Budget and council tax for 2024-25 agreed
 At Full Council on Wednesday 21 February, councillors voted to agree the budget for 2024-25 which includes a council tax rise of 2.99% on the Hastings Borough Council element of council tax.
This rise in the borough council element of council tax is an increase of 17p a week (£8.93 a year) for a band D property. There will also be increases in the East Sussex County Council, East Sussex Fire and Rescue and Sussex Police element of council tax.
The budget shows an improving picture for the council's finances, partly due to the numbers of households needing emergency accommodation starting to stabilise, and also savings that the council agreed to make across other services in December. As the council expands its housing acquisition programme over the coming year there will be further savings from not paying out large amounts of money to private providers.
My Hastings downtime this weekend
Council tax and benefits accounts will be unavailable through My Hastings over this weekend, until 10am on Monday 26 February while finance systems are updated.
Until the systems are back up and running on Monday morning, contact centre staff won't be able to help with queries about your accounts as they will also be unable to access this information. When the systems are back up and running the phone lines are likely to be busy. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
Junior Doctor strikes
 Junior Doctors are taking strike action from 7am tomorrow (Saturday 24 February) until 11.59pm on Wednesday 28 February.
Some planned appointments and clinics are likely to be affected, but please attend appointments unless you are contacted directly by the NHS. You do not need to contact your NHS service or team.
Please choose the most appropriate NHS service for your needs, and only use 999 and A&E or emergency departments for serious or life-threatening emergencies. You can use NHS111 online or by phone for anything that is not a life-saving emergency.
Please also stay away from hospitals if you are showing the symptoms of flu or COVID-19 (or have been in contact with someone who has tested positive) unless it is an emergency.
Old Roar Gill landslip
The council responded to the Old Roar Gill landslip as an emergency situation as soon as we were made aware on Thursday 15 February. This included putting together an emergency response team to deal with the incident.
This involved an immediate site visit where the situation was assessed. Building Control were called and at that time they determined the building structures were safe.
Officers continued to monitor the situation and because of concerns that the landslip was continuing, we called out a surveyor who assessed that there was likely to be further slippage. The residents were told to contact their insurance companies about the situation.
The council's first priority is to keep residents safe, continued monitoring and further observation showed further slippage and concerns around the stability of the properties. Our housing team carried out further assessments which resulted in Emergency Prohibition Orders being placed on two properties. This is for the safety of the residents. The Orders will remain in place until the issues are resolved, and the housing team are satisfied that it is safe for residents to return.
We continue to monitor the situation.
Have your say on East Sussex County Council transport plan
 The East Sussex County Council consultation on the draft Local Transport Plan for East Sussex closes this Sunday (25 February).
The plan looks ahead until 2050 and sets out how East Sussex will connect people to places around and through the county by walking, wheeling and cycling, using public transport, traveling by car, or by new ways to travel.
The deadline for comments is midnight on Sunday 25 February.
Have your say on public realm consultation
 There is only one week left for you to have your say about plans to change the town centre through the public realm and green connections Town Deal project. The online survey is open until 11.59pm on Friday 1 March.
East Sussex County Council, Hastings Borough Council and the Hastings Garden Town Team are working on plans which include greener connections for walking and cycling through the town and improvements to public spaces.
Full details including the project brochure, public events and how you can respond to plans can be viewed on the East Sussex County Council website.
Printed brochures including a paper copy of the survey and a freepost envelope and are available at Hastings Library; reception at Muriel Matters House, Breeds Place; Summerfields Leisure Centre and the Common Room in Cambridge Road.
Please let family and friends know about this consultation too, the team want to hear from as many people as possible on the proposals.
Funding schemes to be discussed
Hastings Borough Council’s Cabinet is due to discuss a report detailing the many different funding grants that have been allocated to the town. In the last few years, the town has received funding from seven different government schemes.
Each of the funding schemes has strict criteria detailing what the money can be spent on and timeframes for project delivery. The funding also comes with rules around reporting the spend and evaluation.
The seven schemes are:
- Levelling Up Partnership;
- Homelessness prevention funding;
- Long-term Plan for Towns;
- UK Shared Prosperity Fund;
- Town Deal Programme (including accelerator fund);
- Sport England's Swimming Pool Fund;
- Multi-Use Games Area – PlayZone funding.
Have you thought about how to vote?
 There are local council elections for Hastings Borough Council on Thursday 2 May, with half of the council seats up for re-election, one councillor in each ward. There will also be an election for the Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) on the same date.
If you want to have your say in who represents you on the local council, you must be registered to vote, and for the first time in Hastings, you must bring an accepted form of photo identification to vote at a polling station. This is due to new rules brought in across the country by the government in the Elections Act 2022.
Keep your eyes open for the brightly coloured graphics which will be appearing on buses, bus stops and posters near you soon.
If you don't have an accepted form of photo ID you can apply for a free voter authority certificate which will allow you to vote at a polling station. Applications are made to the council and a certificate will be posted to you. The deadline for applying is 5pm on 24 April 2024 for these elections, but we encourage you to apply as early as possible if you can.
If you usually vote by post or with a proxy, there have also been changes to this process, make sure you check our website to find out what has changed.
Elections staff needed
 We are looking for staff to help us at the various scheduled elections on Thursday 2 May 2024. Find out more about the different roles available and apply online.
The Bourne road closure
 The Bourne in Hastings will be closed for resurfacing from Monday 4 March to Friday 22 March. Any changes to dates or times will be updated on signs on site.
The road will be closed between 7pm and 6am, with the team working between East Parade and Old London Road, including the entrance to Harold Road.
The diversion route will be via Priory Road, Mount Pleasant Road, Elphinstone Road and the reverse (see map above - the diversion route is shown in blue).
An alternative diversion route will be in place for HGVs via A21, A28, A268.
Access for residents will be unaffected between the Priory Road junction and approximately 100m north of the junction with High Street. If you need vehicle access beyond this point, please discuss this with the team on site to see if this is possible. Please bear in mind, there will be delays whilst the area is made safe and your vehicle is escorted by site marshalls.
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