Lincolnshire Beaches Amongst The Best In Europe.

Fantastic news this morning that the beaches in Skegness, Mablethorpe and Sutton On Sea have again been awarded the Blue Flag.

The Blue Flag is awarded for beaches, marinas and boating tourism operators as a statement of the high environmental and quality standards they maintain. The Blue Flags are awarded on an annual basis. It is the work of the local East Lindsey District Council operators that maintain the highest of standards and they should be thoroughly congratulated for there wonderful efforts. Out in all weathers from early morning until late in the evening they fight the good fight to keep our beaches in a pristine condition.

There are miles and miles of golden, sandy beaches stretching from Skegness north to Mablethorpe and beyond which are enjoyed by millions of visitors annually. Long may this continue. 

Central beach Skegness. Blue Flag awarded!

Let's now see the flags proudly displayed above our wonderful coastline and let's use the fine achievement of the continuing award as an attraction in its own right. 

The Russians Liking This!

Fascinated that all of a sudden I am getting a really big interest in this blog from Russia. I wonder why that is? Is it because they like the thought of being able to follow ELDC in the imposition of a completely unfair car parking payment regime? I don't really know but something appears to have peaked their interest. I can just see Mr Putin standing up in the Politburo and explaining why some parts of Russia can have free car parking and others can't. Would he get away with it? Well based upon what has happened in East Lindsey I don't see any reason why not!

Free parking for some but not others? Yes I think that will work. Moscow perhaps but not the Black Sea coast.
Oh No!

This is a chart showing from which parts of the world this blog has been viewed. As you can see Russia is extremely prominent! Dobroye utro Rossiya!

Mother Russia

ELDC - Car Park Charges - Update

Since I last posted about this issue under the title ELDC - Completely Unfair Car Parking Charge Changes - What About The Coast, the District council have decided that they should put in place an "independent piece of research" which "will be conducted into the economic and financial impact of car parking charges in 
the district." This from Leader of the Council, Craig Leyland as reported in the Skegness Standard. 

What a pity they did not do this prior to making the recent announcement. However, there is more. Further along the following little gem was dropped: 

“Given the feedback on the overnight charge and this impending piece of work it seems sensible to defer the overnight charge until we have a full understanding of the impact of car parking charges.

“This does not affect the reintroduction of free car parking that was the outcome of a separate piece of work conducted by Overview and Scrutiny Committee.”

I struggle to understand how it can be sensible to defer the overnight charges whilst at the same time going ahead with the completely unfair decision to allow free car parking in some communities within the district whilst other communities, chiefly the ones on the coast, will still continue to pay full prices to park their cars.

Unfortunately, Cllr Sandra Harrison, who has the responsibility for the operation of the car parks tells us this in the same Skegness Standard article:

"The Council does, however, recognise that car parking arrangements, including the cost to park and tariff structures, have an impact on a significant number of people and whilst there will never be a solution that suits every circumstance, the Council will be looking at the matter over the coming months to ensure the arrangements are the 
best they can be.”

Would it not have been more sensible and more logical to have deferred the changes to car parking charges in their entirety? What will happen if the "independent piece of research" informs the council that the way the changes have been implemented is unfair? That if car parking charges need to be removed for the economic well-being of our communities that is the same for all communities? Are the council then going to make the decision to remove the charges right across the District? If the review informs them that free car parking is not a necessity or desirable, are the council then going to go to the communities who have been given free parking and take it away from them again? 

I have to agree that "there will never be a solution that suits every circumstance" but at least there should be a solution that is fair to every one of the residents of this district.

That solution is Free Car Parking For All or All Car Parks Chargeable! FAIRNESS!

Skegness Clock Tower Going Green - UPDATE.

I have just been contacted by East Lindsey District Council Press Office who have informed me that our wonderful Clock Tower is scheduled to be cleaned. This will take place some time after Easter.

This is excellent news.

Skegness Clock Tower Going Green

Now don't get excited you eco-warriors.

This has nothing to do with The Clock Tower being powered by solar energy or a wind turbine.

Clock Tower by local photographer John Byford

No this is about The Clock Tower, or to give it the correct name The Diamond Jubilee Clock Tower, actually going green. This lovely iconic old structure, that is as famous as the Jolly Fisherman is getting covered in green algae, mould or slime. Take a walk up there and have a look.

I have tried to get a photo of it but my equipment is not good enough to show just how bad it is starting to look.

I really do think that East Lindsey District Council should be having a look at this and getting it cleaned. If we cannot look after one of the true emblems of Skegness then what hope is there?

This has stood at the top end of Lumley Road for 117 years. It needs looking after to ensure that it stands there for another 117 years!

Please sort it out ELDC!

ELDC - Completely Unfair Car Parking Charge Changes - What About The Coast?

So they have been and gone and done it!

5 months ago I highlighted the fact that East Lindsey District Council (ELDC) were planning to revert back to a car park charging scenario that was totally unfair. You can read my thoughts from back then here:

http://steveodare.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/east-lindsey-car-parking-back-to.html

So what have they done? Well they have decided to have free car parking in some amenity car parks but not in others. This is despite the last council going a long way to rid the District of the unfairness in charging in 2014 by making all car parks chargeable. This made me personally unpopular within the council as I was one of the leading proponents of the change. Cest la vie! That was a very unwelcome decision for those communities that, at the time, benefited from free car parking but at least it was fair to all residents of the District.

Now what have ELDC gone and done? Well, they have made the 10 car parks that were free prior to the changes made by the previous council free again! Honestly. Why? Gawd only knows.

Where are these car parks? Here is the list:

Cattlemarket in Horncastle
 South Street Overflow, Alford
 Millers Way, Alford
 Market Place, Burgh Le Marsh
 Sandilands, Sutton-on-Sea
 High Street/Silver Street, Coningsby
 Off Market Place, Tattershall
 Linden Walk, Louth
 Cattlemarket, Louth
 Boston Road, Spilsby

You will no doubt notice that apart from one car park in Sutton on Sea all of these are located inland and none are located in Skegness! Why is that? Is that fair? 

It is my feeling that this is totally unfair. There are communities that suffer from high levels of deprivation in our District and they are, almost exclusively, located in our coastal communities. So where is the help with parking charges for those communities? With the one exception there is none. As I have said now ad nauseum, this decision reeks of unfairness and, no doubt, some will say bias. Bias towards looking after the inland communities whilst "Devil take the hindmost" as far as the coast is concerned.

DOUBLE WHAMMY!

If that was not bad enough, pin your ears back while I impart the next little gem. Not only do the amenity car parks on the coast not have any free parking but the free parking after 6 pm in the evening that was also brought in by the last council for all car parks has now been removed. All car parks that are now chargeable, not including the 10 listed above of course, will now have a £2 overnight charge. Presumably this is to pay for the removal of the charges on the free car parks! What happened to "Supporting the night-time economy"? As they say "You could not make it up". 

I am hugely disappointed by this move which has no real logic to it. It is totally unfair and leaves a real bad taste in the mouth.

One last thought. What are our local, Skegness elected councillors doing about this? Where is their outrage. If outrage is too strong an emotion then where is their opposition to this? What have they done to fight this? Do they think this is acceptable? Looks as if they do as I haven't heard a peep from any of them. I don't think it is at all acceptable and I am sure that the majority of people in our town won't either. 

Free Car Parking For All or All Car Parks Chargable! FAIRNESS!

Caravan Sites - Longer Opening Period - East Coast

Further thoughts to my previous article on this entitled 12 Months Caravans And Flooding. East Coast. That article brought forward several comments relating to the fact that there is a petition in existence regarding the lengthening of the caravan site season but not relating to the desire to have them open for 12 months of the year. I was aware of the petition but was actually commenting on the desire of some caravan owners to see 12 month opening as they were on sites which only close for a short period in the depths of winter.

Given that, I thought I would put forward some information that may be of assistance for those looking not to have their site open for 12 months but to extend the season from the beginning of March to the End of October from the present opening dates.

Firstly a little explanation. The reason that there are different opening dates on different caravan sites is that the understanding of the flood risk by the Environment Agency (EA) has changed over the years. This is important as the EA have, for all intents and purposes, the final say on opening dates and have changed those dates as their understanding has changed. This is important as the opening dates are laid down in planning conditions when the original planning application has been successful when it has appeared before East Lindsey District Council (ELDC), the Local Planning Authority (LPA).

So back to the petition. As I understand it the petition set up by caravan owners has been worded to encourage ELDC to make all caravan sites opening dates the same, beginning of March to the end of October. That is a sensible request in my view and one which I investigated with the Planning Department at ELDC when I was a District Councillor. It is unfortunate that due to planning regulations the District Council cannot do that. My understanding is that the only way that the required changes can be achieved is for the caravan site owners to apply to the LPA to have the planning conditions changed for their individual caravan sites, which means basically that they would ask that their individual site could be open from the beginning of March to the end of October. It would then be up to the LPA to decide on whether the request would be granted and for the EA not to object to any change. So in effect the present petition has very little chance to get the changes that are wanted by the authors.

For what it is worth, my advice is for those caravan owners that want to see a change to the opening dates of the sites on which they are situated to approach their site owners and request that they approach the LPA with a planning application to vary the dates. That may or may not be more effective than the present petition depending on whether the site owners wish to see a change.

The present situation whereby one site is allowed to be open for 11 months of the year and the site next door to it can only open for 7 or 8 months of the year is ludicrous. Even more ludicrous is the situation where one part of a site is allowed to open for longer than another part of the same site. Believe me this is the case.

I hope that the present situation can be resolved but I fear that it may be a long haul. Good luck to those trying!

Travelodge For Skegness - Best Location For It?

With the fairly recent news that Travelodge is following hot on the heels of Premier Inn with a strong interest in opening a new hotel in Skegness it has set me thinking where would the best location for it to be built.

In my view it would be on North Parade where the recently defunct Dinosaur attraction, The Lost World Adenture Park, was located.

The now closed Lost World Adventure Park.

There are two reasons for this in my view. Firstly, it would bring extra life and footfall to the northern end of the promenade, something that has needed to be done for several years. This land, owned by local businessman Dave Scott of the Jewellers fame, which I believe is up for sale, already has outline planning permission for a hotel that was granted some time ago by East Lindsey District Council. If the permission has lapsed it should be very easy to have it reinstated or for a new planning application to go through the system.

In my view that would be an ideal location. I am sure that there are other locations that people can think of, the planned business park on the A52 for one but in my view, if I was to build a hotel here, I would want to be in the town itself.

I have no idea if Travelodge will make an appearance any time soon but if they do then that is where the hotel would best be placed in my view! Wherever it finally goes, if it does, another national chain should be welcomed with open arms.

East Lindsey District Council To Receive More Government Money!

It has been announced today that East Lindsey District Council is to receive nearly half a million pounds more money from central government for budget year 2016/2017 than had previously been the case. This is great news and will go a long way to covering the deficit being experienced at the council.

The County Council will receive an addition £5.1 million of funding.

This is as a result of rural MPs from around the country meeting with the Chancellor to thrash out a new deal for rural counties.

I don't know exactly what this will mean but I hope that it will result in less service cuts than those already planned by both councils. Fingers crossed!

Skegness Is A Product

Now that may seem like a strange thing to say but that is how I view our town. It is a product. Something like a tin of beans or a car. It is, of course, the place where we all live and that is just as important but for now I am talking about the economic side of our town, the side that provides the jobs and pays the wages.

What is this about? Why does the statement "Skegness is a product" need to be made? Simply because that product is under threat, understandably, but under threat none-the-less.

East Lindsey District Council is under severe financial pressure. Nothing unusual there. All councils at a district level or above are. The noises coming out of Manby are that there have to be cuts, which is the case, but that they will give some priority to Economic Development, ensuring that the economy of the district moves forward. I think that outlook has a lot of merit. As a result of this outlook the council have created a councillor who has the responsibility for Coastal Economy and another that has the responsibility for Market Towns and Rural Economy which should be seen as a positive move.

Having said that, I cannot understand how, going back to "Skegness is a product", planning to reduce the attractiveness of the town to the very people that support the economy, our visitors, is going to help to develop the economy. If you are trying to sell a product, do you remove the ingredients? If you make beef stew that is selling very well, do you then reduce the beef content? Would that make the product more or less attractive to the buyer? Logic tells me it would be less attractive.

From what I understand the following ingredients that make up the product that is Skegness are in danger of being removed. The Fairy Dell Paddling Pool, the public toilets and the bowling greens.

Now there may be others that I have not heard about as well.

The much loved Fairy Dell Paddling Pool. 

I really cannot understand how removing those three facilities from the town will not have a long term detrimental effect on the tourists going forward. Can you imagine coming to a seaside resort for a day, day-tripping is the bread and butter of our resort, and not being able to find a toilet for either yourself or the kids when you need one? That to me is something that would be a huge detriment. The Fairy Dell is hugely popular with both tourists and local alike. It is very unusual for a resort to have such a lovely, free to use, attraction. Again it would be detrimental to lose it. As for the bowling greens. Well they are slightly different. They do not get the use that the other two do but they are very important to the hoteliers due to the large bowls competitions that are held at intervals during the summer. These include a national competition that is run and organised by the English Bowling Federation. What would it say about our town and the economic development of it if these greens were taken out of commission. Not a lot.

I believe that, given recent events elsewhere, the district council will place the onus on keeping these resources open on Skegness Town Council. Would they be able to take them on, could they take them on. That is a whole different issue given recent decisions. That will make a blog of its own.

We have seen some excellent inward investment from the private sector recently with the probability that there could be more to come. Our local district council should look at that as a huge positive and do their utmost to back that investment up, not remove the ingredients of our beef stew. Final thought. What are our local District Councillors doing about this? They are all very quiet.

12 Month Caravans And Flooding. East Coast.

Today is the anniversary of the East Coast Floods that devastated our area in 1953 during which over 300 people lost their lives. This disaster alone should tell us that there is a need for flood protection in our area both physically and through legislation. Over the last few years there have been many "near misses" when the sea threatened to inundate the land once again, with December 2013 being the one that came the closest to being another disaster. It caused much damage along the coast but thankfully, in the main, the flood defences held and no lives were lost.

I raise this issue not only because today is the anniversary of the 1953 disaster but also because there is now a push to allow caravan parks to be open and occupied 12 months of the year. I can fully understand why people who own caravans and also the caravan parks would wish to see this happen. I also understand the economic arguments for allowing it to happen. The wishes and the arguments need to be set against the issue of safety of the caravan occupants.

Caravans during the 1953 flood.

In the event of a serious inundation, caravans become flotsam and jetsam. Large metal boxes that are at the mercy of the onrushing waters. A flooding tide moves at incredible speed and caravans stand little to no chance of being stable even if chained down.

The caravan parks we have are not residential, they are holiday parks. Any residential park would already be allowed to have people on them 12 months of the year. None of the holiday parks would have received planning permission if they had originally applied for residential status. Why? It was not deemed safe to do so and still isn't under planning legislation.

It is for that reason that those wanting to see caravan parks open for 12 months of the year in the flood zone have a forlorn hope. The Environment Agency will not let it happen and would oppose any move for it to do so.

It is a real pity that is the case but in my view there is not good enough reasons to put people at risk.

50% Increase In Skegness Town Council Tax?

I am reliably informed that after a local survey there is a majority of Skegness residents that believe it is okay to increase the Council Tax by 50% and they would be prepared to pay it!

Through the roof in Skegness?

If it is correct that people in Skegness are happy to support such a rise then I am dumbfounded. If that was to happen and then combine that with the increases that are inevitable relating to the share of the council tax from East Lindsey District Council, Lincolnshire County Council and the Police Authority it would put a great deal of financial pressure on an awful lot of people within the Skegness Town Council area.

Going back to the survey, where can I see the results of this survey? Is there an online presentation of the results?

I would love to see that I am in the minority by not wishing to see such a ridiculous and draconian increase.

Just out of interest. I don't know if you are aware that Skegness Town Council voted through a 23.6% increase in its share of council tax last week, so it appears they have taken the results of the survey to heart!

Dig deep people of Skegness!

2016 - Build The New & Preserve The Old In Skegness

Build the new and preserve the old, that should be the mantra for 2016. Build the new, The Premier Inn and Brewers Fayre Restaurant on Pier Field and preserve the old, The Pavilion in Tower Gardens. Both of these projects have been rumbling on long enough and should now be resolved. Lot's of people have had their say in lots of ways and it is now time to put that behind us.

Of the two projects, the easiest one to bring to fruition will be The Premier Inn development. It will bring new investment into the town to the tune of £7.5 million and will bring much needed all year round employment. In addition, I believe that it will attract a new clientele to the town and the very fact that an international company such as Whitbreads, the owners of Premier Inn, are showing such faith in Skegness will encourage more large companies to do the same. The recently announced Travelodge interest is testament to that. In my view the case has been made and this should now go smoothly forward to allow the construction of the development to begin so that the new businesses can open in 2018. 

The Pavilion in Tower Gardens is a whole different proposition. Although the present effort to save this building has been running for nearly two years, the end of the saga appears to still be some way off. Two things need to be achieved to allow this project to go forward. Firstly, there needs to be a professional, solid, workable and viable business plan that will ensure that the building will be a real proposition going forward for many years. The £50,000 of funding that has been achieved via the

The Pavilion as it stands now.

Coastal Revival Fund should allow that to happen and should be a huge boost in driving the project forward. It is hoped that the subsequent business plan will be acceptable to East Lindsey District Council and that it will allow them to release the building to the community. Once that has happened then the next challenge, a huge one in my opinion, will be to access funds for the renovation of the building to allow occupation and use of it. Various, wildly differing, sums have been put forward regarding the cost of doing that but whatever the actual confirmed cost, raising the monies required will be exceptionally difficult, not impossible, but exceptionally difficult. Hats off to the community group that is battling away to bring The Pavilion back to life. I hope that 2016 will finally bring this to fruition. 

So 2016 could bring new life to the town and resurrect old life. Would that not be a great outcome?

East Lindsey Car Parking - Back To Unfairness

I am sure that a lot of you will have heard about or seen that a recommendation is to be made by a Scrutiny Committee to the District Council with regard to removing car parking charges in some car parks. On the face of it this appears to be all good news and something to be welcomed but it is a return to unfairness.

Let me explain.

Prior to the last major change to car parking there were 14 car parks within the district that were free to park in. The rest of the approximately 58 car parks were charged. To my knowledge, there was no real basis for the fact that these 14 car parks were free. This was just an historical anomaly.

None of these original free car parks were in Skegness and that point had long been a matter of discontent amongst the local population and the local councillors alike, both District and Town councillors. When the car parking charges were revised and all car parks were charged then there were still no free car parks in Skegness but at least all other communities were being treated in the same way. An element of fairness had been achieved, although there were still one or two anomalies.

This fairness issue was considered when, subsequently, the charging at some car parks was changed to allow for 2 hours of free car parking. Every community benefited from the changes as every community had a non-centrally located car park with 2 hours free parking. Fairness!

It is now proposed that car parking charges will be removed but unfortunately only in those 14 car parks that were once free to park in! Why? Why only those car parks? Why will only some of the communities within the District benefit from this? Why are some of the most deprived communities in the District not going to benefit from free parking whilst some of the most affluent are? Where is the fairness in that? Why will some town and village centres and the businesses in them benefit whilst other town centres won't? This is truly a retrograde recommendation.

I sincerely hope that the District Councillors that represent Skegness, of all parties, will oppose this recommendation unless the fairness issue is addressed and I hope they will be joined by their colleagues who represent other communities who will also be treated unfairly if this recommendation is accepted and then sanctioned by the Executive Committee. Time to stand up for your communities ladies and gentlemen!

Amazing What The National Media Picks Up On!

I had a chat with William Wright about this story yesterday afternoon on his show on BBC Radio Lincolnshire. Was really not expecting this story to go national though!

http://www.itv.com/news/2015-08-25/search-for-dog-owner-after-girl-4-is-attacked-on-beach/

What is it that makes something as mundane as this, in perspective terms of course, it was obviously not mundane for the family involved or the dog owner, go national?

I will never fathom out the national media!

Independent Councillor - Such A Thing?

I ask this question simply because I cannot find one on the East Lindsey District Council and this has always been something that I am confused by.  

My view of an Independent Councillor is one who is free from party allegiance and is free thinking, allowing them to vote independently of anyone else. I think that is a logical view. This definition would back up that view:

Politics. a person who votes for candidates, measures, etc., in accordance with his or her own judgement and without regard to the endorsement of, or positions taken by, any party.

Now as I say I cannot find such a being in the ranks of ELDC councillors. Nobody actually listed as Independent. We have East Lindsey Independent Group and we have Independent/Liberal Democrat, but no actual Independents. 

Firstly I have no idea what an Independent/Liberal Democrat actually is but it certainly does not read as Independent. Secondly. If you are Independent then why would you join a group? Surely once you have joined a group then you are part of that group and are therefore, by definition, not Independent? The leader of the group, yes there is one, strange isn't it, is responsible for representing the group and responsible for allocating councillors to particular roles and committees within the council. Just as the leaders of the party groups do. So what is the difference between a party group and an Independent group? Nothing in my eyes. Are the group members going to vote on items independently?

To cap this off I would refer to an email I saw sometime ago when an Independent councillor informed the council that he was no longer and Independent but would be joining the Independent Group. Confused? 
As I said at the beginning. So am I. 

Dog Dirt Problem In Skegness

Oh dear. What a subject, but it needs addressing. According to a press release from East Lindsey District Council there is going to be a blitz on dog owners who allow their dogs to mess in the streets, on the beach etc. and do not clean up after them. This is the owners fault and not the dogs!!! People will be fined £75 if caught acting in this irresponsible way and there will be dog patrols working.

It would appear from the press release that the Mablethorpe and Sutton-On-Sea area is going to be targetted initially. From enquiries I have made as a councillor it would appear that this is the case due to the fact that area is a known area of concern.

I have informed the council that Skegness, the seafront in particular, has a huge problem with this fouling and that Skegness should also be a targetted area. What I would urge you all to do is to contact East Lindsey District Council with your information as to where you know we have a bad dog fouling issue and give them the details. You can do this by ringing 01507 601111 or by emailing the dog warden dog.warden@e-lindsey.gov.uk.

There has been much discussion and a fair degree of complaining about this issue locally. This is your chance to get something done about it. Contact the council and let them know how bad the situation is in our town.

The New Boy At School - No Longer!!

Well it has been just over a month since I was elected to both East Lindsey District Council and Skegness Town Council. How time flies! In a past blog I likened the experience as being "The New Boy At School", which I do believe it was. I have to report that is no longer the case.

I would describe the whole experience as very busy and exciting. Not that I am complaining as that is what I volunteered for. For the record these are the committees that I attend, as well as attending Full Councils.

East Lindsey District Council.

• Scrutiny "A" Committee.
• Audit Committee.
• Planning Committee.
• Skegness Area Committee (Chairman).

Skegness Town Council.

• Direction and Strategy Committee.
• East Lindsey District Council/Skegness Town Council Liaison Committee.
• Gibraltar Point National Nature Reserve Joint Advisory Committee. (Skegness Town Council Representative)

In addition to all of that I am also the Chief Whip for the Conservative Group at ELDC. That is not quite as exciting as it sounds but the interaction that I have with the members has certainly let me get to know them and for them to get to know me also.

So as you can see there is plenty to do. I have been pleasantly surprised by the amount of help that I have received from both the officers of both councils, those that are employed by the council, and also from my fellow councillors who have far more experience than I.

As well as all of the committee work there is also the personal issues that come your way from the residents. I have already been involved in a couple of things and I still have a couple of irons in fires for issues that I am still awaiting outcomes for. If anybody reading this has any issues that they think I can help with, then please do not hesitate to contact me and I will do whatever I can to help.

So that is it. I am in and learning by the day. This is going to be my life for at least the next 4 years. Am I looking forward to it? You bet I am. Bring it on as they say. Plenty to be done. Lot's of positives to be gained for the town of Skegness and despite what you may hear from the knockers and those with negative outlooks, there is every opportunity for the gains to be obtained.

The New Boy At School!

Do you remember? In you went, into the new school. Everybody is bigger than you. You have no idea where to go, no idea what to do. Everything is brand new and there is just so much to learn. What can you do and what can't you? What can you say and what can't you. Who are the ones that are going to put you in your place and steal your dinner money? What is this feeling of self-consciousness? You have never felt like that before. Is everybody really staring at you all the time?

Do you remember? For some of us that day was an awful long time ago and still if you think about it you can conjure up those old feelings.

Becoming a councillor has raised the same sort of feelings over the past couple of weeks. There is an awful lot to get used to, an awful lot to learn. First thing is sort the wheat from the chaff. Strip away the bumph and identify what is important and what is not.

Above all remember the old saying, "You have two ears and only one mouth so listen twice as much as you talk". That has never been my strong point but I am putting it into practice. Sit, listen and absorb. Plenty of time to have my say once I have an idea what I am talking about. How long will that outlook last? Your guess is as good as mine. I have already had a good couple of chats with officers and have been encouraged by the responses and offers of help on a couple of issues. Perhaps I am finding my feet more quickly than I realise!!!

A Huge Thank You!

Now that the dust has settled and the results have sunk in, I would like to say a HUGE thank you to all of those people who cast their votes for me in either or both of the elections for East Lindsey District Council and Skegness Town Council. Your support is very much appreciated.

It is a great honour for me to stand as a councillor in my home town and I am looking forward to all of the hard work that is now going to come my way.

My contact details are:

Mobile - 07990 532743
Home - 01754 765425
Email - steveodare@hotmail.co.uk

Please do not hesitate to contact me if there are any issues that you have that I may be able to help you with.

Many thanks again.