Election of Chairperson and up to three Vice Chairperson
We are delighted to inform you that Lesley Beevor was re-elected as Chair and Andrew Lewis and Rhys Jarvis Vice Chairs.  On block - proposed by Ken Lodge, Bungay TC and seconded Lesley Judd, Hacheston PC.  Carried unanimously.  There is one vacancy available and expressions of interest should be sent to SALC via operations@suffolk-alc.gov.uk

Good Neighbourhood Scheme - Community Action Suffolk.  Click on this link to view the slide presentation about this scheme. Please contact Teresa Farley for any questions. 

East Suffolk Walking, Cycling, Wheeling working group -  East Suffolk would like a parish/town councillor to join this working group as they believe that they are missing the input of a parish/town councillor to offer their unique perspective. Obtaining local support is vital for any cycling and walking scheme and a parish/town councillor is uniquely paces to provide this.  The working group meets every six weeks (in person, there is an option to join online). The next meeting is taking place on 6th November - click on this link to view the terms of reference - click on this link to complete the expression of interest form  Deadline to complete form Monday 28th October 5.00 pm.

SALC Update: SALC re-structure - Appointed a new Development and Support Officer – role to support training and development of new clerks. Appointed a new Advice and Development Manager – to replace Jim as retiring at the end of the year – to ensure a smooth transition there will be a comprehensive handover 

      Suffolk Highways -  a survey on Suffolk Highways will be shared with clerks to obtain feedback, this is following on from the SALC Conference at which Suffolk Highways attended.  There will be two forums, free and online, focusing on flooding and drainage and another on winter maintenance programme – we are aiming for these to be available to book later this week – please ask your clerk to book your place. There will also be an in-person focus group at SCC offices to review and discuss the results of the survey. 

 NPPF consultation – SALC commissioned a consultancy company to provide a non-technical summary of the key NPPF changes which was shared with councils on 6^th September to help with meeting deadlines and providing guidance to ease the burden on councillor/officer time.  Click on this link to view the non-technical summary. 

Parish Council Domain Helper Service - update. The halfway point has now been reached in terms of allocated funding. In this financial year, almost 500 councils have claimed their funding (£100), and this figure is increasing each month.  The current projection suggested that all funding will be allocated by February 2025 and it has been confirmed that funding will NOT be available in future years. This being the case, if your council is thinking about moving to .gov.uk, please engage with the helper service as soon as possible to benefit from the funding and support to switching.   INFORMATION PAGE - .gov.uk domains | SALC Website

     Suffolk Community Awards – We announced our winners last week for Council of the Year, Clerk of the Year and Councillor of the Year last week at The Food Museum in Stowmarket. Click on this link to visit the Suffolk Community Awards website.  Our winners have been entered into the NALC Star Council Awards and we wish them luck.