Transcript

Nicky Purse- And welcome to this annual council meeting for Thursday the 23rd of May. We start with... I have to read now... item one, the webcast. So this meeting is being webcast live to our website and will be available for repeated viewing after the meeting has after the meeting has ended. By continuing to attend this meeting you are consenting to being filmed and to appearing in the webcast. I'd like to remind all those participating in the meeting to use their microphones when they speak and to turn them off once they have finished talking. Item two, apologies for absence, do I have any apologies? No? Item three, declarations of interest. Do any Councillors have a declaration to make in relation to any items on the agenda? No? Item four, minutes... Councillor Hardware, I expect better of you. And for that serve as a reminder to everyone, please, to make sure their mobile phones are on silent. I will gratefully accept five pound donations for every breach of this to my chair's charity. Item four, minutes of the previous meeting held on the 11th of April 2024 which can be found on pages four to twenty-five of the agenda. Are they agreed? I'll sign them then. There you go. Item five, communications of the Chair and I do apologize to the members. This meeting is being appointed, as I think Councillor always is. I want to review the year. I want to say some thank you and I want to recognize somebody. But first I'd like to start with welcoming all the new members that we have in the agenda. Some of whom are re-treats and some of whom are very new to the chamber. I'd like to on behalf of the whole chamber invite each of the new members and stand and introduce themselves. The other members of the chamber and members of the chamber and members of the chamber are aware of who they are of and told that the total induction of a member is that they're able to stand when they speak to the scientific section of those fortunate enough to sit and we're fortunate enough to sit at the top. So could I invite members to stand by and let's start with back of the labour bench, moving this way, and then the same on the conservative benches. New members only. Good evening everyone. My name is Jake Shepherd. I'm a past member of the past. Thank you chair. My name is Michael. I'm representing the... sorry. Thank you. It's okay. Thank you. Good evening chair. Luke Howard, Alan O'Pray, Dan Bush and Stuart Gee. I'm Councillor Stefan Mullard-Holl and I'm representing the Netsboro ward. I think I may be the reach that you were talking about, chair. Councillor Markingville representing Bush Fair, the ward I live in. Thank you. And if I could switch to the other side of the chamber, starting on the back bench. I think we've only got the one on the back bench. Thank you chair. My name is Emma Caffari and I'm the Councillor for Summons and Kingsmore. Hello, my name's Danielle Brown and I'm representing Church and the impossible. I'm Thank you all. Once again, welcome. I hope your time as Councillors is fruitful and I hope you enjoy it more than anything representing your residents. We also have an old member in the chamber by old. I don't mean ancient. I mean long serving. At the previous council meetings before the elections, we said goodbye to two councilors that stepped down after serving over 25 years each. Tonight in the chamber, we've got a councilor who didn't step down but stood for election and was unsuccessful in an election. I'd like to invite Councillor Simon Carter to come up and receive something from me as a token of the chambers appreciation. The time that he was a Councillor and to thank him for his service to our team. Thank you. Okay. We also have a second we also have a second not as long serving as long serving as long serving as long serving as the councilor in the chamber. Councilor Stearl, although your time you've served as a captain and I'd like to ask you again I'd like to ask you to say thank you for your service to our team. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I want to review a little bit of the year that I've had in the chair for you. Is that any better? Apparently we were getting some interference on the microphone. So I want to talk to you a little bit about the year in the chair. I want to start by talking about the gems of Harlow. So in the past year what I've tried to do is celebrate the people places and organizations that make our team our town's sparkle. And there's been a lot. And with thanks to the leader of the council I've been able to host a series of events downstairs in the gallery and upstairs in the chamber where we have had sporting clubs, we have had charities, we've had our blue light services, we've had our scout and cadet forces, some amazing arts places across the town. We've had them all in and we thank them for the work that they do to make our town a great place to live. They've been amazing to see the organizations come and how much it means to people sometimes when you just say thank you to them for their hard work. But it's also amazing to see just how much goes on in our town. We have a lot in this town to be proud of and those organizations work very hard. It's been a pleasure going around the town since over the past few months, seeing those plaques that we've handed out up at various venues around the town. And a number of them, places like the Playhouse, Pets corner, Victoria Hall, are places that are very dear to my heart and very dear to my family's heart. So it's been wonderful to celebrate those places and to celebrate all the great things that goes on in Harlow. It's not just been about celebrating gems. Celebrate yourself. Celebrate Harlow at the Playhouse was another amazing success. We put on acts as diverse as Fusion Ballet and Fusion Dancing, Singers and Embrace a Lot of Money for my two charities, which I'll add in to in a minute. To thank the Playhouse team, I'll come back to that in a minute. I'm putting on an amazing team. I hope the future chairs will indeed continue the Celebrate Harlow celebrations. We've had a golf day this year. Raising a lot of money for the charities, but we had teams that were supported by organizations and the city of Blaise coming out to support the charities. We've had an amazing quiz, teams from the staff, charities themselves and counsellors break in and there was a break in between the two. They said I won't score the best. I won't report back. We had an amazing meal, a lively lunch, we got a lively subscriber. We had a number of acts that wanted to celebrate Harlow, working with over in the Playhouse team. We put on a lively lunch, a lively meal. It was amazing. We had some amazing bags. We had some old bags. But it was a great night and very well attended. The tickets sold out and it's against something that I hope ends up being Harlow to showcase at the talent show we've got. My civic service this year was poignant. It was mooning. It was the day after, the week after the atrocities of the Israeli music festival. We remembered all of those. Civic services are strange. Most of them are strange. I went to a number at the start of the year. They're normally praying for the council and just the work of the council as it embarks on its year. Harlow civic service is developing to praying and supporting the wider community and the goals of Harlow as a combined family, I want to say. And I'd like to thank Martin Harris and the congregation at St Paul's for allowing me once again to use the church for that civic service. We hosted a variety of other events, but one that stands out in my mind was at Palmer Mill. So many of the mayors and chairs that came from surrounding areas and some of them were from just over the border in East Hertfordshire or just up the road in Uttersford said to me, I didn't know you had this in Harlow. And I found that so many times during this past year as chair, people saying we didn't know we had these things. I know Councillor Shepherd will shout and scream about Palmer Mill as one of the trustees there. But it was an amazing place. It was great to have a tour and it was great to spend some time with an artist decorating Christmas baubles, which proudly hung on my tree this year. I hope that, again, future chairs will recognize some of these hidden gems of our town and host events at them. And then the Civic Dinner, where I was pleased this year to welcome not just mayors and chairs to the Civic Dinner, but some of our recipients of the gems of Harlow during the year, some wider members of our civic community who purchased tickets, the profits of which went towards the charities, but enjoyed a dinner, mixing with other civic members, increasing and improving the civic life of our team. And so I've been to events across Essex and Harfordshire. Being on the border gives us the pleasure of getting invited to both counties. And I've been to many of them, as I said, I've attended civic services, ate six dinners, travelled to various garden parties, cheese and wine evenings. Sadly, again, I reported I went to a memorial service and yet again a member of the chain came and passed away this year. And I know it was heartfelt when I sent Harlow's condolences to Passing Wood on the loss of their mayor. I have to thank the number of people because the chairmanship is a bit like being a swan. You glide along the grace chain and where you're at. The number of people who have the first things to do is to sue for readily stepping in at once in a moment, threatening us, representing Harlow in times where I couldn't make it. Although not even shoot, although not even the superhuman fought in Harlow. (Inaudible) (Inaudible) I must reach onto my desk near the next one because I don't think she was aware that anything was going to be said, but running the chair's diary is not just running the chair's diary. It's a matter of organizing, getting people to the right place, often carrying loads of gear in your car and using a whole team to support. So the team of Janet, Hannah, Adam and Grace would like to say thank you, but particularly Emma, for everything you do, I have a gift for you. So thank you for all your help. I mentioned the Playhouse earlier. Without Rory, the artistic director at the Playhouse and all of the team at the Playhouse, most of the events that I've hosted this year wouldn't have happened. From a point of view, even if it's just we're outside and they're setting up microphones and making sure that everyone can be heard, to whole large scale, equivalent to West End productions that Celebrate effectively was, I couldn't have raised the money that I've raised this year, and I couldn't have had the successful events that I've had without Rory and his team. So there was a new thing that's been created this year, and that's the chair's special certificate of recognition. And I wanted to formally say thank you to Harlow Playhouse for being a direct support to me as chair and in recognition of all that you at the Playhouse do to contribute to the civic life of the team. Rory, can I ask you to come up and accept this? The only one who is to receive such a commitment, and that is because 2008 was Councillor Tony Hall, first became chair of the council, no longer with us. He started to go to civic health and seek out other Councillors. I hope it's ok to say you're retiring. It is retiring. It is retiring. The chair's chaplain or the council's chaplain. We've had regular coffees and regular chats and he's been at the end of the phone whenever I wanted to text him for advice. And so, Martin, I wanted to say thank you to you, thank you for being a direct support to me, and thank you for everything that you've done in your contribution to the civic life of the team. I wonder if you'd come and accept this. Thank you. My final thanks go to two ladies. And they put up with a lot when I've been wearing this chain this year, given that it was the second year. And being chair actually interrupts it. We think as Councillors that it interrupts our lives, our normal daily lives. Being the chair, when you get at the end of the working week, you've dispatched with the council meetings that you're a member of, and you get to the weekend and think, oh, I can relax and do my case work now. Often I'm pulling on the chain in a suit and telling my wife and daughter to pull on suits as well, to go as far afield as Colchester and Canvey Island or over into Hertfordshire. They have been an utter support to me and I couldn't do what I do without them. So Shona, Lexi, I've got a little gift for both of you. Thank you. Show me that one. So now we get to the business. Chair is not just going to all the civic events and representing the whole of our town. Part of it is also raising money for charities. And this year I chose two charities. And I didn't know much about it. Every single event of mine that we've managed to raise a considerable amount. I have to say, last year I broke and we've managed to raise 18,000 pounds. Can I ask, sir, can I ask for the 9,000 pounds each? Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. My final communication from the Chair is one of warning. I may only be here for a little while longer but I would like to say it's a politically charged year. We all know the election results and the numbers that are on each benches. I would welcome councillors to speak their mind. I would welcome councillors to represent their constituents. You were all elected, indeed we, even I, was elected on a political banner. But can I ask that you all treat each other in this chamber with respect and with honor and you debate each other politely? Thank you. Thank you. We move to item six, the presentation of civic awards. We have a number of members of the public in our midst who have been nominated by their peers. Years ago the civic awards used to be nominated by councillors. A few years ago they were open to the public. So everyone who receives an award tonight has been nominated by their peers and should be rightfully proud. We have asked members from both sides of the chamber to read the citations that are going to happen before you come up and collect your award. And what I'll do is I'll announce what the award is, the winner of the award is, and who will be read by it. We should have available around the CEEPS, near you, one of these so that you can follow along. And so the first award tonight is a citizen of the year who has been endorsed and it goes to June Fleming and it will be read by Councillor Kay Morrison. Thank you. Thank you, June Fleming. June Fleming is a half and a half. She's almost 80. She came to Holland in 1961 with her husband. After having two children, she began her year at the Square Tree Mead School. In 1986 she began to work as a special needs teacher at a Thai Green school, narrow Harlem Fields, working there for 31 years. During this time she was chair of the parents association, riding for the disabled who used to turn up unexpectedly. She also took children on various school holidays. After retiring, she began working with Essex County Council special needs, supporting parents going through the state continuing the process, now called the Health Care Plan. June attended an SCA workshop in October 2004 and met parents experiencing challenges with education for their autistic children. She and a colleague suggested that a suggest group was set up to raise awareness in schools. She attended every meeting and supported the group with her skills and knowledge. PACT started as a small voluntary group, sharing a mobile telephone number as a helpline for parents who did not know where to turn. June helped reassure and empower parents, guiding them in the right direction. When PACT became a registered charity in 2012, she became a trustee. June helped steer and expand PACT from a small group of parents 20 years ago, to what is now a well respected Harlow charity.

Can I invite June to come forward and receive her award please? Yes, please. Thank you. [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] Paul, if you like to come forward and be celebrated. [APPLAUSE] [APPLAUSE] [APPLAUSE] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [APPLAUSE] [APPLAUSE] [BLANK_AUDIO] [APPLAUSE] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [APPLAUSE] [APPLAUSE] [BLANK_AUDIO] [APPLAUSE] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [APPLAUSE] [APPLAUSE] [BLANK_AUDIO] [APPLAUSE] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] The result of that vote is 23 members and none against with nine abstentions which means the motion is carried. Thank you very much. We move to item 15 on the agenda. [INAUDIBLE] [INAUDIBLE] Thank you very much, everyone. [BLANK_AUDIO]