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The council is encouraging residents and businesses to subscribe to the new e-newsletter service will provide information on the latest national guidance and local updates, direct links to useful resources, and signpost available support on offer in the city during the coronavirus outbreak.
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City of York Council’s Recycling Team is helping residents to have a ‘green’ Christmas this year by providing festive dos and don’ts to make it even easier to recycle and re-use Christmas waste.
Greetings cards, wrapping paper and crackers are just some of the items that can be recycled through the council’s household waste and recycling collections.
Councillor Andrew Waller, executive member for environment, said: “Christmas is a time of great joy and celebration for most people, but it’s also a time when we create lots of extra waste.
“Just giving a bit of ‘One Planet’ thought to how we can recycle, re-use and compost Christmas waste can make a huge difference to the amount we throw away.
“Re-using items such as wrapping paper and gift bags can also be a great way to help keep costs down next Christmas.”
Festive ‘dos’ to recycle include:
Real Christmas trees and wreaths (with tinsel and decorations removed) can be recycled at Hazel Court or Towthorpe Waste Household Recycling Centres. Lots of food waste can be composted and re-used in the garden. Visit www.getcomposting.com for more information.
Festive don’ts to recycle:
For some tasty recipes on using up festive leftovers and hints on how to reduce food waste visit www.lovefoodhatewaste.com
Residents can check their recycling collection days using:
the calendar which the council distributed to households across the city in October and November
online at www.york.gov.uk/refuselookup
get free alerts to smartphones or tablets by downloading the OnePlanetYork app from itunes or google playstore.
The city’s household waste centres are open every day except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s day (with Towthorpe also closed on Wednesdays). To check what can go in your recycling boxes, visit www.york.gov.uk/waste
For more information on festive waste and recycling visit www.york.gov.uk/festivereycling
All households will get extra household waste collections (grey bins/black sacks) during weeks commencing 18 December 2017 and 2 January 2018… Put your waste out by 7.00am for collection! click CHECK YOUR COLLECTION DAY/DATES: WWW.YORK.GOV.UK/REFUSELOOKUP
Plan ahead for a happy holiday!
City of York Council has “got Christmas all wrapped up and we’ve pulled our festive information into one place to help residents plan ahead”.
The customer centre will close over the festive period.
It will shut at 4pm on Friday 22 December and then re-open on Wednesday 27 December running normal opening hours except for on Friday 29 December when it will close at 4pm.
The customer centre will then re-open in the New Year on 2 January when normal opening hours will start.
We remain open for all social care, housing and homelessness emergencies. In addition, the team will carry out urgent assessments of adults or children and can provide advice or guidance over the phone. Emergency contact info can be found at www.york.gov.uk/emergencies
For more information about opening times, contacting us, waste and recycling and other festive Council services, visit www.york.gov.uk/FestivePeriod
Finally, with so many people alone this Christmas, remember to pop in to check on vulnerable friends, neighbours or relatives to make sure they are warm, healthy and happy.
Mary Weastell, City of York Council chief executive, said: “York has recently been voted the most festive cities in the country and I hope residents and businesses continue to enjoy all this great city has to offer over the festive period.
“I would encourage people to be prepared for the holidays. We’ve put on an additional bin collection to help and there’s much you can do to get ready. Whether picking up medical prescriptions in good time, checking waste collections or calling in to check on a vulnerable friend or elderly neighbour. Although our customer contact centre is closed, our emergency teams are always on hand if needed. ”
Residents are advised to follow our social media accounts @cityofyork, @yorkgritter and facebook.com/cityofyork for up to date information over the festive period. Happy holidays!
All households will get extra household waste collections (grey bins/black sacks) during weeks commencing 18 December 2017 and 2 January 2018… Put your waste out by 7.00am for collection!
CHECK YOUR COLLECTION DAY/DATES: WWW.YORK.GOV.UK/REFUSELOOKUP
Published Wednesday, 20th December 2017
A consultation on a proposed review of City of York Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy has opened.
At the Licensing Committee meeting on 25 April, it was agreed to pursue North Yorkshire Police’s request to amend the local authority’s current policy. Published in 2014, it includes a ‘Special Policy’ which relates to applications for the variation of a premises licence or club premises certificates.
The police believe these variations to licensed hours or style of operation can have as much impact locally as granting a new license. To give these variations greater weight and to reflect that they can significantly change the nature of the original license conditions, the force has requested that the policy’s ‘Effects of the Special Policy’ section is changed.
This section of the policy currently reads:
5. “Application for the variation of a premises licence or club premises certificate due to a change of style of operation:
Any application for the variation of style of operation which is subject to relevant representations will be considered on its own merits having regard to the promotion of the licensing objectives
6. Application for the variation of a premises licence or club premises certificate resulting in an extension of the premises and increased capacity:
There will be a presumption to refuse such applications, where relevant representation are received and where the increase in capacity would undermine the licensing objectives unless the applicant can rebut the presumption that the granting of such a variation would undermine the licensing objectives.
7. Application to vary the hours of operation attached to a premises licence or club premises certificate:
All applications that seek to extend the licensed hours will be considered on an individual basis. No different policy will apply in this area as opposed to the rest of the city.”
The a new form of words proposed is:
5. “The following variations are considered to be material:
• change in style of operation
• physical extension of the premises that increases capacity
• extension of hour of operation
and therefore, there will be a presumption to refuse such applications, where relevant representations are received [deleted and] unless the applicant can rebut the presumption that the granting of such a variation would undermine the licensing objectives.”
Views can be sent by email to: licensing.unit@york.gov.uk or posted to Licensing Section, City of York Council, Eco Depot, Hazel Court, York YO10 3DS.
More evidence, that the York Council had become seriously dysfunctional by the end of last year, has been provided in the annual report from the Local Government Ombudsman
The organisation received 91 complaints about the York Council during the year ending March 2015.
Of thes,e 10 were upheld with 35 referred back to the Council for local resolution
The majority of the complaints concerned planning, transport, benefits, adult social care and environmental issues.
One case prompted the Ombudsman to label the Councils response as “extremely poor”
The report says that it took “emails, phone calls and finally two threats of a public interest report (sent by special delivery) to see any action taken”.
The complaint related to social care and the York Council, having accepted it was at fault in December 2013, took until October 2014 to remedy the complaint.
The Ombudsman’s letter was sent to the York Council on 18th June 2015 but has not yet been scheduled for cosideration by any of its committees.
There is likely. in the future, to be a single Ombudsman’s office covering all public administration organisations.
Hopefully the new organisation will also have a role in relation to the growing number of Quangos being established in York and elsewhere. Residents, who at least partly fund organisations like “Make it York”, York Museums Trust and York Libraries, need to have a route to independent arbitration if they are unable to get a local resolution for a problem.
It could be early autumn before new all party committees get the chance to debate the York Council’s upcoming policy plans.
A report being considered on 13th July proposes a return to a form of Executive Member advisory panel (EMAP) which was in use in York during the early part of the last decade. These meetings involve Councillors from all parties and are held in public. To aid planning, meetings occupied a scheduled day each month and were cancelled if there was no business to consider.
Introduced by the Liberal Democrats when they took power, EMAPs sought to widen discussion on policies which affected the City. The sessions were abandoned in 2008 when Labour – who were the main opposition in a balanced Council at the time – refused to participate saying that they preferred the (confrontational) option of “calling in” some proposals for review.
Under the new arrangements, so called “Officer in Consultation” decision meetings are also to be scrapped. These were the meetings which prompted the “behind closed doors” criticisms of the old Council.
Instead these decisions will be taken at an open Executive member meeting.
Of course, how the system works in practice remains to be seen. It’s success rests heavily on future decisions being correctly identified on the Councils “Forward Plan” although this will – rightly – become a “rolling“ programme in future
The new system doesn’t address the issue of Council officials taking decisions exploiting their delegated powers. This has been a particular problem in the Housing department where some wide reaching decisions – including one which saw visits by skips abandoned on some estates – have been taken without even, apparently, the knowledge of Councillors.
Similar issues arise with the growth of third party agencies such as the trusts and companies which now run our museums, libraries and economic development activities.
Thought also now needs to be given as to how residents can feel more involved in the decision process. Extended use of social media channels seems to be an obvious further refinement
Hopefully the new arrangements will start in September after the Council’s August recess.
Conservative and Liberal Democrats have revealed the full details of the new joint Executive set to run City of York Council.
The Executive will be made up of 4 Conservatives and 4 Lib Dems, with Conservative Cllr Chris Steward as Council Leader and Lib Dem Cllr Keith Aspden as Deputy Leader.
Click to enlarge
Responsibility for redrawing York’s Local Plan will sit jointly with the Leader and Deputy Leader.
The 8 Executive Members will take a reduction in allowances compared to the outgoing 6 Labour members to ensure that there is no overall increase in costs. Labour and Green leaders will be invited to attend and speak at executive meetings which will run in conjunction with new cross-party ‘policy and scrutiny’ committees.
Cllr Keith Aspden, Liberal Democrat Group Leader, commented:
“This is an experienced joint administration which is committed to delivering for residents and bringing about real change at the council. In the specific Lib Dem portfolio areas we will focus on increasing recycling, delivering the Community Stadium whilst keeping Yearsley Pool open, as well as sorting out the mess left behind by Labour in adult social care. In my portfolio, my priority will be to devolve budgets and power to local communities through revised Ward Committees. We will also work jointly to ensure that a revised Local Plan protects York’s green belt.”
Cllr Chris Steward, Conservative Group Leader, commented:
“Our four Executive Members – for Education, Housing, Transport and Planning, with myself at Finance and Performance, represent a blend of three experienced and one new councillor. Most importantly, all four have had substantial experience in a variety of roles in both the private and public sectors outside of the council bubble. All four will bring seasoned critical skills to their new roles and will be able to take a measured approach to the issues facing York. This is particularly crucial for our administration’s determination to move forward on a Local Plan which will represent a realistic balance between the new housing York needs and the preservation of York’s green belt and the distinctive character of its villages and neighbourhoods; for a transport and planning system which works with, not against, residents; and to return York to a sustainable financial footing without excess borrowing. I am very pleased with both administration partners’ Executive choices.”
A copy of the Executive portfolio responsibilities can be downloaded by clicking here