Planning for elections and a marathon weekend

I hope you enjoyed the beautiful Easter weekend. I have to say the sun caught us unawares on Bank Holiday Monday. We enjoyed a wonderful time on Brighton & Hove’s seafront but paid the price with  a need for aftersun cream! Only in Brighton would you find a harpist and a double base along the seafront and I’ve seen both this week.

Hove seafront

Only in Brighton (& Hove)

Planning for the elections

After fresh air and exercise and frolicking with family over the weekend it was back to work on Tuesday, again with a focus on elections preparation.  

Before meeting with my deputy returning officers for an Elections Planning meeting I went to visit the elections team. Here colleagues are working hard to ensure that everybody is able to register under the new individual electoral registration scheme. 

Adam Fishwick and Will Skyrme from the elections team 

Dave Jones and Alessandra Scheiber from the elections team

Fiona Mason and David James from the elections team

Alessandra Scheiber and Tracey Barsley from the elections team 

At the same time they’re processing requests for postal votes, Claire Wardle, elections manager, was working with Mark Wall, head of democratic services, to register nominations for both parliamentary and local election candidates by the deadline of 5pm on Wednesday 8 April.

Mark Wall and Claire Wardle registering nominations 

We published our list of candidates and they can be found on our website.  All of this work is painstaking, involves an awful lot of paper despite the use of new technology where possible, and all of it is absolutely critical for ensuring that we achieve the open and fair elections expected of a mature democracy such as ours. I am grateful for the hard work of the elections team whose labours often go unsung and on whom we very much depend. The pressure is on for them at the moment and they were quick to express appreciation for the support of the contact centre at Hollingdean depot who are fielding phone queries on the election and playing a very important role.

Tony Mernagh's retirement

This week the Mayor and  Mayoress held a reception for Tony Mernagh who as director of the Enterprise Partnership and chair of Brighton & Hove Connected, our strategic partnership, is taking retirement this week. A good gathering of colleagues, including the police, councillors and business representatives came together in the Mayor’s parlour to recognise the huge commitment and talent that Tony has brought to his several roles in the city over many years. Simon Fanshawe gave an entertaining address on everyone’s behalf and it was a fitting send off for someone whom I am sure will continue to play a sparkling role in the city in a voluntary capacity; I hope so anyway. Our warm thanks and appreciation go with Tony into the new chapter of his life. 

Tony Mernagh

Tony with Simon Fanshawe

Modernising our council

If the election has been taking up a good part of my week this week another key focus has been our modernisation agenda. On Wednesday the council’s corporate modernisation delivery board met to review progress and forward plan the way that we will look to make savings, find opportunities to work together with partners and optimise technology. The session was creative and productive and underlined what we all know already; that we have a huge challenge before us. That said, our corporate plan, our sustainable community strategy and the undoubted talent and commitment of managers and staff in the council and across our partners will ensure that we turn our challenge into an opportunity. 

Part of the key to the future lies with our working across both the city region and the wider Coast 2 Capital region overseen by the local economic partnership. Today we are reviewing their business plan for 2015. 

Looking after our children

Finally, my formal week ends with a meeting with Graham Bartlett, the chair of the Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB). This is a regular opportunity to assure myself that we are doing everything that we can and should be, to ensure that children and young people in the city are safeguarded.

Inevitably there will be some discussion about sexual exploitation and radicalisation of young people as well as the more familiar topics of neglect, physical and sexual abuse and how we are dealing with and learning from these sad cases.  

Marathon weekend

Finally, while not competing in the Marathon myself, the importance of this big weekend as the culmination of months of dedicated training and a big charity fundraiser has not passed me by. I won't be running; I will support from the sidelines. Good luck to all runners, and to the organisers and volunteers who make it happen. I will leave you my tip for health and stamina - useful for a CEO and marathon runners alike....it's hummus and vegetables. Here is my daily lunch!

As ever, thank you for all you are doing.

All the best,
Penny