South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership

Thank you to the District Councils' Network for including the huge financial impact of the Internal Drainage Board levies in their Budget and Spending Review 2024 submission to the #Treasury.   Within the review looking at ‘Financial Pressures on District Councils’, the DCN state: “Internal Drainage Boards (IDB), which protect nearly one million properties in England from flooding, save seen their costs rise by an average of 28% in the two years since 2022-23. “They have little choice but to pass these higher costs on to councils through the IDB levy. These councils hold no additional flexibilities to cover this cost so must draw from their own budgets. In the worst affected councils, the levy has increased by more than 30% and now makes up a substantial portion of total budget. For example, the IDB levy makes up 22% of Boston Borough Council’s entire annual net budget and 61% of the council tax it collects.” The Local Government Association Special Interest Group for Internal Drainage Board levies has now grown to 37 member councils. The SIG will be presenting its campaign for funding reform which includes workable solutions to MPs next week. The DCN’s Budget and Spending Review 2024 can be read in full below. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government Ashford Borough Council Bassetlaw District Council Bedford Borough Council Central Bedfordshire Council Breckland Council Doncaster Council City of Lincoln Council City of York Council East Cambridgeshire District Council Fenland District Council Folkestone & Hythe District Council Gloucester City Council Great Yarmouth Borough Council Huntingdonshire District Council Borough Council of Kings Lynn & West Norfolk Lincolnshire County Council Maidstone Borough Council Newark and Sherwood District Council North Kesteven District Council North Lincolnshire Council North Norfolk District Council North Yorkshire Council Rushcliffe Borough Council Somerset Council South Kesteven District Council SKDC Stroud District Council Swale Borough Council West Lindsey District Council Westmorland and Furness Council West Suffolk Council Boston Borough Council East Lindsey District Council South Holland District Council Paul Redgate Christine Marshall James Gilbert

The South & East Lincolnshire Council Partnership is marking its third anniversary today, #LincolnshireDay! Did you know that since the Partnership formed, it has attracted £208m of external funding to support services and investment in communities. Here’s some more highlights from the past year: ◼ Partnership is working with 33 other Councils to lobby Government for a fairer funding approach to Internal Drainage Board levies. ◼ Developing arts, heritage and culture offer across the Partnership through the Arts Council England funded National Portfolio Organisation programme. ◼ £1m awarded to parish councils, village halls and community groups through UKSPF and Rural Prosperity Fund ◼ More than £1.8m awarded through UKSPF to support residents into higher skilled and higher paid work ◼ Partnership to launch its own Lincolnshire Academy to create a pipeline of talent into Local Government. ◼ South & East Lincolnshire Crowd has fully funded five projects totalling £53,364 - with the crowd contributing 54% of this total (£25,584) ◼ Partnership delivered the most Home Upgrade Grants in the Midlands – supporting residents to live warmer and more efficiently. ◼ Councils sign up to the Age-friendly Employer Pledge by the Centre for Ageing Better.  ◼ Changing Places facilities open in East Lindsey, Boston and South Holland. ◼ £42.8m Transformational growth projects continuing into next year - Spilsby Sessions House, Alford Windmill, Alford Manor House, Castle Sports Complex, Spalding and Rosegarth, Boston. ◼ Partnership-wide enviro-crime enforcement continues to tackle litter, dog fouling and fly-tipping ◼ Community Safety Strategy adopted across the Partnership.   ◼ Towns Fund projects being delivered in Boston and East Lindsey, with delivery continuing into next year. ◼ The Partnership’s Community lottery is helping 88 good causes – it has 512 weekly players and has raised a total of £59,236. ◼ Partnership Future Leaders Scheme is supporting staff development and recognised as an LGC Workforce finalist. ◼ The first Sub-regional Strategy – a collective alignment of priorities, aims and ambitions – adopted. ◼ Partnership’s Home Energy Advice and Retrofit team win an APSE award for delivering retrofit at scale ◼ LGC Awards 2024 Finalist – Outstanding Individual Contribution award. ◼ Supporting wellbeing at work with Mental Health First Aiders, Shelf Care Book Club and Menopause Support Group ◼ Productivity Plans published for all three Councils, setting out efficient ways of working, increasing opportunities for communities and service provision ◼ Community award schemes launched across the Partnership to recognise the hard work of community champions. And much more to come in the next year! You can find out more about the Partnership’s ambitions in its sub-regional strategy here. #Partnership #anniversary #workingtogether

Today it is not only #LincolnshireDay, it is also the South & East Lincolnshire’s Councils Partnership’s third anniversary! Since forming in 2021, the Partnership of Boston Borough Council, East Lindsey District Council and South Holland District Council has been focused on delivering opportunities, quality services and value for money. The Partnership is on track to deliver projected savings of £42m over 10 years through more efficient ways of working. To celebrate our three year anniversary, here’s what the Partnership means to Council Leaders and employees in just three words… #Partnership #anniversary #workingtogether Anne Dorrian Craig LEYLAND Public Nick Worth Rob Barlow Christine Marshall Adrian Sibley Andy Fisher Pranali Parikh James Gilbert Jason King Emily Spicer MBA Lydia Rusling Christian Allen John Medler Victoria Burgess Matthew Hogan Phil Norman Richard Hodgson Phil Perry

Congratulations to the Partnership Election Teams for winning the Team of the Year award 2024! The Partnership's three elections teams deserve recognition for their commitment and hard work, particularly the work that has gone into the General Election in just six weeks. This came just weeks after organising the May Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner elections. This year has seen several changes to election law, particularly for absent and postal votes, which has added to the usual workload and organisation of the election. Elections are high profile, major events and to organise all this in just six weeks is no mean feat. The teams worked around the clock to ensure the elections were well organised and ran smoothly. “Six months work was condensed into 6 weeks with cancelled holidays, weekend and evening working becoming the normal. The team(s) have pulled together to ensure there is mutual support throughout. Hundreds of staff were employed and fully trained to ensure everyone who was entitled to vote had the opportunity to use it. The teams right across the partnership rose to the challenge and delivered yet another smooth and efficient election - a fantastic achievement! “ Well Done!

Supporting colleagues on their professional development through #training and #qualifications is important for growing #career opportunities and the retention of expertise at the South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership. This week, a new cohort from across the three councils started their #ILM Level 5 Certificate in Leadership and Management, delivered by Challenge Training and Consultancy Limited t/a Challenge Consulting. For the first time, the Partnership has been able to offer colleagues an opportunity to learn in-house with Challenge Training and Consultancy delivering the modules at our offices in Spalding and Horncastle. This year's cohort also includes many colleagues who completed the Partnership's #FutureLeaders programme to further support their professional and personal development 👏 Thank you to Stuart McCord MBA MCMI Assoc CIPD for starting the cohort on their exciting learning journey! Good luck to everyone taking part! 📚 Abbie M. Rachael Leggett Alison White Sadie Russell MCIPR Sam Cullington MCIPR Ian Dunn Craig Fiske Michael Hayward-Salvadori Georgia Ladbrook Tulani Ndhlovu Michael Smith Luke Settle Rachel Robinson Rebecca Cooke James Gilbert Christine Marshall

The archaeological trial trenching works at the Castle Sports Complex are underway! The Heras fencing has now been erected for the works, which will take place over around four weeks and are required to determine the presence of any potential archaeological artefacts prior to the construction of the new South Holland Health and Wellbeing Hub. Car parks, the children’s play park, outdoor bowls and cinder track will remain open as normal throughout these works, with the main grassed areas closed off for safety purposes. We apologise for any inconvenience caused, and will keep you updated as the project progresses. More details on the plans for the Health and Wellbeing Hub can be found at https://lnkd.in/eUqbiAaA.

Work on Cultural Skegness, an East Lindsey District Council led project for the transformation of the historic Embassy Theatre in Skegness has started on-site, as it aims to bring a new 'culture house concept' to the town. The redevelopment is designed to help the popular venue, which has been in Skegness since 1926, to expand and adapt to current needs, creating improved, modern, and accessible facilities that will provide residents and visitors with a bigger and better offer of activities and shows to enjoy. Improvements are based on the founding principles of the 'culture house concept', based on a Scandinavian model aimed at boosting local engagement in the arts and diversifying a venue's offer all year round. The ambition for the culture house is to create a space to support the exploration and enjoyment of new opportunities and activities for young people and the local community, whilst continuing to develop the creative sector in the Lincolnshire coast, which is already developing and forming new national and international connections, including the Embassy's ongoing partnership with the Royal Shakespeare Company and its Associate Schools Programme. The plans for the Towns Fund and Arts Council England funded work received planning permission on 5 September, and include significant upgrades to seating within the auditorium, an extended storage area for staging and equipment, and the creation of a new feature entrance and multi-purpose space to the southern side of the building. A new external seating area will be introduced, and there will be upgrades to existing changing rooms, lift and toilet areas throughout. The proposals also include new Embassy venue signage on the front of the building. The development is part of the Skegness Connected Coast Town Deal and Arts Council England's Cultural Development Fund project, which has contributed to a £4.1million total programme of works for the theatre. Find out more ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eYmtqxdB Connected Coast Magna Vitae Trust for Leisure & Culture

Congratulations to Suzanne Rolfe for winning the Employee of the Year award 2024! Suzanne did great work contributing to pulling together the Sub-Regional Strategy. In addition, in her day-to-day work she is consistently hard-working, conscientious and ensures everything she does is for the benefit of the Partnership and contributes to its success. Well Done!

Attention: walkers! The King Charles III England Coast Path has now opened in #Lincolnshire. The King Charles III England Coast Path, once completed, will be a 2,700 mile National Trail around the whole of the English coast, enabling people to enjoy, recognise and value the benefits of our country’s beautiful coastline. The opening of 57.3 miles (92.7 km) of path between Sutton Bridge and Skegness means the majority of the coastline of The Wash is now open to walkers. Parts of the path are very remote with no public facilities or connecting paths for many miles, so walkers are advised to be self-sufficient, taking enough food and water for the journey, checking the weather and wearing appropriate clothing and footwear. Use the National Trails website to plan your day and see places to visit, stay or eat 👉 https://bit.ly/4eem97K To read the full article, visit Lincolnshire County Council’s website here 👉 https://bit.ly/4dgRNjK 📷 Natural England #KCIIIECP #CoastalPath #Countryside #LoveWalking

Are you an arts or heritage practitioner, or work for an arts, heritage or community organisation? ✨ If so, The National Arts Fundraising School is offering five FREE spaces on their training programme that can help you learn important skills, such as writing powerful proposals, setting up credible giving campaigns, asking high net worth individuals for support, or clinching sponsorship deals with companies, and much more 👏 The sessions are open to all arts and heritage organisations and practitioners, no matter how big or small your projects are planned to be, and the only requirements are to be working within South Holland, East Lindsey, or Boston Borough ✅ This opportunity is brought to you by the South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership’s Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation programme, in partnership with the National Arts Fundraising School. If you're interested in applying, please visit https://loom.ly/hXd2Kfg for more information and to fill out the application form 🤞 If you have any questions regarding eligibility for the programme, please contact Sam Phillips at [email protected], or if you have questions about the programme itself, please speak to Bernard Ross at [email protected].