Celebrated globally to support environmental protection, Earth day is celebrated on 22nd April every year.

Originated in 1970, the event is now coordinated and celebrated internationally by the Earth Day Network in more than 193 countries across the globe.The theme for the worldwide event this year is “Restore Our Earth“

Find out more and click here: https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-2021/

We can all contribute to this with simple changes.

https://www.norfolk.gov.uk/…/12-ways-to-swap2save-new… Reduce, reuse, recycle

Plant trees: https://www.north-norfolk.gov.uk/…/tree-planting…/

Change how you use your central heating: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/…/energy-saving-myths/

Lib Dems are fighting the Government cutting the Fuel Poverty Scheme Seventy-one Liberal Democrats MPs, Peers and Council Group Leaders have written to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to oppose the Government’s plans to gut a critical scheme allowing energy inefficient homes to access grants.

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The Government is poised to remove social housing and rented accommodation from eligibility for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme and impose prescriptive measures on how improvements must be carried out. This means that even fewer homes are likely to be upgraded, particularly given the failure of the Green Homes Grant. 

The Liberal Democrats are calling for the cancellation of these changes to ensure that those most in need of help do not lose the opportunity to access these grants. 

Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Sarah Olney MP said: 
 
“This is yet another move by the Tories to make it impossible to cut emissions from our homes and help to reduce energy bills – despite the most vulnerable in our society being the people who can benefit most. 

“With 30 per cent of the UK’s CO2 emissions coming from our homes and energy bills continuing to rocket, Liberal Democrats are calling for a ten-year programme to upgrade our homes, prioritising those in fuel poverty. 
 
“As we gear up to host the monumental climate conference, COP26, at the end of the year, we need more than words from the Conservative Government. We need action.”

Full text of the letter and signatories

Dear Secretary of State,

We are writing as a group of Liberal Democrat MPs, Peers and Local Councillors to highlight some of the dangers of the planned changes to the Energy Company Obligation, such as removing social housing and privately rented housing from the scope of the scheme and mandating two measures to achieve specific EPC band improvements. 

The Liberal Democrats have been pushing for the social housing stock to be prioritised in retro-fitting and upgrades since 2011. These proposed changes do not only contravene advice from the Committee on Fuel Poverty but also significantly threaten our ability to tackle the twin crises of fuel poverty and the climate emergency.
If those living in rented homes or social housing cannot apply, the £1 billion put into the scheme by energy companies could go unspent and lead to a cancellation of the scheme as we have seen this year with the Green Homes Grant. These changes could make ECO fundamentally undeliverable. 

We are deeply concerned that you have made this decision to exclude social housing due to the announcement of £60 million for the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund. The pilot of this fund financed only 7 projects with £50 million, so we strongly believe that this £60 million will not be enough to counteract the removal of social housing from ECO. 
As hosts of COP26 this year, we must be doing all we can to quickly upgrade the energy efficiency of all of our housing stock. The removal of social housing and privately rented housing from the scope of the Scheme could seriously undermine our credibility negotiating climate policy on the international stage.

The second issue we note with these planned changes to the scheme is the mandating of two measures to achieve an Energy Performance Certificate uplift of two bands. As a party, we are strongly supportive of the aims of the Scheme in helping properties currently in lower bands achieve these upgrades, however we believe that the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy should not interfere to mandate exactly how many measures must be undertaken to achieve this aim.

Every property is different – some may need only one measure to jump up two EPC bands, some may take three. Mandating two measures introduces significant uncertainty to the process by potentially forcing multiple contractors to be used on one project. If the second contractor does not complete the job or the required EPC band improvement is not met, they will jeopardise the payment through ECO for the first contractor. This over-complication of the process could lead to many projects never being applied for and, again, the Scheme being scrapped as we have seen with the Green Homes Grant. We believe the decisions on which measures and how many measures are needed to improve the EPC rating should be left to the supply chain. 

We urge you to work quickly to ensure that new iterations of the Energy Company Obligation Scheme are fully inclusive of social and privately rented housing and do not specifically mandate how many measures must be undertaken to achieve the EPC uplift of two bands. 

Yours sincerely,

Sarah Olney MP
Spokesperson for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Tim Farron MP
Spokesperson for Communities, Housing and Local Government 

Wera Hobhouse MP 
Spokesperson for the Climate Emergency

Sir Ed Davey MP
Leader of the Liberal Democrats

Daisy Cooper MP
Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats

Alistair Carmichael MP
MP for Orkney and Shetland 

Wendy Chamberlain MP 
MP for North East Fife

Christine Jardine MP
MP for Edinburgh West 

Layla Moran MP
MP for Oxford West and Abingdon 

Jamie Stone MP 
MP for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross

Munira Wilson MP
MP for Twickenham

Caroline Pidgeon MBE AM 
Baroness Bakewell

Lords Spokesperson for DEFRA
Baroness Grender

Lords Spokesperson for Housing 
Lord Foster

Lord Tope CBE 

Baroness Thornhill

Lord Stunell 

Lord Shipley

Caroline Pidgeon MBE AM
Member of the London Assembly 

Keith Melton
Founding Chair of Green Liberal Democrats

Cllr Dine Romero
Leader of the Council, Bath & North East Somerset 

Mayor Dave Hodgson
Directly Elected Mayor, Bedford Borough Council 

Cllr Peter Jones, Secretary, Liberal Democrat Group
Buckinghamshire Council 

Cllr Anthony Martinelli, Shadow Spokesperson for Housing 
Cambridge City Council

Cllr Stephen Robinson, Chelmsford City Council 
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Peter Jeffries, Cheltenham Borough Council 
Deputy Leader and Housing Lead 

Cllr Keith Aspden, City of York Council 
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Joe Harris, Cotswold District Council 
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Peter Thornton, Cumbria County Council 
Deputy Leader 

Cllr Lorna Dupre, East Cambridgeshire District Council 
Leader of Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Keith House, Eastleigh Borough Council
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Virginia Taylor, Eden District Council
Leader of the Council

Cllr Gill Moseley, Forest of Dean District Council
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Pat Marsh,Harrogate Borough Council
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Angela MacLean
Highland Council

Cllr Denis Rixson 
Highland Council 

Cllr Michael Mullaney, Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council
Executive Member for Housing 

Cllr Stuart Bray, Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council
Leader of the Council 

Cllr William Meyer, Lewes District Council 
Portfolio Holder for Housing 

Cllr Luke Cawley-Harrison, London Borough of Haringey
Leader of the Opposition

Cllr Joshua Dixon, London Borough of Haringey 
Deputy Leader of the Opposition

Cllr Ruth Dombey, London Borough of Sutton 
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Jayne McCoy, London Borough of Sutton 
Deputy Leader and Chair

Cllr David Bartolucci, London Borough of Sutton 
Vice Chair, Housing, Economy and Business Committee 

Cllr David Frank, Luton Borough Council 
Leader of the Opposition

Cllr John Leech, Manchester City Council 
Leader of the Opposition

Cllr Jenni Ferrans
Milton Keynes Council

Cllr Douglas McCall, Milton Keynes Council
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Ros Wyke, Mendip District Council 
Leader of the Council

Cllr Richard Pinnock, Mendip District Council 
Housing Portfolio Holder 

Cllr Alison Bennett, Mid Sussex District Council 
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Paul Clark, North Hertfordshire District Council 
Deputy Leader and Planning & Transport Portfolio Holder 

Cllr Sarah Butikofer, North Norfolk District Council 
Leader of the Council

Cllr Mike Bell , North Somerset Council 
Deputy Leader of the Council & Executive Member for Housing 

Cllr David Whipp, Pendle Borough Council 
Deputy Council Leader 

Cllr Gerald Vernon-Jacks, Portsmouth City Council 
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Allan Knox, Ribble Valley Borough Council 
Leader of the Opposition 

Cllr Susan Prochak
Rother District Council 

Cllr Donald Whyte, Runnymede Borough Council 
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group 

Cllr Rod Jones, Rushcliffe Borough Council
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Steve Mason
Ryedale District Council 

Cllr Dinah Keal 
Ryedale District Council 

Cllr Bill Revans, Sedgemoor District Council
Group Leader 

Cllr Hazel Smith, South Cambridgeshire District Council 
Lead Cabinet Member for Housing 

Cllr Claire Young, South Gloucestershire Council
Leader of the Opposition 

Cllr Giles Archibald, South Lakeland District Council 
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Sue Cooper, South Oxfordshire District Council 
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Val Keitch, South Somerset District Council
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Jacqui Taylor, St Albans City & District Council 
Portfolio Holder for Housing, Inclusion & Protection

Cllr Susan Juned, Stratford on Avon District Council 
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Council 

Cllr Sarah Nelmes, Three Rivers District Council 
Leader of the Council & Local Plan Lead 

Cllr Steve Darling , Torbay Council 
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Meenakshi Minnis , Trafford Council 

Cllr Emily Smith, Vale of White Horse District Council 
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group 

Mayor Peter Taylor, Watford Borough Council 
Leader of the Council 

Cllr Andy Graham , West Oxfordshire District Councillor 
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group 
 
Cllr Allan Brame , Wirral Council 
Deputy Chair, Housing Committee

Cllr Phil Gilchrist , Wirral Council 
Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Emily Davey, Housing Lead Member
Kingston Upon Thames Council

THE COMMUNITY FRIDGE IS COMING!!!!!Sheringham Community Fridge is well on the way with the ordering of the fridge and freezer.

This is where you come in:

Spread the word to businesses you may be associated with and encourage them to come on board.

Become part of the project and contact Sheringham Community Fridge Focus Group

Can you volunteer and help collecting donations?

Are you an organisation who could use the fridge to support people you help?

Contact Sadie Louise Houghton and the Sheringham Community Fridge Focus Group page if you can help

As a community lets get behind this project and help to reduce food waste in our area and help those in need as well.

THANKS TO SADIE HOUGHTON AND THE Sheringham Community Fridge Focus Group and YESU FOR PERSERVERING WITH THIS BRILLIANT IDEA

Some of you may have seen on social media, that at NNDC this morning (10-02-2021) at Overview and Scrutiny when the Medium Term financial strategy along with Capital and Investment Strategies were being discussed, the Conservatives questioned the expense of the Pier and whether it was a viable asset. I’m glad to say it was made very clear that the Pier is considered to be the jewel of the North Norfolk Coast and is one of our greatest assets in bringing people to the area and boosting the local economy. This includes the ‘film star’ status which it has and which is a tourism promotion dream. Aside from these facts it is a listed building and that it is probably unique in the country as a thriving pier with variety shows and theatre at the end of it. Yes we must always be aware that we must look to gain the greatest benefit from our assets but that must not be at the expense of short term pile it high sell it cheap policy to cover over massive reductions in local council’s spending power. This is a forever asset and those of us there, not of conservative persuasion today were equally horrified that such a throwaway comment could be dropped into a serious discussion of Council finances.

Without amazing people like Rosa where would we be. Reminds us also in the times we live in today we to have to stand strong on what we believe to be right and how we must defend democracy and human rights.

Using Social media the local District Councillors Bevan-Jones, Heinink and Withington updated residents concerns about road and pavement defects.these reports have been sent to the County council Highways inspection team who are currently undertaking their annual inspection.

Reminders were also sent to Highways of the following works which have not yet been completed but have been previously reported to NCC highways and liaised with NNDC Councillors. 

1. Weybourne Road – flooding on the pavement near the junction of Church Street by the gate exiting Sheringham Court on the corner. The verge is also waterlogged which means it is impossible to pass.  

2. Weybourne road-Flooding and uneven pavement outside the industrial estate in front of Henrys garage. Build up og plant debris and slippy as a result.

3.Pedestrian crossing requires painting near to  roundabout

4. Victoria /Morris Street lokes surfaces in poor and potentially dangerous condition and weeding required and hedges/planting requires cutting back

5. New Road Lokes (Hastings Court – Cremer Street) Poor surface and weeds 

6. Holway road – near the community centre standing water after rain 

7. Holway road/ Child’s Way – water regularly flooding the gardens of No. ! and 3 Childs way with surveys revealing that the drainage system in the place  is not at an appropriate angle we believe. 

8.Beeston Road – opposite Robertson close. Tree interfering with the broadband and telephone to the first house on the left in Robertson Close plus pot hole developing opposite Robertson Close

The following were reported to the Street Scene Inspection Team and the Highways Portal

1. Common Lane potholes. outside 6 and 49

2.Cromer road Commons Lay by western end. Continuously standing water and regularly completely flooded 

3. Station road Outside the Jolly Tar – a cover frame is raised and is a trip hazard a resident fell recently on this.

3 Station road in front of Barneys – a constant puddle on the pavement 

4. Cromer Road opposite priory Maze /Sheringham view – pothole  

5. High Street Loose and dangerous drainage channel outside Trawler

6. High Street Loose, uneven and dangerous drainage channel at Discount books

7. Potholes emerging in new replacement surface New Road and Cremer Street junction 

8. Linden Grove / Woodland rise west junction – small but deep pothole 

9. Fir Grove / woodland rise west junction new pothole emerging. 

Items 7 and 8 I have also mentioned to Anglia Water as this possibly relates to Anglia Water issues last year with the sewer collapsing and these potholes continue in this line. 

10. The Avenue – tree roots making the path dangerous from the Beeston Road end up to around the bend

11. Curtis Lane – under the bridge surface breaking up and pot hole

12. Augusta Street /St. Nicholas place overgrown hedge and tree on pavement restricting access

13. Morris Street Tree roots making trip hazard in pavement near Augusta Street.  

Update on the Childs Way /Lusher Close/Uplands Park and Common Lane flooding on the 16-08-2020 After being on the ground throughout a very difficult day for Sheringham, and supporting the residents who were flooded and those forced to leave their homes; I have continued to stay involved and supported with issues involving refurbishment and repeated incidents of flooding. Working with the residents particularly badly effected I was extremely pleased that the Chamber of Trade were able to support these residents with donations towards sorting out lost possessions and refurbishment. As part of this with the residents I liaised with the Norfolk County Council Flood Management Team and I put together evidence from the day and accounts from residents to support the flood investigation. NNDC also used this evidence to support their response to County. The draft report has now been shared with those effe, cted. Liaising with the residents, I have submitted a response to this report, which includes information and points not considered in the report. This includes a number of points but in particular substantiates the extent and direction of the water flows and also the repeated nature of this flooding. It also highlights in my view and the residents, the potential lack of appropriate data available to make recommendations with in the report.There is an Anglia Water survey of the drainage system and its capacity underway and I am in contact with their engagement team in regard to this. I will be looking to encourage this information to be made available to be included in the final report and the recommendations that come from this. I have liaised with Norfolk County Council Highways and NNDC Environmental Services and arranged for the cleaning of the drains and gullies in the area and on Holway Road and at the junction of Cooper Road. this has been completed As I have been doing since August I will continue to update and support the residents in these areas and in particular will continue to monitor closely the continuing problem of flooding in the area of Childs Way with the latest event on the 23-12-2020 being reported to Highways and drains assessed. A problem has been identified as a result of this which will be addressed and hopefully this will be done urgently by Norfolk County Council in order to reduce the potential for water damage again and also the stress for the residents living in the vicinity of this problem.