TOWN COUNCIL THE FIRST TIER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT – NEAREST TO THE PEOPLE

A Message from Councillor Alison Brelsford Mayor of Stocksbridge Dear Resident

I am writing to explain why you pay an extra charge towards Stocksbridge Town Council on your Council Tax.

The Town Council provides additional services – over and above those which City Council must provide by law. To enable us to do this we precept a sum of money, collected for us by Sheffield City Council through the Council Tax. This is our only income as we exist to redistribute this to protect and improve the quality of life for everyone living in our local area. Our aim is for a constantly improved Town that serves the needs of all of our residents.

The Town Council gives you a more local representation to stand up for the place in which you live. Last year our community proved that we are still thriving and can pull together to make wonderful things happen; the Town Council is proud to have been the enabler for the Community to come together and form 4SLC in order to secure the future of our Community Leisure Centre, the dry side of which is now running very successfully with locally based management.

The Town Council has a long and excellent record of working in partnership with local organisations and community groups. This year we have met with many and diverse groups concerning developments in the Town, such as Dransfield Properties, Bloor Homes, Lidl Supermarket, Activity Sheffield, Sheffield City Council (Parks & Countryside, Community Assembly, Regeneration, Leisure, Housing, Youth), Yorkshire Water, Stocksbridge Advice Centre, SYPTE, Don Valley Railway, Sheffield Futures and Fire Service. The details of these are included in our minutes.

We provide funding for local projects such as the Christmas Illuminations and the Senior Citizens’ Christmas Party held in December, which is very popular and totally free to senior citizens in the area. The Town Council is one of the main partners in the Steel Valley and Upper Don Project, and add a further amount to support the popular Carols event. We award grant aid to many other projects providing activities for children such as Pentaqua Swimming Club, Park Steels FC Juniors, the Scouts, Fire Cadets, Junior Cricket Club and the Tennis Club to name a few. During the summer we provide funding for a number of playschemes in the Valley, but we also support the activities of older residents, for example through the Stocksbridge & District Federation of Racing Pigeons, Steel Valley Beacon, Village Community Association, Bolsterstone Flower Festival, Bolsterstone and Waldershelf Choirs, Valley In Bloom, the Royal British Legion and minibus grants for residents groups. It is important that we are an inclusive Council and we are keen to support as wide a range of residents within the area as possible. We consider grant applications from any properly constituted group based within and serving the local community.

Our quarterly Citizens Award continues, with amazing stories about local people who have done something outstanding or provided continuing service to their local community. If you know of someone who deserves the Town’s recognition, nominations should be forwarded to the Town Council Offices at Stocksbridge Town Hall.

Your Town Councillors are volunteers; they do not receive any payment for attending meetings or carrying out their duties on behalf of the Council. Councillors are involved in all aspects of life within the Stocksbridge, Deepcar and Bolsterstone area and are all local residents like you. Their telephone numbers and addresses are available from the Town Council Offices at Stocksbridge Town Hall or on the internet at www.stocksbridge-council.co.uk. You can contact the Town Council Office by telephone or fax on 0114 288 7895, or by email on admin@stocksbridge- council.co.uk

The Town Council Offices are open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10am to 2pm. Town Council meetings are held on the second Thursday of every month except August and these meetings are open to the public. Town Council minutes are available in full on our website, or from the office. Meetings start at 6.30 pm and are held in the Council Chamber upstairs in Stocksbridge Town Hall on Manchester Road.

With best wishes,

Alison Brelsford MAYOR OF STOCKSBRIDGE