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 Northcroft Lido is reopening its doors to the public for its first full season starting from Thursday 28 March!
Due to extreme weather this winter, we'll be opening the facility gradually, starting with the lane swimming that our Lido enthusiasts have been eagerly waiting for. We can’t wait to fully reopen the site with slides and splash pad once the groundwater levels at the Lido have dropped.
Please remember to book your place for lane swimming in advance.
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Grants available for those affected by flooding |
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![© Image courtesy of Dave Smith (resident) – flooding at Linear Park, Calcot]](https://content.govdelivery.com/attachments/fancy_images/UKWESTBC/2024/03/9205689/5345916/holybrook-dave-smith-3_crop.png) © Image courtesy of Dave Smith (resident) – flooding at Linear Park, Calcot
Many households and businesses were impacted by Storm Henk between 2 to 12 January 2024. We understand the challenges you're facing, and we're here to offer support through various flood recovery grants.
Below is a summary of the assistance available, but please note each grant has a different deadline date:
- Flooded households in eligible affected areas, who can apply for up to £500 cash to help with immediate costs.
- Households and businesses significantly affected will be eligible for 100% council tax and business rates relief for at least three months.
- Small-to-medium sized businesses in eligible affected areas, who can apply for up to £2,500 from the Business Recovery Grant to help them return quickly to business as usual.
- Eligible flood-hit property owners, who can apply for up to £5,000 to help make their homes and businesses more resilient to future flooding via the Property Flood Resilience Repair Grant Scheme.
- Farmers who have suffered uninsurable damage to their land will be able to apply for grants of up to £25,000 through the Farming Recovery Fund towards repair and reinstatement costs for farmers adversely affected by exceptional flooding.
If you're a resident or business in West Berkshire and believe you qualify, please visit our website for further information and to complete the necessary forms. We're here to support you through this challenging time.
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 A new development of 119 affordable homes in Newbury has been completed with the first residents set to move in over the next few weeks.
Located at the former Sterling Cables site in Newbury, Sterling Gardens offers one, two and three-bedroom flats tailored to accommodate families on the housing list. There are 27 designated for social rent and 62 for affordable rent which will be available this week to those on West Berkshire Council's Housing Register.
A further 30 are shared ownership properties which will be managed by a housing association.
For those eagerly awaiting housing opportunities, these properties will be open from next week for applications through our Homechoice West Berkshire website. Allocation will be based on the Council's usual assessment process, ensuring fairness and accessibility for all applicants.
This exciting project, a collaboration between West Berkshire Council, Funding Affordable Homes Housing Association Ltd, and Homes England, marks a significant step towards addressing housing needs in our community.
You can read more about Sterling Gardens on our website.
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With over 1,500 members of staff corporately, plus additional members of staff working across our local schools and education settings, we're one of the largest employers in the area. There are lots of reasons to consider a career with us - from the wide range of services we provide to the training and benefits we offer.
Current vacancies include:
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 An official notice has been given for the Police and Crime Commissioner election for the Thames Valley on Thursday 2 May. The PCC is responsible for making sure Thames Valley Police is an efficient and effective force. They are answerable to you. For more information visit the Choose my PCC website.
You need to be registered in order to vote - you have until Tuesday 16 April to do this. To register please visit the Gov.UK website.
If you’ve already registered to vote, you will receive a poll card telling you where your polling station is. You can also vote by post or by proxy. You can find more information about voting here.
We're working with HM Land Registry to migrate our local land charges service to their central digital register.
When this process is complete, HM Land Registry will provide search results for local land charges searches in the West Berkshire area.
We will provide an exact date for when this service will go live in due course. For more information visit the government website.
Local land charges searches are normally required in the property-buying process. Most local land charges are restrictions or prohibitions on the use of the property. The local land charges search will reveal whether a property is subject to a charge if that charge has been registered.
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 As part of our work to move planning services online and to make them more accessible and easier to navigate, we've launched a free online service which will allow you to check if you need to apply for planning permission.
This new service will make it easier for you to understand if you need to submit a planning application for items such as solar panels, loft conversions, adding an outbuilding or adding a dropped kerb. This service makes planning information simpler and more transparent for applicants and ensures consistency of guidance.
You can find the new service on our website. Read more information about the service here, or on our blog.
 West Berkshire Car Club offers flexible access to fuel efficient and hybrid cars. The car club gives you 24/7 pay-as-you-go access to vehicles parked on streets, car parks and the Enterprise Newbury branch using the mobile app or online site.
We also have a few offers available for new and existing members:
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Limited Time Only Offer- Join for £1, plus get £10 FREE driving credit, using promotional code NEW110, saving new members with a West Berkshire postcode £59 - Offer expires 31.12.24 T&Cs apply.
- Join for FREE, plus get £25 FREE driving credit, when joining from a previous Car Club provider and reside in West Berkshire, using promotion code NEW025 - Offer expires 31.12.24. T&Cs apply.
- Rent for £30 a day (excluding mileage charges) – offer extended until 30 April. T&Cs apply
West Berkshire Car Club is delivered together with our chosen partner Enterprise.
For more information, visit our website and see how you could benefit from using an environmentally sustainable solution like the West Berkshire Car Club!
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We value your views on the decisions we take. There are several areas we are currently holding consultations on, including:
Do you own a business in West Berkshire?
Berkshire Digital Infrastructure Group are running a survey for businesses across Berkshire. The survey aims to empower Berkshire businesses by gaining insights into their digital infrastructure, identifying current challenges, and understanding the digital skills of their workforce.
Your views are crucial in building a more connected business community. The survey is open until 30 April and you can complete it here.
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We are proud to support and join Keep Britain Tidy in marking their 70th birthday by taking part in the Great British Spring Clean campaign.
From connecting with our communities, to enjoying the great outdoors, taking part in the Great British Spring Clean isn’t just good for the environment, it’s good for us too.
If you are organising a community clean-up event for the Great British Spring Clean, which runs until the end of March, we can provide litter-picking equipment to help you carry out your event. Please give us as much notice as possible when requesting equipment and wait for confirmation before you advertise your event as our equipment may not be available due to popular demand. For more information please visit our website.
You don’t need to wear a cape to be a #LitterHero! With gloves and a litter-picker, it’s easy to get started and love where you live this Spring.
Our waste and recycling team have been busy doing their own litter pick too - you can see what they got up to in our latest video.
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 Our Holiday, Activities and Food (HAF) programme is back for Easter!
This programme offers free holiday club places for children and young people eligible for free school meals.
One of our providers is the Andrew Simpson Foundation where young people can try out water sports. Watch this video from last year to hear what they thought!
Water sports are also available at Waterside Centre Newbury and they have lots of spaces ready to be filled.
 Head down to Shaw House on Tuesday 9 April, 19:30am to watch Matilda the Musical, the latest 'Movie in the Hall' event.
Matilda tells the story of an extraordinary girl who, armed with a sharp mind and a vivid imagination, dares to take a stand to change her story with miraculous results.
The café will be open selling cinema sweets and treats. Tickets cost £5 for adults and £3 for children. Book your place here.
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Disco Dragons Easter activities |
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Fancy making some dragon feet? Join us at Newbury Library on 5 April for a Treasure Map Trails themed family craft activity day! No need to book, just come along with your grown up and have some fun! For more information, contact Carol Smith on 07827898368 or Carol.Smith3@westberks.gov.uk
Disco Dragons is a treasure map that has been produced in partnership with Treasure Map Trails to encourage people to travel, explore and learn more about the historic town of Newbury. The creative ideas came from the children at Speenhamland school, with local businesses and agencies also involved.
The maps are available to request for free from places such as Newbury Library and West Berkshire Museum. This will be limited to one map per family.
Why not pick one up for some Easter family fun!
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And finally...
- Happy Easter from all of us here at West Berkshire Council! Check out our latest TikTok to find out how we eat our Cadbury Creme Eggs...
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Don't forget, we're updating the Household Waste Recycling Centre hours for both our sites at Padworth and Newtown Road. Starting from 1 April 2024, weekday (Monday - Friday, excluding bank holidays) operating hours will now be 11:00am – 6:00pm. Weekend and bank holiday hours will continue as usual and operate 9:00am - 6:00pm, including Easter Monday. Make sure to book your appointments in advance. There are no changes to rubbish or recycling kerbside collections over Easter. Bins will be collected as normal on Good Friday and Easter Monday
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Join us at the Corn Exchange, Hungerford Town Hall on 23 April from 12-3pm, where you'll have the opportunity to participate in creating the Local Nature Recovery Strategy for Berkshire. Spaces are limited to two people max per organization. Register your interest on EventBrite or contact Braywick Nature Centre on 01628 777440. You can also complete the survey online. Share your thoughts, ideas, and priorities up until 7 May.
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