We won back power and now we have to deliver

There will be more to come but, so far...

1. Cllr Andrew Baggott, Leader of Basildon Council, has resumed his monthly 'Meet the Leader' events across the Borough. This is not a on online event where Andy can just ignore awkward questions. These are live, in person events and there is no need to book a slot or put in your question beforehand. Anyone can turn up and, in an open forum, ask Andy any question they want. Andy has also launched a new Facebook page for residents to contact him directly.
2. We are working closely with Essex County Council Youth Services to improve youth provision across the Borough. Cllr Terri Sargent, as Chairman of Communities & Well-Being, is leading on this work.
3. We are also preparing a borough-wide consultation with young people, in conjunction with the Basildon Youth Council and the newly-appointed Basildon Youth Mayor, to help shape the future of youth services in Basildon Borough.
4. We are putting extra funding into providing more dedicated police officers for Basildon Borough.
5. We reinstated weekend free parking in the council-owned car parks in Billericay and Wickford after lobbying by local Conservative councillors.
6. We are looking at ways to improve parking facilities across the Borough through our Parking Strategy - starting with discussions with rail operators to look at increasing parking provision at Billericay and Wickford train stations.
7. We have continued to support the Covid-19 vaccine rollout across numerous council-operated sites. We have also engaged with pupils from local schools to discuss the impact of Covid on young people to see what additional support the Council could offer.
8. We are working tirelessly to re-open Laindon Community Centre, urged on by popular local councillors Jeff Henry and Kevin Wingfield and the local community, who are desperate to get that facility back. We have already completed a consultation and an in-depth findings report has gone to the Communities and Well-Being Committee and a building survey has gone to the Policy Executive. We had said that we had hoped the re-open sooner and have been open and upfront with residents about the complexities and further work that needs doing. But we are steadfast in our commitment that the centre will reopen as soon as possible and are keeping residents informed.
9. We have honoured our promise to re-engage with residents over the future of Basildon Town Centre, scrapping the previous Labour-led administration's disastrous Masterplan - with our comprehensive engagement exercising receiving around 3,000 responses so far (a massive increase on the previous Administration's loaded and bogus 'consultation'). Cllr Anthony Hedley, Chairman of Regeneration & Economic Development, will be bringing forward a revised regeneration strategy to revitalise the Town Centre. 
10. We also rescinded the sale of the land off Gibralter Walk in Wickford, known as Wick Green, as promised, following a concerted campaign by local residents supported by their local Conservative councillors Malcolm Buckley and George Jeffery.
11. We have invested funding in new play equipment for Langdon Hills Recreation Ground, following extensive lobbying by Cllr Chris Allen.
12. We have also invested in new play equipment for Wat Tyler County Park at the behest of Deputy Mayor Cllr Luke Mackenzie. We will also be looking at options to improve facilities in Bowers Gifford.
13. We have approved funding to support sporting facilities at Hannakins Farm Community Centre in Billericay, after a spirited campaign by Cllr Anthony Hedley to secure the necessary resource.
14. Overall, we will be investing £1 million in our play areas around the Borough and have now launched ParkPlay, with our partners Active Essex and Sport England, a scheme to allow community participation in free fun physical activity sessions every Saturday morning, with more to follow. This work will be led by Cllr Craig Rimmer, Chairman of Leisure & Environment.
15. We will be securing the long-term future of Billericay Swimming Pool following its recent refurbishment.
16. We are also urgently pushing forward with the provision of a new Pitsea Swimming Pool, after the project stalled under the previous Labour administration.
17. We have opened a new concrete skate park and will be installing more red dog bins in Gloucester Park following requests from Cllr Davida Ademuyiwa. 
18. We have launched Basildon Simply Cycling at the Basildon Sporting Village through our partnership with Active Essex and Sport England. 
19. We will be refurbishing the gyms at the Basildon Sporting Village, Eversley Leisure Centre in Pitsea and Wickford Swim and Fitness Centre.
20. We are championing biodiversity through our Pollinator Action Plan and planting wildflower meadows across the Borough. We will also be planting trees as part of the Queen's Green Canopy as part of Her Majesty's Platinum Jubilee celebrations next year.
21. We have restored funding to the Basildon Borough Twinning Association cut by the previous Labour-led administration.
22. We have increased funding to the Basildon, Billericay and Wickford Council for Voluntary Service.
23. We immediately froze fees for hiring Council-owned community centres and halls, as well as park facilities and cemeteries.
24. We have commissioned officers to explore options to hold a TEDx event to engage communities and showcase their work.
25. We will be looking to bring back the 'Santa in the Park' event to Westley Heights County Park.
26. We worked with colleagues at Essex County Council and Active Essex to deliver the ActiveAte school holiday programme to feed kids during the May half-term, delivering nutritious food for 450 children across the five towns.
27. We have approved a £40 million estate renewal programme, Safe and Sound Estates, to tidy up our housing estates, including measures to promote energy efficiency in properties. This work is being led by Cllr Andrew Schrader, Chairman of Housing & Estate Renewal.
28. We have put £300,000 into discretionary housing payments to support families struggling with rent.
29. We have added 200 new council homes to our house-building programme.
30. We will be putting in place a robust action plan to embrace the emerging Charter for Social Housing Residents outlined in the new Government White Paper.
31. We have applied to Government for funding for Safer Place to Stay accommodation for the homeless.
32. We will continue to use Sempra Homes, the Council's wholly-owned house-building company, to deliver new housing of a mix of tenures to meet the housing needs of the Borough and we will be reviewing Sempra's governance.
33. We will be carrying out an additional public consultation on the former Labour Administration's Parkside development in Pitsea, to ensure residents' views are properly taken into account.
34. We have refreshed the Corporate Plan and instituted a guiding principle of Your Council, Your Say, enabling residents to tell us their views and ensuring our policies are shaped by your priorities.
35. We have established a cross-party working group to look at the Council's Climate Strategy.
36. We have re-engaged with the Essex Chambers of Commerce and the Basildon Business Group and will be developing a revised Economic Development Strategy to address economic growth in Basildon.
37. We have begun the process of reviewing the use of expensive consultants at the Council as part of the LGA Peer Review we successfully put in train.
38. We have reversed with immediate effect the last Administration's 'Memorandum of Understanding' to ensure with will be no merger with Thurrock. We will continue to work constructively but independently with our friends and neighbours and we are mending relations with Essex County Council, which became strained as the outgoing Administration indulged their unitary pipe dreams.
39. We will scrap the Council's sluggish and slow Committee System form of governance and return to the Cabinet System. In the meantime, the new Conservative Administration has already brought 78 reported items through committees, taking firm decisive actions - compared to the last Labour-led administration, which in the same time period brought forward 34 reports that were 'for noting' only and took no action.
40. Cllr Stuart Sullivan, Chairman of Resources & Commercial, swiftly implemented our Alternative Budget proposals to get the Council's finances back on track.