The Leader and Chief Executive of Scarborough Borough Council issue a final seasonal message.
Scarborough Borough Council Leader, Steve Siddons, and council Chief Exec, Nick Edwards, have issued a seasonal message to residents of the borough for the final time ahead of the councils abolition in April.
In the message the council leaders say:
"It seems almost unbelievable that we are approaching the end of another year.
At the end of 2021 we were still trying to manage the challenges caused by the Omicron variant of Covid-19 as we had to respond to a fresh set of restrictions.
Fortunately, those difficult days are now a distant memory although we mustn’t forget that the coronavirus hasn’t gone away.
As we prepare to welcome 2023, we are dealing with a whole new set of difficulties.
The cost of living crisis is causing significant issues for many households across our borough and its effects are arguably being felt harder here than elsewhere in North Yorkshire.
It’s also likely that it will continue to have an impact for months to come even if what seem to be ongoing price rises slow down.
We’ve been doing all we can this year to provide as much support and help as possible to people who have needed it the most.
We were one of the first councils to pay the £150 council tax energy rebate with £5.25 million distributed in a ten-day period to 35,000 households in our borough.
For eligible households, we’ve since topped that up with second payments totalling £217,000 to maximise the support we can offer.
Working with the charity sector and public sector partner organisations, a network of warm spaces across the borough have been created.
We’ve also established a pot of money to support local charities as they respond to the cost of living crisis and provide vital services in their communities.
Elsewhere, our ambitious regeneration programmes in Whitby and Scarborough have continued to make progress.
As part of the Towns Deal initiative, we’re investing £38 million in the two towns to improve facilities, create new jobs, drive economic development and to protect the environment.
Some of the individual projects are already coming to fruition – notably in Whitby – and significant milestones have been achieved with others.
The biggest, the transformation of the area in and around Scarborough railway station, has moved forward with the appointment of a contractor to begin the design works.Although Filey was not eligible for the Towns Deal fund, we’ve set aside £1 million for the town and this year have been working with residents to understand how that could be spent.
Our final Vision for Filey document will be brought to a meeting of our cabinet next year.
You may have also noticed the benefits of our £2 million Project Sunshine Two investment.
We’ve spruced up many areas across the borough including carrying out deep cleaning, painting railings, fixing seats, reinstating artwork, improving public loos and upgrading facilities for camper vans and caravans.
Sadly for us, this is the last seasonal message we will be able to send you. You may be aware that we – Scarborough Borough Council – will be abolished next year.
After almost 50 years of existence, the seven district and borough authorities in North Yorkshire and the county council are being scrapped on 31 March to be replaced by a single, unitary, organisation.
The team setting up the new council has said you will notice very little change on 1 April 2023 and has pledged to continue the local services we know you value and appreciate.
We hope you enjoy Christmas and New Year. With best wishes for 2023."
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