Poynton Town Council precept for 2023/2024

Published: 06 February 2023

Media release: Poynton Town Council precept for 2023/2024

The Town Council sets an annual precept as part of the Council Tax to help pay for the many local services we provide. The Council has worked hard in a time of high inflation to keep the precept low and made savings wherever possible.

The Town Council’s precept for 2023/24 is £550,986, an increase over the current year of £29,919. This equates to an increase of £3.70 (4.31%) per year (just 7 pence a week) for a Band D home. This is much less than the current inflation rate of over 9%.

Poynton Town Council operates and looks after a wide range of community facilities and services. We remain committed to ensuring that Poynton remains a vibrant town and a desirable place to live, work and visit. We believe that the precept represents good value for money when measured against all the additional services in Poynton which are provided by the Town Council.

 

·The newly refurbished Civic Hall, owned and maintained by the Town Council, is home to an increasing number of local voluntary organisations and clubs

· Purchasing and erecting Poynton’s Christmas tree and Christmas lights

· Maintaining Hockley and Brecon Close play areas and carrying out regular inspections

· Management of the majority of Lady’s and Prince’s Inclines (between Woodside Lane and Towers Road) including tree management

· Providing CCTV monitoring through the Cheshire East control room for five cameras in the centre of Poynton and a camera at Barnaby Park

· Graffiti removal in public spaces

· Management of Coppice Road allotments

· Carrying out weekly checks on defibrillators owned by the Town Council

· Air quality monitoring at key locations in the Town

· Poynton Update and News (PUN) newsletter and managing community noticeboards to help residents find out what is happening in the village

· Summer hanging baskets and floral displays

· Funding for the Citizens Advice service so that residents can access a face-to-face service at Poynton Civic Hall

· Assisting groups and volunteers, including financial support through grants, to provide support to Poynton’s community

· Backing our business community and supporting development of the Poynton 4 Business website - which includes an online business directory and a platform to advertise local job opportunities

· Financial and operational support for community events including Christmas Fest, Summer Fest and Remembrance Sunday

· Supporting voluntary and community organisations including Poynton in Bloom and Poynton Pick and Tidy Group

· The Town Council acts as Poynton’s voice on many issues, including opposing the loss of trees and habitat at Poynton Pool, including paying for professional advice, flooding, the local bus service and defending the Green Belt and protecting the environment

· Organising the flood warden scheme

· ‘Welcome to Poynton’ leaflet for new residents and visitors showing what Poynton offers

· Recognising our community by organising an annual Civic Award Ceremony

· The Town Council employs three Community Support Officers who are a visible uniformed presence in Poynton. They provide an ‘eyes and ears’ service reducing the fear of crime for residents and improving their quality of life. They deal with environmental crime issues, such as littering, fly tipping and dog fouling and reducing incidents of low level crime and antisocial behaviour. Community engagement includes giving talks at schools and independent living apartments. More recently the Community Support Officers undertake parking enforcement in the Town.

· The Communities Co-ordinator promotes health and well-being initiatives for both older and younger people, working with voluntary groups and service providers to ensure Poynton is a strong and resilient community. This includes supporting the weekly Time Out Café for older residents, helping to reduce social isolation. Poynton is a dementia friendly community. Other work includes assisting the North-East Cheshire Community Partnership and a scheme to hire out mobility scooters and wheelchairs.

· The Operations Manager and Village Ranger have a key role working with Cheshire East, pushing for road and footpath repairs, drain clearance and lighting improvements; dealing with residents’ enquiries and litter problems; supporting the Pick and Tidy group; emptying bins and similar jobs maintaining Poynton’s infrastructure.

Town Councillors receive no form of salary, attendance or other allowances and give freely of their time. Poynton Town Council’s website is www.poyntontowncouncil.gov.uk.