A number of local residents had raised with us that the “Solarium” area (by the Sir John Moore statue / start of Sandgate Esplanade) was full of shingle and inaccessible.
We’ve raised this with Folkestone and Hythe District Council, and are delighted to say that they have now cleared the area and is pictured today, resplendent and ready to use (you’ll see it has good ramps for wheelchair / buggy access).
Sandgate Parish Council is defined as a “smaller authority” for the purposes of publication of its annual accounts and statements.
The Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 and the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 require that:
1. The accounting records for the financial year to which the audit relates and all books, deeds, contracts, bills, vouchers, receipts and other documents relating to those records must be made available for inspection by any person interested, during a period of 30 working days set by the smaller authority and including the first 10 working days of July.
2. The period referred to in paragraph (1) starts with the day on which the period for the exercise of public rights is treated as having been commenced i.e. the day following the day on which all of the obligations in paragraph (3) below have been fulfilled.
3. The responsible financial officer for a relevant authority must, on behalf of that authority, publish (which must include publication on the authority’s website):
(a) the Accounting Statements (i.e. Section 2 of the Annual Return), accompanied by:
(i) a declaration, signed by that officer to the effect that the status of the Accounting Statements are unaudited and that the Accounting Statements as published may be subject to change;
(ii) the Annual Governance Statement (i.e. Section 1 of the Annual Return); and
(b) a statement that sets out—
(i) the period for the exercise of public rights;
(ii) details of the manner in which notice should be given of an intention to inspect the accounting records and other documents;
(iii) the name and address of the local auditor;
(iv) the provisions contained in section 26 (inspection of documents etc.) and section 27 (right to make objections at audit) of the Act, as they have effect in relation to the authority in question.
All the required accounting statements, declarations, annual governance statement and additional statements are available in this 2018 Full Annual Return of Sandgate Parish Council. There is also a Notice of Public Rights and Publication of Unaudited Annual Governance & Accountability Return. The declared period for the exercise of Public Rights is 19 June – 1 August 2019, but in practice it was published on the Sandgate Parish Council website on 20 June 2019.
annual audit docs 2018-19 final approved-1
There is a National Audit Office guide Local Authority Accounts: A guide to your rights.
What a difference that rain has made! The carrot seeds have sprouted and things are starting to romp away! We managed to source some bean canes from the Park compost heap, and to demolish a large chunk of courgette cake. Welcome to Sue and Andrew who joined us this week – Thanks Sue for the butternut squash plants, broad bean seeds, and French beans, much appreciated….we also had an anonymous courgette donation, all have been planted, but the broad bean seeds are to be saved for the autumn! If you know people with veg plots/allotments, ask them to bear us in mind when it comes to dividing plants later in the autumn, as that is when we will be looking for donations to the cause…more about that nearer the time!
What’s next
Certainly no need to worry about the watering this week! Some very welcome downpours will help things to establish, and fortunately most things remained planted during the gale force winds!
The biggest dilemma of the week was what to do with our first courgette! All things considered, the answer was to make a courgette cake to share with the workers on Saturday. We are now looking forward to thinking about more things that the garden will be giving us, from the flowers to the edibles, and even edible flowers! Of course, the work has to be put in first to reap the benefit, and we are starting to be given a few seeds, seedlings and plants to add to the rapidly filling spaces. Many seeds are being grown in modules within the safety of a patio or window ledge to be planted in the garden when they are big and strong enough to cope! Some of the things we have been given are a little late to be starting off right now in June, but you never know until you try! As time goes on, the garden will be full, and that bare earth will begin to disappear! As well as the garden starting to grow, so is the news that the garden exists, with many people stopping by to have a look and even stop in the street to comment on how great it all is, so thanks for all the support!
What’s next?
