One of the things that puzzled me about Parish Council finances was that we used cheques, and now I know why. A law passed in 1894 requires parish councils to have all payments authorised by two signatories, making e-banking impossible.
The good news is that the law is to be changed, allowing Rosemary to connect our banking to the Internet in time for the abolition of cheques in 2018. It also means that we'll be able to pay our bills more efficiently, and our contractors can be paid sooner.
It will, I suspect, be a bit more complex than that, but it can only be a good thing...
Last week, Suffolk County Council unveiled the New Strategic Direction (NSD). Under the current proposals, the Council propose to divest themselves of the following services;
- Transactional property
- Registrars
- Suffolk traded services
- Employment enterprises, learning and careers advice
- Libraries
- Home First (this is a social care service)
- A record office
- Independent Living Centres (these provide advice and information on equipment which can be used by disabled people)
- Highway Services
- Country Parks
- Economic Development
- Youth clubs, and Integrated Youth Support and Outdoor Education
- Early Years & Childcare, including Children’s Centres
- Home Shield Plus
- Hate Crime Service
The timescale is an ambitious one, in that there will be three phases, beginning in April 2011, with the final phase starting in Autumn 2011. The first phase includes the divestment of the library service.
We'll see what this means for the village, as the Parish Council is yet to be properly briefed, consulted or, as far as I am aware, even told. I don't doubt that this will be an issue for discussion at our next meeting.
Much kudos goes to Rosemary, our Parish Clerk, for her persistence. After months of correspondence, we have been offered a free bus service to and from the Tesco store at Cedars Park.
If there is demand, the bus will pick up in the village on a Monday morning at 10.20 am, and return from the store at 11.45 am, just enough time to do some decent shopping and maybe grab a cup of coffee. It would be really good if people use it so, if you are a regular customer at Tesco, why not give your car a rest, and take the bus?
