Beach Hut improvement plan launched in popular Lincolnshire seaside resort

THERE will be significant investment and more opportunities for people to buy Beach Huts on the Lincolnshire Coast in the future, East Lindsey District Council has announced, as it unveils a plan to improve the quality of the Huts it owns as well as providing more opportunities for private ownership.

In October 2011, five Beach Huts on Queen’s Park Promenade (numbers 83 to 87) were destroyed by fire and as a result the five Beach Huts adjoining the site (numbers 78 to 82) will be removed to tidy up the area.

Subject to Planning Permission being granted, new Beach Huts with disabled access will be built by the District Council at the rear of Queen’s Garden Square, replacing the Beach Huts currently there and these will be available for hire in the 2012 season.

The remaining Beach Huts will be repainted to ensure the seafront is vibrant and welcoming for local people and visitors to the resorts.

Mablethorpe and Sutton on Sea are both renowned for their Beach Huts, a staple in the traditional British seaside holiday since the 1960’s, and which remain popular today with around 13,500 bookings per season.

In recent years Beach Huts have become highly sought after as investment opportunities, with some being sold privately in Sutton on Sea for anywhere between £8,000 and £18,000 each.

Through this project, the District Council will make available a plot of land for up to 15 new Beach Huts, which will be available to buy ‘off plan’.  The Huts, which will be privately leased, would replace the stretch of old and unsafe beach huts (numbers 120 to 134) at South Promenade in Mablethorpe, which haven’t been used for three seasons due to safety concerns.  It is likely the Huts will cost around £12,000.

Those with an interest in buying a Beach Hut are asked to contact Wilson’s Estate Agent 124 West Street, Alford, Lincs. LN13 9DR or by calling 01507 463582   The proposed designs and draft lease agreement will be available to prospective purchasers through the agent. Details will be finalised as soon as planning permission is confirmed in mid-March, with the first sales being concluded from that point.

Portfolio Holder for the Economy, Councillor Craig Leyland, said: “We will be investing up to £90,000 into a programme of works to improve the quality of beach huts in Mablethorpe and at the same time addressing some of the issues around anti-social behaviour on the seafront when we rebuild.

“In undertaking the programme of work we will ensure we keep any disruption to a minimum so as not to impact upon businesses or visitors.

 “Mablethorpe and Sutton on Sea remain some of the most popular seaside resorts in the country and Beach Huts are an important part of the offer there.  We must build on their success over the past half century and ensure they are well used for many years to come.

“Making this investment now is important in terms of managing the Beach Huts we own and ensuring our coastal resorts remain welcoming to visitors.”

In 2007, Mablethorpe and Sutton on Sea were hosts to the unique Bathing Beauties Project, which saw a series of eye catching beach chalets created in a competition to ‘Re-imagine the beach hut for the 21st century’, led by Artist Michael Trainer.  Five of the beach huts submitted for the competition were constructed and are on show in the resort today.

Affordable housing investment supported by Council Executive

EAST Lindsey District Council’s Executive Board has today agreed to recommend the Council invests a further £2.52m into its Housing Capital Programme to develop another 210 affordable homes in the District in partnership with Waterloo Housing Group.
Currently 7,676 households are on the Housing Waiting List in East Lindsey and the Board in making its recommendation to Council made clear that it is keen to help create more opportunities for people to have their own home and also give the construction industry a boost at a difficult economic time.  The Board’s recommendation will be considered at a meeting of Council on 29th February.
Since launching its Housing Capital Programme in 2004, East Lindsey District Council has directly invested £5.1m to develop over 500 affordable homes.  This investment has enabled the District to attract approximately £12m national funding from organisations such as the Homes and Communities Agency to subside the homes meaning more homes can be built.
The 210 homes would comprise of 40 units for rent in rural communities and 170 in towns, 150 of which would be for rent and 20 for shared ownership. This programme will run until April 2015 in line with the Homes and Communities Agency’s funding regime.
Portfolio Holder for Housing, Councillor William Gray, said: “The gap between the number of people on the Housing Waiting List and the availably of homes is ever increasing and we’re keen to invest what we can to help address this issue in a positive way.
“As a family, and particularly for younger people, it is important to be able to move into your first home and have your own independence and with house prices still relatively high and obtaining a mortgage challenging for some we need to create other opportunities for people to have their own place.
“Aside from the investment I would like the Council to make; we will continue to work hard to encourage developers to include affordable housing when they are granted planning permission in East Lindsey.
“This investment, if approved at Council, would give the construction industry in the District a real boost too, with local contractors and suppliers being used.  It would also create apprenticeships for local people to develop new skills, something which is vitally important.”

Overview to scrutinise Executive budget proposals

EAST Lindsey District Council’s Executive Board has today (Tuesday, January 17, 2012) supported a draft budget for 2012/13 that would freeze Council Tax and protect front line services to local people.
Now, the draft budget, put forward to the Board by the Council’s Portfolio Holder for Finance, Councillor John Upsall, will be scrutinised by the Council’s Overview Committee on February 1, 2012.  The Overview Committee’s recommendations will then go back to the Council’s Executive on February 14, 2012 for consideration and then onto full Council on February 29, 2012 for further debate.
Over the next year the Council needs to save a further £2.6m from its £19.4m revenue budget to balance the books.  The saving is needed in additional to the £3.6m made for the 2011/12 financial year and is a result of reduced Government funding and increases in costs such as fuel and electricity.
The saving for 2012/13 outlined in the draft budget could come from more efficient ways of working in the Council, including a £1.2m reduction in staffing costs, £500,000 from a senior management restructure.  Compass Point Business Services will also continue to provide the Council with a significant savings of £1.4m each year, increasing by a further £65,000 in 2013/14.
The Council’s full draft budget is available to view at www.e-lindsey.gov.uk/consultation until January 29 with local people and businesses invited to have their say as part of the annual budget consultation exercise.  The feedback provided during the consultation period will go before the Overview Committee  when it meets.
Chairman of the Council’s Overview Committee, Councillor Fiona Martin, said: “The Overview Committee plays a vital role in ensuring the Council has robust plans in place to deal with the savings the Council needs to make over the next year and into the future when the challenge becomes even greater.  We must robustly and rigorously challenge the Executive Board to ensure their Plans are well thought through and to ensure local people are receiving the best service possible from the money the Council has available.”

£500,000 public toilet improvement programme announced in East Lindsey

HALF a million pounds will be spent to improve 24 public toilets in East Lindsey, East Lindsey District Council has announced as it continues to invest in its front line services.

The Council’s Executive Board has today (January 17, 2012) agreed a programme of works over the next four years, which will see public toilets significantly improved to make them more pleasant to use and modern.

Toilets included in the improvement programme include Briar Way, Skegness; Lumley Square, Skegness; North Parade, Skegness; Tower Esplanade, Skegness; Princess Parade, Skegness; Eastgate, Louth; Burgh Le Marsh Market Place; St Lawrence Street, Horncastle; The Dunes, Mablethorpe; Queen’s Park, Mablethorpe; Seacroft Road , Mablethorpe; Central Promenade, Mablethorpe; Roman Bank, Sutton on Sea ; York Road, Sutton on Sea; Market Place, Wragby; Bus Station, Louth; Brooks Walk, Wainfleet; Castle Lane, Coningsby; High Street, Spilsby and Spa Road, Woodhall Spa.

Each public toilet will be refurbished with new sanitary fittings, low energy vandal resistant steel hand driers, automatic chrome mixer taps; improved ventilation, new wall tiling, internal decorations, new soap dispensers and improved signage.

Seacroft Road and Central Promenade Public Toilets in Mablethorpe and Eastgate Public Toilets in Louth will undergo complete refurbishments, including infrastructural changes, totalling £235,000.   This investment will also include adapting the Seacroft Road public toilet into a Changing Places toilet, which means it can be used by people with profound and multiple learning disabilities, as well as other serious impairments such as spinal injuries, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis or an acquired brain injury, who often need extra facilities to allow them to use the toilets comfortably.

The programme of works will see the closure and demolition of the Roman Bank public toilet in Skegness, which is a seasonal public toilet that is in a very poor condition due to age.

Portfolio Holder for the Environment at the District Council, Councillor Steve Newton, said: “There is nothing worse than being caught short and forced to use substandard public toilets.  We hope that by making this investment we will significant improve the quality of the public toilet provision in our District for local people and visitors to the area.

Council Tax could be frozen again in East Lindsey

Council Tax could be frozen again in East Lindsey


EAST Lindsey District Council’s Executive Board will meet on January 17, 2012, to consider the Council’s draft budget for the 2012/13 financial year.   Following that meeting, the draft budget, put forward for consideration by the Portfolio Holder for Finance, Councillor John Upsall, will go to the Overview Committee, before going back to the Executive Board and then full Council on February 29 for further discussion and sign off.

In his draft budget, Cllr Upsall has said the Council should consider freezing Council Tax in the next year.  Cllr Upsall also details how the Council can make the savings it requires in the next year without making cuts to front line services, but he does warn that tough decisions lie ahead as the Council prepares for the 2013/14 budget and those budgets beyond.
In developing the budget for the 2012/13 financial year, the Council needs to find a further £2.6m in savings from its £19.4m revenue budget due to reduced Government funding and pressures such as the increased cost of utilities (fuel and electricity).    This saving is needed on top of the £3.1m savings delivered prior to the start of the current financial year.  In 2013/14, the Council will need to save at least another £1.4m to balance the books.
Cllr Upsall has been clear that his number one priority in putting forward the draft budget has been to protect services to local people and at the same time continue to invest heavily in local priorities, including economic development to support businesses and the community.
The draft budget, if supported, would deliver the required savings through more efficient ways of working, including a £1.2m reduction in the cost of employees following the removal of vacant posts and a senior management restructure.  There is also a continued saving from the pioneering shared services company, Compass Point Business Services.
Over the next four years the Council still has plans to invest £500,000 into public toilet improvements, a priority identified in the recent budget consultation.   The Council will also continue to invest £1.5m into a grant scheme to support the rural economy and £350,000 into a major festival programme for 2012 that raises the profile of the area as a visitor destination.   £976k will also be spent over the next year on Disabled Facility Grants to help with home adaptations.  In addition to this, £1m still remains earmarked for flood prevention schemes in Horncastle and Louth - £500,000 each.  The Council is also considering further investment of £2.5m to develop affordable homes in the District and support the construction industry.

To deliver the £1.4m budget saving that will be required for 2013/14 and beyond the Council plans to continue reviewing all the services it provides on an ongoing basis to seek opportunities for increased revenue and additional savings to protect front line services.

Council Upsall, said: "The budget I have proposed would allow us to continue to invest in local services over the next financial year and this is positive news.  Thanks to a Government Grant I am able to propose that we freeze Council Tax, which if supported by fellow Councillors would means East Lindsey residents continue to pay their District Council one of the lowest rates in Council Tax rates in the country.

“Although we remain well positioned financially compared to many others Council we must continue to manage our finances robustly to ensure we can make the savings required in future years too.

“We will continue to rigorously review our services and look for opportunities to make the additional savings we need, whilst minimising the impact on front line services, particularly those that serve the most vulnerable people in our community.”

The full draft budget is available to view and comment on at www.e-lindsey.gov.uk/consultation until the end of January.

East Lindsey Olympics Volunteering Programme Launch

East Lindsey District Council says:


The Council's Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Councillor Adam Grist, will be live on BBC Lincolnshire at 7.35am tomorrow (Monday) about a major new volunteering programme being launched in the District to mark 200 days until the start of London 2012.