Full council to make governance decision on Bexhill

The event by Rother District Council has been made an all-ticket affair.

Rother District Council’s full council will make a final decision on the issue at its next meeting on Monday, December 18 at 6.30pm.

Councillors will be asked to consider four potential options for the town, drawn up following the community governance review which launched at the start of the year.

The council said due to space constraints within the council chamber, just 35 tickets will be available, which can only be claimed in person from the town hall reception from Monday (December 11) at 8.30am with a limit of two tickets per person. For anyone not able to get a ticket, the meeting is being screened live in nearby St John’s Church Hall, in Town Hall Square, with entry on the door without the need for a ticket.

Malcolm Johnston, the council’s executive director of resources, said: “The governance review has generated a huge amount of interest among people in Bexhill. We know there will be high demand to attend the meeting, so issuing tickets will enable us to control that demand and avoid people turning up on the night and being disappointed.

“The live screening at the church hall means that anyone who wants to watch the proceedings will be able to do so.”

Councillors will debate all four of the following options and choose one to take forward, namely:

• No change, with Bexhill continuing to be governed by the district council only.

• The creation of one parish council, to be styled as a town council, for the whole of Bexhill, in addition to the district council.

• The creation of a Bexhill Area Committee comprising the 18 Bexhill district ward councillors. The area committee would be consulted on decision making, but would not have executive decision making powers.

• The creation of four parish councils for Bexhill – one for each of East Sussex County Council’s divisional boundaries, in addition to the district council.

On the day of the meeting, entry to the town hall will be from 6pm only and no members of the public will be admitted without a valid ticket. More information about the review and four options being considered is available at www.rother.gov.uk/CommunityGovernanceReview.