A guide to your county council services 2021-2022
www.hertfordshire.gov.uk A guide to your county council services 1 Contents
Your adult care services Get email updates Pages 4 & 5 Your family Pages 6 & 7
Your libraries www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/updateme Page 8 Your safety Page 9 Your future Page 10 Your sustainability Page 11 Your Covid-19 response Pages 12 & 13 Choose from more than 20 email topics to Your roads get the latest news from across our services Page 14 as well as up-to-date Covid-19 information delivered straight to your inbox. Your recycling Page 15 This annual publication is produced Your fostering on PEFC accredited paper, meaning Page 16 it is from sustainably managed Your diversity and forests and controlled sources. inclusion This magazine can be made Page 17 available in alternative formats by Your services/ emailing [email protected] or calling 0300 123 4040. Council Tax Pages 18 - 21 The information provided within Your Hertfordshire was correct at time of printing on 25 February 2021. Your local Your Hertfordshire is delivered by Royal Mail. councillor Some of the photos were taken before or during Page 22 the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic.
2 Your Hertfordshire Welcome to Your Hertfordshire 2021 We continue to live through uncertain times. However, as we look ahead, we do so with a sense of hope for a return to normality and Hertfordshire’s economic recovery.
With the impact of Covid-19 still being felt widely in our communities, our priority remains to deliver our core public services to the highest standard, as well as keeping our residents safe and healthy and the county sustainable, prosperous and prepared for the future.
In this annual guide, you will find an overview of the wide range of services the county council delivers for you and your family throughout the year. You will also find information about your annual Council Tax, and how this part-funds the vital services we deliver such as public health, highways and care for adults and children with additional needs.
Like many councils across the country, we have made the difficult decision to increase Council Tax by 1.99 per cent, with an additional 2 per cent ring-fenced to help us meet the increasing demands on our adult social care services.
Although we are facing unprecedented pressures as a result of the pandemic, we continue to invest in Hertfordshire to ensure it remains a county of opportunity where all residents can live fulfilling lives in thriving, prosperous communities.
David Williams Leader of Hertfordshire County Council
A guide to your county council services 3 Your adult care services Helping residents live happy and independent lives We are helping our older residents and those with additional needs to live happy and independent lives in their communities.
We offer a wide range of support living accommodation or in a for those in our communities that residential care or nursing home. have additional needs. This can If you, or someone you know, be short-term assistance, such needs additional support as help to access equipment day-to-day, we can arrange a and adaptations required to visit or talk over the phone about enable individuals to live as your wellbeing and care needs. independently as possible. Longer-term solutions include For more information please go providing care to people in to www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ their own homes, in supported youradultcare
Are you one of Hertfordshire’s 100,000 family carers? If you are one of the 100,000 family carers in Hertfordshire providing vital support to a loved one, we are on hand to try and make life a little easier.
Register with us to find out rewards while doing your about the range of support shopping. we can offer family carers. To find out what help is You may be eligible for a available for you and the short breaks service, to attend person you care for, please visit free training sessions and www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ to receive discounts or earn yourcarers
4 Your Hertfordshire Your adult care services
Thank you to Hertfordshire’s 35,000 social care workers Our social care workers across the county provide excellent care to our older residents and those with additional needs, and continue to work tirelessly to adapt to the ongoing challenges presented by the pandemic.
On behalf of the county, we’d the vital work of our social care like to express how very grateful workforce, or you simply think a we are for everything you career making a real difference have done for our communities to people’s lives could be for this year. you, we would love to hear from you. Now, more than ever, we are looking for kind and caring For more information on a people to work in social care. career in social care, please Whether you’ve had a change visit www.hertsgoodcare.com of circumstances, you’ve seen
A guide to your county council services 5 Your family
Putting families first We all need a little help from time to time, and we are on hand at every stage of your family’s life.
Our family centres offer during Covid-19 restrictions, visit classes, advice and www.hertsfamilycentres.org development sessions like ‘stay and play’, as well as You can also find helpful support from health visitors information and advice on and school nurses. organisations and services that can help your family at To find out what’s on at your www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ local family centre, including yourfamiliesfirst Top of the class
Children and young people as well as eight in the top in Hertfordshire are receiving 250 state primary schools. a top-class education. Twenty-five of the county’s To see how your child’s school secondary schools featured is performing, please visit in the top 500 of this year’s www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ Sunday Times Schools Guide, yourschools
6 Your Hertfordshire Your family
Alice, one of our Just Talk ambassadors
Support for those who need it Many families and individuals have been adversely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
If your circumstances have If lockdowns, social distancing changed and you are worried and self-isolation have left you about your finances, or are feeling anxious or frustrated, having difficulties paying for you are not alone. If you are essentials and household bills, worried about your own, or advice and practical support is someone else’s mental health, available from HertsHelp. use the live webchat service, Monday-Friday, 7am-7pm at Please visit www.hertshelp.net, www.hpft.nhs.uk or call 24/7 email [email protected] or freephone: 0800 6444 101 or call 0300 123 4044. To check if NHS 111, option 2. your children are eligible for free school meals and to apply, visit Young people can get support www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ at www.justtalkherts.org freeschoolmeals
A guide to your county council services 7 Your libraries
Books and so From cradle much more to grave
Our libraries have adapted to Hertfordshire Registration ensure people can continue Service is here for you to enjoy a range of services throughout your life to throughout the pandemic. record births, marriages, civil The number of eBooks, partnerships and deaths. eAudiobooks, newspapers and We have services to support magazines borrowed online you through all of these events. doubled during 2020. For more information, visit www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ This year will see a programme yourregistrars of events which can switch between online and face-to-face as needed, including digital skills Living history training to help everyone get online and a Summer Reading Family histories, photographs, Challenge to keep children maps and much more enjoying books. documenting the county’s rich heritage are available in our Find out more at archives. To find out more, visit www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ yourlibraries yourarchives
8 Your Hertfordshire Your safety Watch out for electrical fires With many of us now working from home, it’s more important than ever to guard against electrical fires.
Overloaded plug sockets and Plug sockets can become kitchen appliances account overloaded and cause fires; for nearly half of all fires in make sure you use extension the home. cables instead of block connectors, particularly with Some appliances like fridges the extra devices needed for and freezers are designed to home-working. be kept switched on, but others like tumble dryers and washing For information about staying machines should be switched off safe, visit www.hertfordshire. when not in use. gov.uk/yourfiresafety
Be aware of Covid-19 scams Scammers are using fear of Covid-19 to prey on older and vulnerable people isolated from family and friends.
Victims are receiving convincing text messages and phone calls claiming they are eligible for the vaccine, and are then asked to hand over cash or financial details. If you receive a call you believe to be fraudulent, hang up. Your GP practice or the national NHS will contact you when it is your turn for a vaccine, and the For more information about NHS will never ask for money Covid-19 scams, visit when arranging a legitimate www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ vaccination. yourscams
A guide to your county council services 9 Your future The smart way to grow our county We are working as part of the Hertfordshire Growth Board to create sustainable, well-designed, healthy and safe communities where residents want to live, learn and work.
Artist’s impression of the Buncefield centres, including in Watford, Lane Quietway in Hemel Hempstead where a new programme will provide enhanced streets that support active travel and bus services. Additionally, our Sustainable Travel Towns programme is reshaping local roads and towns and making it easier for people to use greener forms of transport. Stevenage, Royston and Letchworth will be the first to benefit. With up to 100,000 new homes We are also supporting the and 100,000 new jobs planned delivery of growth in key in Hertfordshire by 2031, we locations including Harlow & are already putting in place Gilston Garden Town, Hemel infrastructure to support this. Garden Communities and We are delivering improvements Stevenage town centre, as to the A602 between Stevenage well as ensuring the right and Ware, the Little Hadham employment opportunities, Bypass on the A120, and education and healthcare construction of the New River facilities are in place to support Bridge in Hoddesdon. good growth across the county. We want to make walking, To find out more about these cycling and using public plans, which will play a major transport more accessible. part in our Covid-19 recovery, We are supporting the visit www.hertfordshire.gov. rejuvenation of existing town uk/yourfuture
10 Your Hertfordshire Your sustainability Tackling climate change We are taking big steps towards making Hertfordshire a cleaner, greener and more environmentally sustainable county.
We are committed to achieving of bees and other pollinators. the ambitions set out in our In 2020 we planted 21,000 Sustainable Hertfordshire new trees. Strategy through our recently approved Action Plan. To read our strategy and find out This includes becoming a what you can do to support it, carbon-neutral organisation by please visit www.hertfordshire. 2030, a net zero greenhouse gov.uk/yoursustainability gas county before 2050, and delivering clean air for all in the county by 2030. We have secured £15m from the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme to improve the sustainability of our buildings, including schools, fire stations, libraries and our main offices. Plans are underway for a carbon-neutral primary school in Buntingford; we have secured an £18,000 grant to research how we can improve the energy efficiency of our care homes; our highways teams are being equipped with electric vehicles and power tools; and we’ve changed the way we look after verges to improve the habitats
A guide to your county council services 11 Your Covid-19 response Covid-19: Hertfordshire’s response More than 60,000 visits by our social workers to families they support
1 million visits 700 to the Covid-19 pages early years on our website settings, schools and colleges have been supported by our Covid-19 response team More than 8,500 keeping-in-touch calls to local family carers 3,000 referrals More than to our Money Advice Unit, raising over £16.5M in 1,700 trading additional benefits for standards residents compliance checks
£7.7m 1 million of funding secured to improve walking and downloads cycling schemes from our e-library
12 Your Hertfordshire Your Covid-19 response
sHe More than ert lp H 130,000 enquiries dealt with by HertsHelp community More than helpline 9 million pieces
COVID-19 of vital PPE POSITIVE delivered to groups including 42 centres GPs, care homes, social offering rapid testing for up to workers, charities, schools 20,000 residents each week and public transport providers
1.2 million Hertfordshire residents 8 large vaccinations playing their sites delivered More than part 132,000 food and medicine packages delivered
7,129 114,789 food parcels volunteers delivered to individuals deployed to support our 11,323 food parcels communities delivered to organisations (food 600 care homes banks, charities and district and and care providers borough councils) and 35,000+ social care staff supported through our new 6,266 medicine Care Provider Hub deliveries
A guide to your county council services 13 Your roads
More investment, better roads We are seeing the benefits of millions of pounds of extra improvements on our roads.
Since 2018, we have spent experience on our roads and an extra £20m improving local improving highway drainage roads across the county, on top systems, £7m on implementing of our usual road resurfacing more 20mph areas, and programmes. dedicate an additional £3m over two years to footway and We will continue to invest to cycleway maintenance. improve local roads, and over the next four years will invest To find out more, visit an extra £10m on responding www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ to instances of flooding that we yourroads Bike or hike
We are investing millions to More changes are on the way to make it easier and safer to walk help keep residents active and and cycle across the county. healthy, reduce the strain on We have been busy introducing public transport caused by the temporary cycle lanes and pandemic and lessen our impact new cycle parking, maintaining on the environment. walking and cycling routes, and creating more space for For more information, please pedestrians in town centres to visit www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ make social distancing easier. youractivetravel
14 Your Hertfordshire Your recycling
Upgrading recycling and reuse options We have opened a new recycling centre near Ware. It’s four times larger than before and easier to use with 38 parking spaces, and you can get rid of most recycling without lifting or carrying it up steps.
There’s a new reuse shop at the Work on a similar new centre in site too, which makes it easy Welwyn Garden City will start for you to donate unwanted this spring. household items or pick up an amazing bargain. To find your local recycling centre opening times and more The new site is powered by about how you can reduce, methane gas extracted from the reuse and recycle your waste, neighbouring landfill, which is all visit www.hertfordshire.gov. part of our aim to deliver more uk/yourrecycling sustainable services across Hertfordshire.
A guide to your county council services 15 Your fostering Make fostering your 2021 goal Take a positive step in these difficult times and consider giving a child-in-need a loving home.
This year could be the time to “I love seeing them develop. start a new, rewarding career If you’re thinking about fostering, as a foster carer. You may then you have a heart for it.” have more time at home, more flexibility in your day, or you may You can still apply to become just be reassessing what you a foster carer, despite the want to do in life. pandemic, as information events and training sessions Ellin, one of our carers, from are being held online. You must Stevenage, offers support to be over 21 and have a spare young people about to leave room at home. Our foster carers care. She said: “I feel like I’m receive full training, a generous giving something back. allowance and 24/7 support. I believe that every young person, however they come For more information, visit into the world, deserves an www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ opportunity to have a family life. yourfostering
Foster carer Ellin
16 Your Hertfordshire Your diversity and inclusion Diversity and inclusion for all Did you know that 23 per cent of Hertfordshire’s school-aged children are from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds.*
Or that 14,000 people in the Hall in Hertford to celebrate county identify as lesbian, gay, Hertfordshire Pride. bisexual, transgender or other We also sponsor the health and (LGBT+).* wellbeing marquee at the annual Hertfordshire has many diverse Pride event. communities and we are We recognise there is still much committed to ensuring diversity to do and will be seeking your and inclusion in everything help to continue improving. we do. We want to make our For more information, visit services accessible for everyone www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ and eliminate racism and yourdiversityandinclusion discrimination. Covid-19 has had a disproportionate impact on BAME communities. We are working with our partners to rebuild trust, fairness and reduce fear among these communities of using health and other public services. We are working hard to promote diversity and inclusivity among our staff and the wider community. We raised the rainbow flag, a symbol of LGBT+ equality, at County
*Figures from 2011 Census. A guide to your county council services 17 Your services/Council Tax
Investing where it matters most We’ve listened to your feedback, which helped us to decide where to spend your money.
This year, we will invest millions a new state-of-the-art joint in the county’s recovery from firefighter and police training Covid-19. facility in Stevenage, as well as spending £22m on sustainability We will provide significant projects, tackling climate change, additional funding for adult social reducing flooding and improving care, increasing wages for those drainage systems on our roads. providing vital care and support to people in their own homes, in These are just some of the residential care and supported many ways in which we fund living accommodation. critical services that matter to our county. We will spend £53m on improving education for children with For more information, visit special education needs and www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ disabilities. We are developing yourcounciltax
18 Your Hertfordshire Your services/Council Tax
County Council element of Council Tax for Band ‘D’ households
Yearly bill for Council Tax Adult Social Care Yearly bill 2020/21 was increase Precept increase for 2021/22 £1,414.20 (£1,414.20 x 1.99 (£1,414.20 x 2.00 £1,470.63 per cent): per cent): £28.15 £28.28 (£56.43 increase = £1.08 per week) We are asking for just over £1 extra a week from the average household this year so we can continue to invest in vital services.
Our element of Council Tax for Our budget for 2021/22 is the average Band ‘D’ household £877m, the majority of which will increase by £56.43 to comes from your Council Tax. £1,470.63. This is made up of a rise in general Council Tax We also get money from other of 1.99 per cent and a 2 per sources, including government cent adult social care precept grants. Since 2010, we have increase. made savings of £351m a year and need to save a further £70m The money raised will help us a year by the end of 2024/25. support the vulnerable, meet the challenges of our growing To find out more, visit and ageing population and the www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ ever-increasing demand for our yourcounciltax services, particularly social care for children and adults.
A guide to your county council services 19 Your services/Council Tax
We deliver a wide variety of services that make a positive impact for residents, businesses and communities. For more information, visit www.hertfordshire.gov.uk
Children’s Services Adult Care Services We protect the county’s most We provide essential social care vulnerable children and young services to more than 25,000 adults people. More than 30,000 each year, including more than 3,500 with extra school places have been learning disabilities. We also support delivered since 2009. more than 32,000 family carers. Total spend Total spend £209m £373.3m
Roads and Waste How we We maintain 3,200 miles of roads, carrying out more than 1,500 maintenance and improvement schemes as well as spend your fixing more than 18,000 potholes. We fund the treatment of 545,000 tonnes of waste money generated each year.
Total spend £125m
20 Your Hertfordshire Your services/Council Tax
Fire and Community Public Health Protection Our public health teams help residents to lead healthier lives. More than 114,000 Our fire service responds to more than health checks have been delivered over 10,000 emergencies each year and the past five years and we have helped more our teams carry out Safe and Well visits in than 16,000 people to stop smoking. around 3,500 homes. Total spend Total spend £43.5m £49.3m
Library and other Community Services
There were more than 1 million downloads from our libraries in 2020 including eBooks, eAudiobooks, digital newspapers and digital magazines. Total spend £14.8m
Financing and Support for Legal and Statutory Frontline Services Services Our support teams ensure robust governance of the We register 3,500 marriages county council’s processes. We also look after and civil partnerships and our 8,000 staff and ensure that taxpayers’ more than 18,000 births and money is accounted for in a transparent manner. deaths a year. Total spend Total spend £55m £7.3m
A guide to your county council services 21 Your local councillor
Photo taken in May 2019
Make sure you have your say We want you to have your say on who represents your local interests, so please make sure you are registered to vote in the upcoming local election.
There are 78 divisions of the recommend this money is county council, and each one spent on projects that promote is represented by a county the social, economic or councillor. We hold an election environmental wellbeing of every four years to determine their local area. To find out who who they should be. The next your local councillor is, visit one is on 6 May. If you haven’t www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ registered to vote, you can do yourcouncillor so online. We also run consultations on More information is available at a wide range of new ideas, www.aboutmyvote.co.uk proposals and reviews so that you can have your say on the Each of our councillors has decisions we make. a locality budget and can
We are live-streaming several of our council meetings online. You can watch live or on catch-up. Visit www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/watchcouncilmeetings
22 Your Hertfordshire Thank you message
The Covid-19 pandemic has changed Hertfordshire and impacted all our lives. Our heartfelt condolences go out to everyone who has lost a loved one. Thank you all for everything you have done. Please keep playing your part by following the rules and looking out for one another. Together we will get through this and get back to doing the things that matter most.
A guide to your county council services 23 The quickest and easiest way to access our services and contact us is by visiting www.hertfordshire.gov.uk Follow us on social media @hertscountycouncil @hertscc @hertscc @HertfordshireCountyCouncil
Adult Social Services Recycling Provide social care, blue Household Waste Recycling badges, bus passes, day Centre information and services and services for carers. van permits. www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ www.wasteaware.org.uk adults 0300 123 4051 0300 123 4042
Highways Fire and Rescue Service Provide an emergency response Repair faulty roads and service and a range of safety pavements, streetlights and initiatives. potholes and carry out planned www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/fire roadworks. 0300 123 4046 www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ highwaysfaults 0300 123 4047 Register Offices Register births, deaths, Children’s Services marriages and citizenship. and Schools www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ Manage school admissions registrars and transport, free school 0300 123 4045 meals, fostering and adoption, family centres and child Health protection. Run public health initiatives www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ to improve residents’ health schools and wellbeing. 0300 123 4043 www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ healthinherts Libraries Manage public libraries and maintain a huge range Trading Standards of historical documents, Advice on consumer rights photographs, maps and records. and trusted traders. www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ libraries tradingstandards 0300 123 4049 0345 404 0506