Dear resident,
Congratulations go this month to our Administrative Officer, Laura Jowett, who has secured the job of Clerk at Pateley Bridge Town Council! This follows Laura’s successful completion of the CILCA qualification supported by this council.
We are delighted that we will not be losing Laura entirely, as she will continue to be working for us for 12 hours a week and we are now recruiting a new Administrative Officer to work 15 hours a week on a temporary basis in the first instance. Interviews will be held on Thursday 15 October.
This month we will also be starting the process of co-opting a new councillor in Bingley Central ward to replace Richard Holmes. Details will follow. Â
Excellent progress has been made on the work of repainting the street furniture. The floral displays on lamp-posts have now been removed to allow the posts to be painted. This will involve some temporary disruption to traffic in central Bingley and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.
Our market on 3 October was not blessed with the best weather, but there were still plenty of cheery people about as you’ll see from the photos below. Our next event is on 7 November – see you then!
Kind regards,
Helen Owen
Chair, Bingley Town Council
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Bingley monthly market Â
Bingley’s market traders defied the wet weather on Saturday 3 October to bring a wide variety of retail offerings to the market square, and they were welcomed by a large number of determined shoppers.
One stall that was particularly busy was BeCycling, which was providing free safety checks and minor repairs to bikes, to make sure riders were safe on the road. Other attractions included Hel’s Bowls, Gerhard’s Pretzels, Secret Truffles, Low Springs Milk, Rita’s Indian Kitchen, Wood’s Brownie Co., The Crusty Pie Company, Higher Ground Coffee Shop, Kevin the cheese man and Swillington Organic Farm.
The next date for the market will be Saturday 7 November, from 10.00am to 2.00pm.
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Christmas lights and competition
A contract has now been agreed with Festival Lights for the additions and updates to the town’s Christmas lights agreed in August and outlined in last month’s newsletter. Carlton Nurseries will be providing a Nordman fir tree.
Unfortunately there will be no Switch-On event this year due to COVID-19 restrictions, but the aim is for the tree to be in place and the lights to be on from late November.
Local primary schools have been contacted about this year’s competition to design a Christmas light, and the winning design will be made into a new light to be installed on the corner of the Market Square.
​COVID-19
New national measures announced on 22 September by the Government to combat the spread of COVID-19 are now in force (local restrictions are given below).
- Office workers who are able to work from home should do so and the requirement to wear face coverings has been extended to all users of taxis and private hire vehicles
- Pubs, bars and restaurants must only provide table service, except for takeaways
- Pubs and bars must close at 10pm, as should takeaways, although they can still deliver
- Retail staff and staff and customers in indoor hospitality – such as cafes and restaurants – should all wear face coverings, except when seated at a table to eat or drink
- It is a legal requirement for retail, leisure, tourism and other sectors to follow COVID-secure guidelines
- Weddings must only be attended by a maximum of 15 people, while 30 can attend funerals
- Business conferences, exhibitions and large sporting events have not been reopened
The Government has also stated that it will enforce tighter penalties for anyone breaching these new measures.
Local restrictions for the whole of Bradford District now apply to Bingley again.
All residents in our district must not:
- Meet people you do not live with inside a private home or garden, except where you have formed a support bubble (or for other limited exemptions to be specified in law)
- Visit someone else’s home or garden even if they live outside of the affected areas
People aged 18 or over can be fined:
- £100 for the first offence, lowered to £50 if paid within 14 days
- £200 for the second offence, then doubling for each further offence up to a maximum of £3,200
For everyone in the district the Government advises that you should not:
- Socialise with people you do not live with, unless they’re in your support bubble, in any public venue. This applies to inside and outside of the affected areas. Examples of public venues include pubs, restaurants, cafes, shops, places of worship, community centres, leisure and entertainment venues, or visitor attractions and parks
- Visit friends or family in care homes, other than in exceptional circumstances. Care homes should restrict visits to these circumstances
Green Homes Grant Scheme
The government’s new Green Homes Grant Scheme opened at the end of September in response to the climate emergency, and we would like to encourage residents that are eligible to consider applying for funds to make their home more energy efficient.
The government will provide a voucher worth up to £5,000 or £10,000 to help cover the cost of making energy efficient improvements to your home.
Improvements could include insulating your home to reduce your energy use or installing low-carbon heating to lower the amount of carbon dioxide your home produces.
To apply for the voucher, you must either:
- a) own your home (including park home owners, long-leaseholders and shared ownership), or
- b) be a private or social landlord
You must redeem the voucher and ensure improvements are completed by 31 March 2021.
Full details are available at the government website – https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-the-green-homes-grant-scheme
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Bingley Hub
Final preparations are underway now for the opening of the Bingley Hub, comprising the Town Council’s new office and two public toilets. Internal and external signage is now in place and there is also a reproduction of a painting in the entrance lobby, ‘Lovers with llama, Bingley’, generously donated by Bingley artist Jane Fielder (see above).
The planned launch on 3 October had to be cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions but an announcement of the date for the opening of the toilets will be made later this month.
The Council’s office itself will not be open to the public during the period of the current COVID-19 restrictions. It will re-open by appointment when government advice permits.
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Officer hours
The Town Council’s office is closed due to the lockdown with staff working from home. Bingley Town Council can be contacted by email at enquiries@bingleytowncouncil.gov.uk or by telephone on the following numbers:
- Town Clerk – 07703 188660
- Administrative Officer – 07856 365806 (hours will vary)
Dates for your diary
Most activities, including group litter picks, are currently on hold.
Bingley monthly markets will take place on the following Saturdays:
7 November
5 December
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The next ordinary meeting of the Town Council is at 6.30pm on:
Tuesday 27 October 2020
The meeting will be held on Zoom. Formally convened Town Council meetings are not password protected and agendas for meetings containing the link for the meeting can be found on the Town Council website and on our Facebook page.
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You can see all our meeting dates in the calendar of the Events section of our website, and a full listing is available as a separate document, updated weekly, in the Documents section of the site.
Finally….if you’ve made it this far, please do share this newsletter with friends and family and encourage them to subscribe too.
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