will prosecute fly-tippers if we can prove they have acted illegally.

Offenders can be required to pay full clean-up costs and a fine of up to £50,000.

Please report any instances of this crime to us – but don’t tidy it up or remove anything because there may be evidence that could identify the culprits.

Find out more via our website www.breckland.gov.uk/flytip

Taking on the blight of unsightly sites been contacting W ethehave owners of certain sites to arrange for them to be tidied up, working with landowners and organisations to improve their properties, at no cost to Breckland Council.

It’s vital that we do everything we cans to provide a well-kept district and we are prioritising sites that adversely affect people living nearby.

If you would like to nominate a site

for improvement, you can report it online at www.breckland.gov.uk/ unsightlysites and upload any pictures you have of the site to help our investigation Our Unsightly Sites programme has got off to a great start and one of our successes has been working closely with the owner of Thetford Mowers on Bury Road, Thetford, who was really keen to tidy up the building and improve its appearance

Supporting Breckland to develop and thrive

9

Recycling and waste

Book your brown bin you know that you can put your garden D idwaste to good use by letting us turn it into compost? In 2016/17 we sent 8,468 tonnes of waste for composting, thanks to the 22,000 households in Breckland already signed up to our Garden Waste Collection Service.

And next year we’re hoping to do better!

Disposing of your garden waste has never been so easy – order a brown bin online via www.breckland.gov. uk/gardenwaste using a debit or credit card and we will arrange for it to be collected by the kerbside, saving the need for those trips to the household waste centre.

Our service is currently the cheapest across Norfolk: a £44 annual subscription provides you with a 240 litre bin (multiple bins can be purchased) and fortnightly collections throughout the year.

Besides being convenient, using our service is good for the environment; if garden waste goes into landfill, it breaks down without oxygen and produces a harmful greenhouse gas but when we take it to a composting site, oxygen helps the waste to decompose and high temperatures enable enzymes and bacteria to get to work, resulting in compost in just a few weeks.

It’s easy being green part of the Norfolk A sWaste Partnership (NWP), we’re urging residents to ‘Give Your Recycling a Little Bit of Love’ to make sure you are recycling correctly. And we’ve got one of our Locality Officers, Steve Hitchman, helping to front the campaign!

Look out for Steve on posters around Breckland and on a TV advert, encouraging everyone to keep their recycling ‘Clean, Dry and Loose’. If it isn’t, it might contaminate the whole load, meaning it will have to be disposed of in a different way. Head to www.recyclefornorfolk.com

10

for more information or check out @Recycle4Norfolk on Twitter and Facebook. We’re also running a new initiative, in partnership with Norfolk County Council and schools in Watton and Carbooke to encourage residents to recycle correctly and reduce waste to landfill, while raising funds for local schools.

CLEAN

Give your recycling items a quick rinse

DRY

Recycling Stars will see a ‘recycling star’ awarded to households in the Watton and Carbrooke area for every black bin presented containing only recyclable items.

These stars can be converted to cash by participating schools after the project ends on 16 March 2018.

Wet items can contaminate other recycling

LOOSE

Don’t bag your recycling

Providing the right services, at the right time and in the right way

Grant funding

New lottery will boost local good causes will soon be joining the growing W enumber of councils that run their own community lotteries as an innovative way of supporting local good causes.

Anyone who buys a ticket is in with a chance of winning various prizes, including a jackpot of up to a £25,000. It will cost £1 to play, with 60% of ticket sales benefitting voluntary and charity groups across the district.

Players will even be able to choose which local

causes they’d like to support. In addition, a percentage of the proceeds from ticket sales will go into a general funding pot, which Breckland Council will distribute to local charities and voluntary groups in the form of grants. The council won’t be keeping any of the funds raised.

An external lottery management company was recently recruited to run the lottery on our behalf the lottery is expected to go live next year – we’ll share further details via our Twitter and Facebook pages and in the news section of our website in early 2018.

Giving a helping hand you know that we D idprovide grants for

Main photo: Archant

projects, activities and groups that benefit communities throughout the district?

Recently we pledged £19,972 to support the £96k Wayland Community of Culture project, to be delivered by the Wayland Partnership. This aims to attract new visitors to the Wayland area, encourage them to stay longer, and increase how much they spend locally. Our grant brings the Wayland Partnership (representation shown in main picture) closer to its funding objective for the project, having already secured funding from a number of other organisations.

Another funding bid we approved over the summer was a £585 grant for Shipdham Community Choir (pictured above right). The choir performs at a range of venues including schools and care homes but, as a smaller choir, performing at larger venues or out of doors can be a challenge, therefore we were pleased to award them enough

money to buy an amplifier and microphones. This new sound equipment enables them to perform at larger venues and outside.

We also recently agreed to provide Old Buckenham Parish Council with £5,000 towards the cost of replacing old, weathered and vandalised wooden fencing, which separates the play area from a pond and a road, with a more robust metal bow top fencing. To see the latest projects and groups benefiting

from our grants, follow us on Twitter and Facebook (@BreckCouncil), and keep an eye on the news section of our website www. breckland.gov.uk/latestnews You can make a funding application through Norfolk Community Foundation via www.norfolk foundation.com/funds/ breckland-council-communityfunding contacting grants@ orfolkfoundation.com or 01603 623958.

Enabling stronger, more independent communities

11

Serving the community

Local Democracy Week part of Local A sDemocracy Week, held from 9 to 15 October, Breckland Councillors talked about their day-to-day work and some of the more unusual requests they have had from residents in short films, shared on social media.

If you haven’t watched the clips yet, head to our Twitter and Facebook feed – both can be found by searching for @BreckCouncil – to see what they said or visit the dedicated section of our website which contains links to all of the videos: www.breckland.gov.uk/ councilanddemocracy.

Find out who your councillor is and how to contact them at www. breckland.gov.uk/findyour councillor. Check if you are registered to vote, request a postal vote, and find out everything you need to know about voting and elections at www.breckland.gov. uk/councilandelections

Blueprint for Breckland T

hank you to everyone who gave us their valuable feedback during three rounds of consultation to help shape and refine our Local Plan.

One of the final stages in the Local Plan process (called the presubmission period) recently ended.

Up until 2 October, residents, businesses and local organisations were able to inspect the latest proposals and submit their views

12

as to the ‘soundness’ of the plan.

Now that this six-week presubmission publication period is over, we have been collating and reviewing the responses, ready for the document and representations to be submitted to the Planning Inspectorate in November.

An independent inspector will then be appointed to assess the plan.

It is anticipated that the examination hearings (held in public) will be held early in 2018, and the inspector may

call on those who have responded during the pre-submission period to attend, if they have stated that they are willing to do so, to answer questions or provide more information, before writing the final independent report.

If found to be sound, it is anticipated that the Local Plan will be adopted around summer 2018 and will be a key strategic document that will shape growth in the district until 2036.

Providing the right services, at the right time and in the right way

Dine out with confidence

Training

figures show O urthatlatest 97% of the district’s 1,150 food businesses have Food Hygiene Ratings of 5 (very good), 4 (good) or 3 (satisfactory).

Helping retail businesses to succeed I

n September, Breckland Council announced plans to reduce business rates for eligible retail companies by up to 80% as part of its ongoing effort to support the district’s five market towns.

We will be working with each of the Town Councils to agree how best to implement a discretionary retail rate relief scheme, centred on Attleborough, Dereham, Swaffham, Thetford and Watton.

We assess local food businesses as part of the National Food Hygiene Rating scheme, which helps to raise food standards across the district by motivating and educating businesses while, at the same time, helping customers when they are deciding where to eat out or shop

for food. We’re working with the small number of 2 and 1 rated businesses to ensure that they make the necessary improvements to rise through the ranks.

You can check on businesses in Breckland on our website via www.breckland.gov.uk/ foodsafetyforbusiness.

We also post the latest 5 rated businesses on our Facebook and Twitter feeds (@BreckCouncil for both accounts).

Training opportunities T

o support local businesses, we recently launched Environmental Health Training & Consultancy (EHT&C), in partnership with South Holland District Council in Lincolnshire.

It offers a range of training options including: • Food Safety & Hygiene • Health and Safety • Licensing • Manual Handling • Fire Safety A pre-application advice service; consultancy for Food, Health and Safety, and Noise; and tailor-made packages are also available. Go to www.ehtc.co.uk to book a course or for more information.

The successful pilot scheme ran in Dereham in 2016 and the rates relief scheme will be rolled out on a broader basis in 2018, meaning more retail businesses in the district – including shops, restaurants, and others – who move into a vacant town centre unit may be eligible for the business rates relief during their first year.

Email economicdevelopment@ breckland.gov.uk if you’d like details about this scheme.

Enabling stronger, more independent communities

13

Supporting the community

More jobs fairs planned for 2018 of our commitment A stopart helping as many people into work as possible, we have been holding jobs fairs in Breckland’s market towns, in partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and with support from a number of local organisations.

These events have been well attended, with up to 220 people coming along each time to find out about local career development opportunities and training. We’ll be looking to hold more jobs fairs in 2018 in Dereham, Thetford, Swaffham, Attleborough, and Watton, so keep an eye on our website and social media for dates and times.

To help identify skills gaps and training opportunities among residents, we also recently arranged to conduct a survey of working age adults. Participants were asked what training opportunities are offered within their workplace and what further training is needed to help them progress their career.

This is enabling us to build an accurate picture of what more is needed in the district to help residents and businesses alike develop and thrive and we’ll be speaking to local education services about offering more courses.

Families move into £7m affordable housing development L

ocal residents can now access dozens more affordable homes following the launch of a new housing development.

The Fenlands scheme, on Fengate Drove, comprises 64 new houses, apartments and bungalows, all of which are classed as affordable, including shared ownership and affordable rent homes. We supported Cotman Housing to deliver the scheme and ensure necessary resources were in place to support the new residents. This includes contributions to local services, a new dog walking route, and safeguards for the nearby Special Protection Area.

The project was unusual because, as well as being comprised entirely of affordable housing, it sits across two council boundaries. A total of 25 of the new houses are within Breckland, while the remaining 39 fall within the border of Forest Heath District Council.

To celebrate the completion of the first phase of the scheme earlier in the year, a ribbon was cut by the Steventon family (pictured) who were among the first families to move into their new home.

14

Enabling stronger, more independent communities

A healthier community

Smokefree sidelines

kicks off! are thrilled that W eThetford Town FC, Dereham Town Youth FC, Thetford Rovers, Thetford Bulldogs, Litcham Youth and Harling Colts have signed up to be ‘Smokefree Sidelines’ teams and will help champion this new campaign in our district.

Having officially launched in September, Smokefree Sidelines is a joint project between the NHS, the Smokefree Norfolk stop-

smoking service, the Norfolk Football Association and a number of councils – including us – that aims to ‘de-normalise’ smoking around young children at football games. We are supporting the initiative as we are committed to supporting the district’s residents to follow healthy lifestyles.

NHS research shows that 40% of smokers take up the habit before the age of 16 and many do so through copying adult behaviour. Smokefree Sidelines builds on last year’s

successful initiative to discourage adults from smoking in play areas and outside schools and if successful, the project could be rolled out to include other sports.

If you would like to sign your club up to the project, please email Marketing@NorfolkFA.com or go to www.norwichccg.nhs.uk/ news-news-events/322smokefree-sidelines for more information.

Live the high life!

E

njoy outdoor adventures at High Lodge Thetford Forest throughout 2018 with a Discovery Pass, enabling you to discover all that the forest has to offer as many times as you’d like! High Lodge Thetford Forest have generously give us five Discovery Passes to give away, which you can your family or friends can use throughout 2018, from January to December.

Take advantage of the extensive play areas, walking trails and cycling trails, as well as additional seasonal attractions. There’s so much to discover – including Go Ape Tree Top Adventure, Go Ape Junior and Go Ape Forest Segway. The Discovery Pass gives you free car parking, a seasonal e-newsletter, and discounts* including 15% off Go Ape, 15% off Forest Holidays, 10% off Paramo Clothing, 15% off Muddy Puddles (plus free delivery), 15% off at Cotswold Outdoor, Snow and Rock, Cycle Surgery and Runners Need. *Ts&Cs apply – see these at www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/infd-7x4jr7.

To be in with a chance of winning one of the five Discovery Passes, send your name, age, address and contact details, quoting ‘Discovery Pass Competition’, to: communications@breckland.gov.uk or Discovery Pass Competition, Communications Team, Elizabeth House, Walpole Loke, Dereham, NR19 1EE. You must be 18 or over and living in Breckland to enter. There are no age limits regarding who can use the passes, but at least one member of the party must be over 18. Entries must be received by 30 November 2017. Winners will be chosen at random from all valid entries. Full competition terms and conditions at www.breckland.gov.uk/Ts-and-Cs

Enabling stronger, more independent communities

15

Directory of online services Quick Reference Directory You can find out about our services, submit applications, make payments and report problems at: www.breckland.gov.uk

Apply for it!

You can apply for lots of things via our website at www.breckland.gov.uk/applyforit Direct links to some of the most commonly used application forms are below: Housing and Council Tax £ Benefits Apply, manage or pay for Breckland Council benefits and services: www.angliarevenues.gov.uk/ breckland Building Control Inspection:

Request a site inspection from our Building Control department: www.breckland.gov.uk/ building-control-inspectionbooking Bus Pass: The free passes are available to residents who meet the age or disability requirements: www.norfolk.gov.uk/ roads-and-transport/ public-transport/ buses/concessionary-travel-pass Garden Waste Collection Service Create or renew a subscription to have your garden waste collected every fortnight: www.breckland.gov.uk/ gardenwaste Library Service: Find your

nearest library, search for a good read, and more! www.norfolk.gov. uk/libraries-local-historyand-archives Register for E-billing: View your account and receive Council Tax bills online: www.angliarevenues.gov. uk/breckland Postal Vote request: If you

can’t get to your polling station on election day, you can still vote by post: www.breckland.gov.uk/ postalvoterequest Register to vote: To vote in future elections you must be on the electoral register: www.breckland.gov.uk/ individual-electoral-registration

Report it!

Come across an issue? Let us know using our Report It tool: www.breckland.gov.uk/reportit A number of key issues are listed below for ease of reference, but you can do more on our website.

Abandoned Vehicles: Let us

know about a vehicle that has been abandoned on public land without lawful authority: www.breckland. gov.uk/article/3080/Report-anabandoned-vehicle Anti-Social Behaviour Affected by it? Don’t tolerate it, report it: www.breckland.gov.uk/ noise-or-nuisance

£

Benefit Fraud: Suspect a resident of Benefit or Council Tax fraud? www.breckland.gov.uk/ report-suspected-fraud Change of Address: For when

you are moving and staying in the district or moving out of Breckland: www.breckland.gov.uk/ tell-us-youre-moving Change of Circumstances: Let us know if something changes eg. you get married, have a child, your partner moves in, your pension is different: www.angliarevenues.gov.uk/ breckland Compliments, Complaints, Comments: Let us know what’s working well and how we can improve further: www.breckland.gov.uk/ compliments-complaintscomments Damaged Wheelie Bin: We’ll repair or replace your wheelie bin ASAP: www.breckland.gov.uk/ damaged-wheeled-bin Dog fouling: Let us know of any

incidents of dog fouling in public areas: www.breckland.gov.uk/ litter-and-dog-fouling Faulty Street Light: Pass on

details about street lights which are damaged or not working: www. breckland.gov.uk/article/3089/ Report-a-Faulty-Street-Light

Pay for it!

Visit our website to pay invoices, Council Tax, business rates or benefits overpayments online. You can also set up a direct debit to pay your Council Tax on a monthly date that suits you.

You’ll be able to pay for more things online soon, reducing the need to call during office hours or visit us in person. www.breckland.gov.uk/payforit

Fly Tipping: Let us know if you see

fly tipped waste or saw somebody dumping rubbish: www.breckland.gov. uk/flytip Full Public Litter Bin: Has a litter

bin near you been filled but not emptied yet? www.breckland.gov.uk/ full-public-litter-bin Highway Problem: Report problems with roads, pavements, cycle paths and Public Rights of Way: https://apps. norfolk.gov.uk/highwaysdefect Litter: Seen piles of dropped litter?

Let us know: www.breckland.gov. uk/litter-and-dog-fouling Missing Wheelie Bin: Has your

wheelie bin been lost or stolen? www.breckland.gov.uk/ missing-wheeled-bin Noise or Nuisance: Report loud music, barking dogs, industrial noise, bad smell, artificial light, smoke or bonfires, and more: www.breckland.gov.uk/ noise-or-nuisance Street Name Plates: Tell us if you’ve seen a street name sign that is unreadable, missing letters, missing the name plate, or damaged: www.breckland.gov.uk/ street-name-plate-problem

Find out first!

Want to receive the latest information as soon as it is available?

Sign up to receive email alerts about the things that matter to you: from news and events, to council and committee papers, consultation documents and job vacancies.

Subscribe/amend your existing preferences at: https://public.govdelivery.com/ accounts/ukbreckland/subscriber/ session/new

Keep in Touch!

If you need help or advice, contact our expert Customer Contact Centre staff at: contactus@breckland.gov.uk Twitter: @BreckCouncil

Facebook: Breckland Council Post: Breckland Council, Elizabeth House, Walpole Loke, Dereham, NR19 1EE Local centres: www.breckland.gov.uk/visit-us