9th May 2022
 
NOTICE OF VACANCY FOR TWO PARISH COUNCILLORs TO BE CO-OPTED

Two vacancies have arisen for Parish Councillors as a result of the recent election.

NOTICE is hereby given that pursuant to Rule 8 of the Local Elections (Parishes and Communities) Rule 1986, Aston, Cote, Shifford and Chimney Parish Council can fill the casual vacancies by co-option.
Applications are welcome from any person who meets at least one of the following criteria:
• is registered as an elector for the parish.
• they have during the whole of the preceding twelve months occupied as owner or
tenant, any land or premises in the parish.
• their principal or only place of work during the preceding twelve months has been in the parish.
• they have during the whole of the preceding twelve months resided in the parish or within 4.8 km of it.
Applicants must also be 18 years or older on the day of co-option.

For full eligibility criteria, please visit www.local.gov.uk/be-councillor/becoming-councillor or contact the Parish Council Clerk email clerk@astonoxon-pc.gov.uk for further information.
Applications can be submitted by email or post should include a covering letter detailing why you are applying for the position and what skills you can bring to the Parish Council.

Closing date for applications to the Clerk by 5pm Friday 13th May  2022
 
Applicants will be invited to the Full Council meeting on Thursday 19th May 2022 to address members on their reasons for applying, if they so wish to.
Decision on co-option will be made at the meeting on 19th May 2022 with the first meeting for the co-opted councillor's being 7th July 2022.

Aston, Cote, Shifford and Chimney
Annual Parish Meeting 2022
Monday 25th April at 7.30pm in the Village Hall, Aston.
If you have a question that you would like to ask, even if you cannot attend in person, then please let the clerk know by the 17th April either through the contact form on the website (https://www.astonoxon-pc.gov.uk/contact.html), by email to clerk@aston.oxon-pc.gov.uk or by post to the Parish Clerk, Aston, Cote, Shifford and Chimney Parish Council, 16 Foxwood, Aston, OX18 2DZ.

​A Parish Council
Local councils are the first tier of governance and are the first point of contact for anyone concerned with a community issue. They are democratically elected local authorities and exist in England, Wales and Scotland. The term 'local council' is synonymous with 'parish council', 'town council' and 'community council'.
They represent the concerns of residents and providing services to meet local needs. Parish councils have a wide range of powers including looking after community buildings, planning, street lighting, allotments. They also have the power to raise money through council tax.
 
Becoming a Parish Councillor
“By becoming a parish councillor, you become someone your community will look to for help, guidance and support. A community leader with the power to influence decisions for the benefit of the people you serve. Seeing your community change for the better, because of decisions you have helped to make, is something that can give you a sense of achievement and pride.”
 
Our Parish Council election is on Thursday 5 May. There are seven councillors to be elected, why not stand?
 
How to stand as a Parish Councillor
Firstly, you must be qualified to stand. This means you must be at least 18 and a British subject or a citizen of the Commonwealth or European Union.
You must satisfy at least one of the following:

• be a local government elector for the parish of Aston, Cote, Shifford & Chimney;
• have, during the whole of the previous 12 months, occupied land or other property in the parish, either as owner or tenant;
• have, during the whole of the previous 12 months, had your principal or only place of work in the parish;
• have resided in the parish during the whole of the previous 12 months.

 
Becoming nominated
Nomination papers and guidance notes will be available from West Oxfordshire District Council or the Parish Clerk (clerk@aston.oxon-pc.gov.uk)
 
The detailed conditions for being an applicant from the District Council website http://www.westoxon.gov.uk and follow the links.
 
Completed nomination papers MUST be hand delivered to the Returning Officer at the Elections Office, Council Offices, Woodgreen, Witney, Oxon, OX28 1NB by, no later than, 4pm on Tuesday 4th April 2022.
 

We are consulting on our budget plans for the 2022 to 2023 financial year and we want your views. Being open and transparent about how we spend taxpayers money is important to us so thank you for taking the time to read about our plans and giving your thoughts.
Over the past decade we have experienced a large drop in the funding we receive, meaning we now have less money then we used to to provide services and also the cost of services is increasing each year. This means we need to manage our finances very carefully to continue to provide the services you rely on and also spend money to make improvements to the District.
This page shows what we are proposing and there is a link at the bottom for you to feed back to us.
What we deliver and our budget proposalsWest Oxfordshire District Council receives only 7p in every £1 of your Council Tax to provide the services it is responsible for, including:

• waste collection and recycling
• street cleaning
• Parking and public toilets
• planning and building control
• promoting economic growth and regeneration
• leisure services
• environmental health and licensing services
• housing and council tax support
• election administration
• social housing and support for homeless people

Alongside funding these essential services to the high standards you expect, as part of our budget plans for next year some of our suggested proposals include:

• Improving some of our local play parks 
• Updating our plans for improving air quality in Chipping Norton and Witney
• Reviewing the local plan for West Oxfordshire with the aim of better tackling climate change and helping biodiversity

We also plan to continue funding to maintain services that are important to the district including:

• Free parking in district council owned car parks 
• Financial grants local communities and voluntary groups can apply for to help fund local projects
• Work to tackle the climate emergency in West Oxfordshire
• Our waste collection service that currently runs at a 99% success rate, one of the highest in the country
• Bringing in more affordable homes across the district
• Officers and projects to help support local communities and individuals 
• Supporting our local economy, especially in the recovery of the pandemic

How we propose to pay for our plansMaking our services more efficientWe are constantly working to do things more efficiently and effectively so that our services work better and cost less to provide. This includes improving digital services for the majority of people who now want them. We’ve successfully delivered efficiency savings year on year.
Increasing Council Tax by 10p a weekIn order to deliver against our priorities and invest in services, the Council needs to generate more revenue. We are therefore proposing a modest 10p a week increase in Council Tax for Band D properties (7p a week for Band A, rising to 20p a week for Band G properties). 
For residents on low incomes, there is a generous Local Council Tax Support Scheme available to provide financial support with Council Tax payments. 
Income from services we charge forSome services we provide such as building control and garden waste come at a cost, allowing those services to cover their own costs.
How you can take part The consultation is open until 12 January 2022 and we are asking residents to give views on our plans. You can do so by completing the survey linked below. All findings will be shared with councillors before they make decisions on the budget at a meeting of the Council in February 2022.
You can access the survey here:
Consultation feedback

Budget proposals for 2022/23 at Oxfordshire County Council include investments in making the county greener and fairer but also careful plans to meet current and future financial challenges.
Council tax
The council is proposing a 4.99 per cent council tax rise (3 per cent of which is an adult social care precept and must be spent on adult social care). The county council’s share of council tax for a Band D property (the average council tax band) in 2021/22 was £1,573.11. A 4.99 per cent increase is equal to a £78.50 per year or £1.51 per week increase in council tax on a Band D property.
Have your sayPeople can have their say on the council’s budget proposals, including its proposed council tax level for 2022/23 and the Cabinet’s priorities between 2 December 2021 and 5 January 2022 by visiting letstalk.oxfordshire.gov.uk/budgetconsultation and completing the online survey.
The feedback from the budget consultation will be considered by the council’s Cabinet on 18 January 2022 and the council will decide and set its budget on 8 February 2022. Feedback will also help develop a new strategic plan for the council.
Challenges include uncertainty over government funding for all local authorities, the ongoing impact of COVID-19 that continues to place pressures on the county council’s day to day services and affect its income streams, alongside a growing and ageing population, which puts more pressure on budgets and services. Particular pressures, with predicted future funding shortfalls, are being felt within social care for both adults and children.
The budget proposals focus on placing funding where it is most needed and investing in services that will have a positive long-term impact for local communities.
Councillor Liz Leffman, Leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said: “Following the local elections in May 2021, the Oxfordshire Fair Deal Alliance formed to lead the county council. Our vision is to lead positive change to make Oxfordshire a greener, fairer county. We have developed nine priorities to deliver this aim. These include putting action to address the climate emergency at the heart of our work, tackling inequalities and supporting carers and the social care system. We have looked for ways to support these priorities in this, our first budget.
“We are committed to the responsible management of the council’s finances. To reach our goal of a balanced budget for 2022/23, we are planning ahead carefully to meet current and future financial challenges. We are also working on identifying savings across the council to enable us to invest in our priorities and meet our demand pressures.
“Challenges include uncertainty over government funding, the ongoing impact of COVID-19 and an ageing and growing population, which puts more pressure on budgets and services.
“The government has announced some new grant funding for local government, which is welcome news and has the potential to allow us to invest in key priority areas. This includes £8 million of grant funding for pressures related to COVID-19. However, the detail of what funding we will receive remains unclear. Given the level of remaining uncertainties, including around COVID-19, we will continue to take a cautious and measured approach towards managing our budgets to deliver for residents today and in the future.”
Councillor Calum Miller, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Finance explained: “In total, we have identified we need £21 million of new funding for 2022/23 to meet inflationary and demographic pressures, additional demand and to fund priority investments.
“We want funding to go where it is most needed and invest in services that will have a positive long-term impact for our local communities. To do that we plan to make £13m of new savings in 2022/23 focusing on making services more efficient while protecting the frontline.
“Social care for adults and children is an area where we are experiencing additional demands and financial challenges as a result. We are predicting significant funding shortfalls in the coming years. Without funding to meet these shortfalls from the government, council tax will have to rise to meet these costs.
“In the autumn spending review, the government encouraged councils to raise council tax by an additional one per cent to help pay for adult social care services. Last year, the council had already budgeted for a 3.99 per cent increase to council tax in 2022/23. We know increasing council tax by 4.99 per cent overall will put additional strain on household finances at a very challenging time. However, without funding from government to meet the rising costs of providing adult social care, we are left with no choice but to raise these funds to make sure we can provide social care for some of our most vulnerable residents.”
Cllr Leffman added: “Protecting those in need will always be our priority. Budget pressures mean we will have to continue to find ways to save money while protecting frontline services – moving services online, where appropriate, and generating more income.
“We are proposing both investments in priority areas and savings, and consulting the public on what we know now. As we move through the winter, the situation may change as we get to know more detail about the financial support available from the government.
“In the meantime, we want to hear from residents, businesses and others on our proposals. This will help inform our decisions during the budget process.”
Key investments linked to priorities and to meet newly identified pressures

• There is a proposal to newly invest £824,000 in 2022/23 into climate action and resilience measures.
  • The council plans to support community activity to cut carbon emissions, develop a renewable energy network and help the transition to electric vehicles (EVs), as well as increasing its capacity as the lead flood authority for Oxfordshire.
  • It plans to develop a countywide nature recovery strategy, develop a tree and woodland strategy and support the development of a new local nature partnership for Oxfordshire.
  • The council also proposes to invest in supporting the retrofitting of residential homes to improve energy efficiency and support the delivery of a zero-carbon route-map for the county.
  • A further element would be to work with partners to expand EV charging capacity across the county and sustain the benefits of Project Local Energy Oxfordshire (LEO). Project LEO is running energy trials in the county to help build a greener (zero carbon), more flexible and fairer electricity system.

• A total of £4.4m extra is being invested in adult social care to meet inflationary costs, which are predicted to rise across the care sector in the UK. This will be raised using the additional proposed adult social care precept of 1 per cent.

• £800,000 has been identified to reduce the contribution rate that those in receipt of disability benefits have to pay towards assessed care needs. This will allow recipients to keep a little more money each week to spend on well-being and household expenses.

• A total of £1.2m extra is being invested in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) with further investments leading to a total of £2.1m by 2026. An annual 10 - 12 per cent increase in demand for education health and care plans (EHCPs) and the number of approved plans which require an annual review has created a pressure across the service including case workers, educational psychologists and quality and advocacy support. Additional capacity is needed to meet expected standards. There is also an investment in commissioning SEND placements.

• COVID-19 has led to more children being in care placements than previously expected and for longer periods of time. There has also been an unusually large increase in the price for a placement and this links to delays in courts and changes in individual circumstances. A total of £1.15m is proposed to meet this pressure rising to £1.45m by 2026. A further £174,000 is earmarked to support those 18 year-olds leaving the care system.

Other proposals

• The council’s aims to make cycling, walking and public transport easier and more accessible to everyone and, as a result, reduce car journeys across the county. In turn this will contribute to net-zero targets and help tackle climate change. A total of £130,000 in extra traffic enforcement income is being included for 2022/23 - rising to £580,000 by 2026. The council is expected to be invited to put in a bid to central government in the spring to take on enforcement of moving traffic offences that are currently dealt with by the police. Cameras would be installed to enable enforcement and there would be fines issued to offenders. Councils already practice these enforcement powers in London and some parts of Wales. It is currently anticipated this new system would be in action in autumn 2022. All income would be spent on highway and transport related services.

• The council wants to reduce congestion and pollution and increase the speed of public transport. One method of achieving this is by encouraging more people to use park and ride and avoid driving into Oxford city. There are no plans to increase charges at park and rides, however the council is planning increases on pay and display in the city. This change would come into effect on 1 April. Two traffic related changes are based on these objectives. This would lead to a total of £150,000 in income in 2022/23 and a further £150,000 in 2023/24 – totalling £300,000 overall. The council is also planning to install cameras to undertake enforcement on existing bus lanes. Offenders would be fined. All income would be spent on highway and transport related services.
• A home to school transport review will take place to look at how money is spent including: optimising routes to reduce emissions and make savings and running services more efficiently and ensuring eligibility is tightly managed; adjusting the cost of the spare seat scheme to reflect the increasing cost of providing this service; reviewing areas of discretionary spend and adapting policies to bring Oxfordshire more in line with other parts of the country. A £1m saving will be made in 2022/23 against an overall budget of £25.7m. However, at the same time £1.3m is being added to the home to school transport budget linked to population increases – meaning the home to school transport budget will rise overall by £0.3m.

The Leader of West Oxfordshire District Council, Michele Mead has joined over 50 people at the latest Covid vaccination walk-in centre in Witney for her Covid booster. 
The centre, located at 3 Welch Way will welcome both over and under 18s at different times through to Sunday 5 December. Opening times will be from 9.30am until 7pm daily.
Leader of West Oxfordshire District Council Councillor Michele Mead said “It’s important for residents to remember to get their Covid vaccination when they are eligible. With Covid cases on the rise nationally we need to remember that this simple jab will save people’s lives.
“The walk-in centre means it’s quick and convenient to get vaccinated; protecting the West Oxfordshire community, our NHS and the people you love.”
The centre will operate as follows:
Monday- Thursday
Over 40 boosters only.
Friday, Saturday and Sunday
Under 18 first and second doses, plus over 18s first/second doses and boosters. 
No appointment is necessary. People may be asked to show proof of age
The drop-centre is the result of partnership working between Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, the Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group and West Oxfordshire District Council who set up a similar vaccination pop-up for adults in the same location earlier this year.
More information on the eligibility criteria for boosters can be found online here.

This year for 16 Days of Action, which runs from 25 November to 10 December, the Council is organising events across the district to raise awareness on domestic abuse and how the Council can help victims.
Coming on the heels of the recently passed motion to commit to making West Oxfordshire streets safer for women and girls, the Council is marking 16 days of action against domestic abuse with a series of programmes across the District highlighting rural abuse.
A 2019 study discovered that domestic abuse in rural areas is under-reported by 50% compared to urban areas, and victims suffer for 25% longer than urban survivors. 
Councillor Merilyn Davies, Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing said: “Domestic abuse is a horrible and insidious crime that affects victims physically, emotionally and mentally.”
“Victims often feel trapped and some may suffer in silence. As a Council, we take this very seriously and we want to make sure our residents feel safe, and know how to seek help if they are being abused or know someone who is.”
The Council, through Reducing the Risk, is offering two-hour sessions free of charge for groups of 10 or more people to learn more about domestic abuse, what support is available and how they can help victims connect to that support. For those that are really passionate and want to do more for victims and survivors of domestic abuse, there are also opportunities for Domestic Abuse Champion Training, which will enable them to be more active in delivering and supporting local projects in their communities.  
Covid-19 had a significant impact on victims of domestic abuse, with many unable to seek support or escape from abuse. These opportunities have been funded by West Oxfordshire District Councils’ Contain Outbreak Management Fund and will be delivered by local domestic abuse charity, Reducing the Risk.
In addition, Cut it Out, a learning event for hairdressing and beauty professionals will be held on 6 December 2021. Tickets are available for this online event through Eventbrite and for students at Abingdon and Witney College. Cut it Out is a collaboration between Thames Valley Police, West Oxfordshire Community Safety Partnership, Abingdon & Witney College and Reducing the Risk.  
There are plans to stencil poignant messages in car parks across the district. The hope is that as people see them they will stop for a moment and think about the message, their friends and family. The messages will point residents to local organisations that can help should they come across someone who needs support.  
More information about how the Council supports victims is available https://www.westoxon.gov.uk/communities-and-leisure/community-safety/domestic-abuse/