Billericay Town Council

Summer is just around the corner so it’s time to get out into the garden and start thinking about this year’s Billericay in Bloom competition.
The competition is open to anyone resident within the Billericay Town boundary. You can enter as many categories as you wish and the competition is completely free to enter.
Judging will take place at the end of June and winners will be presented with a certificate, trophy and voucher at our award ceremony for entrants and their famil...ies on 19 July.
You can complete an entry form at http://www.billericaytowncouncil.gov.uk/‚ Ķ/News/Display.aspx‚Ķ üå∫üå∫
Closing date for entries is Monday 24 June
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War Memorial Improvement
The next stage of improvement works to the War Memorial has just been completed with the replacement of the paving slabs and the coping stones. The contractors H&B removed the tree stump, repaired the broken brickwork on the WW2 Memorial and then replaced the coping stones and paving slabs.
This was all made possible due to the generous donations we received from residents from our crowd funding project to enhance the War Memorial. The Town Council pl...an to use the remainder of the money donated to repair and repoint some of the joints on the main Memorial stone and also some of the defective brick pointing on the walls of the Memorial.
Cllr Moore, Chairman of our Environment Committee went along to inspect the new slabs today and was delighted with the results and is looking forward to completing the remaining works which will only further enhance the appearance of the War Memorial.
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Annual Report and Town Crier
The latest edition of the Town Crier including the Annual Report is now being delivered to all homes in the parish of Billericay and can also be found on the Town Council‚Äôs website http://www.billericaytowncouncil.gov.uk/‚ Ķ/News/Display.aspx‚Ķ
Also in this edition is an entry form for the annual Billericay in Bloom competition along with details of the upcoming Annual Town Meeting which is being held on 25 April at 7pm in the Coach House meeting room in crown yard.

BILLERICAY Town Council is looking to recruit two Community Special Constables.
https://www.essex.police.uk/…/billerica y-community-special…/
The move comes as part of Essex Police’s continued commitment to drive up the number of volunteer officers and keep policing local, visible and accessible. As well as launching a Specials Recruitment campaign, called ‘My Other Life’, the force has been working with town and parish councils across Essex to secure funding for dedicated Com...munity Special Constables. Councils are being invited to cover the cost of expenses of the volunteer officer – which is approximately £1,000 a year – which will secure them a Special committed to policing their area. Special Constables have full police powers, uniforms, equipment and training.
To become a Special you need to be: 18 or over; commit to a minimum of 16-hours each month for operational duties plus mandatory training; meet the required fitness standard; and commit to the initial training requirement of 20 days. Community Specials are committed to policing the area that pays for them. However where a critical incident occurs, for example a terrorist attack, the Community Special may be called on to help in another area of the county.
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Essex Police Local Community Meeing
Come and meet your Local Policing Team on Friday, 26 April 2019 from 19:00-21:00 in Waitrose.
https://www.facebook.com/events/457624234 768042/

Billericay Annual Town Meeting
Billericay residents are invited to attend the Billericay Annual Town Meeting which is being held at 7pm on Thursday 25 April in the Coach House, Crown Yard.
Guest speakers this year include Mr Jim Rose who will be speaking about the Billericay Food Bank and a talk from an officer from the waste and recycling team at Basildon Borough Council.
... There will also be reports on the activities of the Town Council plus an opportunity for residents to ask questions of councillors.
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The Town Council took part in the Fly a Flag for the Commonwealth event by raising the Commonwealth Flag on the flag pole at the Police Station today.
This event is an annual occasion which brings the communities and countries of the Commonwealth together in a common celebration of its diverse cultures and communities.
Cllr Jim Devlin read out a specially written Commonwealth Affirmation before raising the flag at 10am.

The demolition of the old Chantry Way Centre made rapid progress this morning with approximately half of the building brought down. We expect 3 skips to be delivered and rubbish removed today with a further 3 tomorrow. The demolition of the brickwork at the side will be taking place on Friday and Monday when the trees at the rear will be felled. Hoarding will be going up around the site soon.
Virtually all of the building will be recycled and our demolition contractors GBM UK... pride themselves on a very high recycling rate. Normally everything would be pre-sorted (metals, wood etc.) but due to the size of our site everything is being taken offsite for sorting.
Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused and we’d particularly like to thank The Chequers and Harry’s Bar who allowed people to access Chantry Way through their premises yesterday when the main equipment was being delivered.
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Demolition of the old Chantry Way Centre will start on Monday 4th March. Businesses and residences in the immediate area have been notified.
Being of mainly wood construction the demolition isn’t expected to take too long and most of the structure is expected to be flattened by the end of the first week. The following week will see work start on the brick element of the building towards the rear of the centre’s hall.
Demolition material will be removed in large skips from Chantry Way through to the High Street. When this happens the gap between The Chequers and Ravens Bakery will be closed temporarily to allow vehicles to enter and exit. This will be kept to a minimum, however, but it is necessary to ensure the safety of pedestrians and banksmen will be present at all times.

The latest issue of the Town Crier is being delivered to all homes in the Parish of Billericay this weekend. Articles include:
Chantry Way Development War Memorial Illumination project Lighting of the Beacon at Sun Corner
... To see a copy go to: http://www.billericaytowncouncil.gov.uk/‚ Ķ/News/Display.aspx‚Ķ
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The Town Council is seeking nominations for the 2019 Citizen and Young Citizen of the Year. If you know of any Billericay resident who goes out of their way to help others, contributes to a community group or organisation, gives up their free time to fundraise for charity, or makes a significant contribution to Billericay life then why not nominate them for Citizen of the Year. For a nomination form go to: http://www.billericaytowncouncil.gov.uk/‚ Ķ/News/Display.aspx‚Ķ
Last year...'s recipients were VIP guests at all Town Council events including Billericay in Bloom, Lighting the Beacon and the Christmas Lights switch on.
Closing date for nominations is 12 April 2019 so don't delay - get your nominations in today!
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Two weeks ago at a pre-demolition meeting with contractors, Billericay Town Council discovered that two squatters had moved into the Chantry Way Centre by forcing open an emergency exit. We immediately instructed lawyers and on Friday morning the Magistrate’s Court in Basildon gave the squatters 24 hours to leave or face arrest. On Saturday morning Court appointed bailiffs and Police attended, however, the squatters had already left. Our demolition contractors GBM immediatel...y boarded up the doors and secured the site with Heras fencing.
We are thankful to our solicitors and to the Magistrate’s Court for a quick resolution, however, sadly it is the Town Council and therefore Billericay residents who will have to pay the costs associated with the eviction. These include legal costs, costs in bringing in fencing earlier than planned along with additional sums for boarding windows and doors and potentially a “bio-hazard clean” of the building prior to its demolition to remove hazardous detritus. Full costs are still being gathered but these will certainly a few thousand pounds.
We are awaiting the final disconnection of the gas services (which had to be delayed because of the squatter’s arrival) but once that happens the building will be demolished and work can continue on the new Chantry Way facility.
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Demolition of the Chantry Way Centre
Please note that from Friday 1st February and Saturday 2nd February onwards there will be no access to the car park behind the Chantry Way Centre as our demolition contractors will be installing temporary fencing around the site.
There is no official parking at the Chantry Way Centre, however, if you have been leaving your car there we strongly advise that you stop doing so from Friday morning onwards. If your car is still in car park after fencing is installed your exit may be delayed - potentially by some hours - as it will require a visit from the demolition contractors to open up the site.

Billericay Youth Town Council host talent showcase
Our Youth Town Councillors turned out in force on Friday 25 January to present an evening showcasing Billericay’s young talent. The showcase which was the idea of the youth council was run for the first time last year and gives an opportunity for some of the amazing and talented young people in Billericay to show off their skills. There was a superb range of singers, musicians and dancers including Zoe Lugg and Oliver Grimes,... Julia Bonnier, Rosie Lugg and Holly, Alex Hintz, Jasmine Margalit, Ella Botton and Live, Love, Dance who all made the evening very special. The host for the evening was Youth Town Councillor Joe Short who did an excellent job of introducing the acts. The Youth Council were also raising funds to put towards the new skate park and along with a raffle and donations for beverages managed to raise an impressive £245. Thank you to all the very generous residents that attended the evening and also to all the Town Councillors and staff that came along to support the event. Special thanks also to our roadie Graham Lowrie from Ace Bathrooms who stepped in at very short notice to help set up the sound system.
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Cllr Jo Clark was delighted to present a cheque for £100 to N Shelley who were the winners of the Billericay Town Council Best Christmas Display 2018. Laura Phipps and Victoria Bulgin who designed the window decided to donate the money to the Essex & Herts Air Ambulance. Laura and Victoria along with Sarah Palmer, owner of N Shelley, presented the money to Hoss Atri who was there on behalf of the charity. Hoss said that the Air Ambulance were very grateful for every donation ...they receive as they don’t receive any National Lottery funding and only have limited support from Government and therefore rely on donations from the people and local businesses of Essex and Hertfordshire. So far this January the service has already been called out on 33 missions. This year the charity are celebrating 20 years of saving lives. To find out more about the charity go to www.ehaat.org
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Billericay Festival of Remembrance
This year the Town Council was pleased to be involved with the Festival of Remembrance concert which was held on the 10th November at the Emmanuel Church. This very popular evening of music was combined with a formal Act of Remembrance which this year included a tribute to the centenary of the First World War. The festival also raises money for charity and this year the Town Council were able to make a donation of £633 to both the Royal Brit...ish Legion and Help for Heroes.
The evening included music from the Harmony Brass Band Ensemble and the Essential Singers. The Town Council were especially grateful to the 2393 (Billericay) Squadron Air Cadets who were out in the car park on possibly one of the wettest evenings of the year and also to Bennetts Funeral Directors who provided the programmes for the concert.
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