May 2007

Date	Press release title
9 May 2008	New Town Council Chairman for Burgess Hill
23 May 2008	Photographic Competition
23 May 2008	Police Available to Hear your Concerns
23 May 2008	Moat Housing Advice Surgery
30 May 2008	Mid Sussex (South) Access Group comes to Help Point
30 May 2008	Signpost to Solving Housing Problems
30 May 2008	Talk to Pension Experts

Following Burgess Hill Town Council ’s recent Annual Meeting, Cllr Chris Thomas-Atkin was elected Chairman and Cllr Ian Simpson was elected as Vice-Chairman.

For further information on Burgess Hill Town Council ’s forthcoming meetings visit the web site www.burgesshill.gov.uk or call into the Help Point, 96 Church Walk, Burgess Hill, RH15 9AS, alternatively telephone 01444 247726 or e-mail council@burgesshill.gov.uk.

If you have answered yes to the above, then why not enter Burgess Hill Town Council’s Help Point’s Photographic Competition. They are looking for interesting, seasonal photographs of Burgess Hill which could be used in future promotional material such as for postcards or the Town Guide.

The competition is kindly sponsored by Park Cameras and in conjunction with Canon; they have donated a Canon a460 digital camera as the prize. As well as entering the competition entrants have the opportunity to sign up to Park Camera’s email database.

To enter the competition, pick up an entry form from Burgess Hill Town Council’s Help Point at 96 Church Walk or download a copy from our website www.burgesshill.gov.uk. Please note, the format of the digital photos should be a high resolution (300 dpi) Jpeg file.

The closing date has been extended to 31 July 2008 to allow competition entrants time to capture that special shot of Burgess Hill.

Chris Thomas-Atkin, Chairman of Burgess Hill Town Council, said: “I am sure there are many talented photographers in Burgess Hill, so why not enter the competition. We are very grateful to Park Cameras for its kind and generous sponsorship.”

A scheme has been set up whereby local people are invited to drop in to Burgess Hill Town Council’s Help Point, 96 Church Walk, to discuss any worries they may have with a community police officer.

Police Community Support Officer, Brian Patfield, will be available at a drop-in surgery session at the Help Point on Wednesday 4 June 2008 and his colleague, Katie Buckler will hold a surgery on Wednesday 18 June 2008 between 11.00 – 13.00 hours. Residents of Burgess Hill are invited to turn up on the day to discuss any issues or worries that they may have.

Chris Thomas-Atkin, Chairman of the Town Council, said: "We are delighted to offer this valuable service to people. This is an initiative designed to make it easier for people to speak openly to the police in an informal setting. Many people may find the thought of airing any problems or difficulties at the police station very daunting. Hopefully, anyone who would like to chat about their concerns will feel comfortable coming to the Help Point."

FREE ADVICE SESSION TO GIVE THE PEOPLE OF MID

SUSSEX

A HELPING HAND ONTO THE PROPERTY LADDER

Moat will be holding a drop-in surgery on Friday 6 June between 10am to 3pm at Burgess Hill Town Council’s Help Point. This is a great opportunity for people to find out more about local affordable housing options.

The HomeBuy programme is a government led initiative that may provide an opportunity for local people to get a foot on the property ladder, with priority given to council tenants, housing association tenants, key workers and other local first time buyers.

MyChoiceHomeBuy is a flexible equity loan scheme designed to help people earning between £20,000-£60,000 per annum to buy their own home on the open market.

New Build HomeBuy offers a part buy/part rent basis where you can purchase a share in a property, typically

50% (this can vary between 25% and 75%) and pay a discounted rent on the remaining share.

Discounted Rent makes new homes available at a discounted rent, and this is available to key workers only.

Chris Thomas-Atkin, Chairman of Burgess Hill Town Council, said: “We are delighted to welcome Moat advice surgery to the Help Point, and I am sure this will be of great benefit to the residents of Burgess Hill and Mid Sussex.”

Further information is also available at www.homebuy.co.uk or by calling Moat on 07002 662846 or visit www.moat.co.uk. Moat is a housing association that has provided affordable homes for people in the south east over the past 40 years. With particular strengths in affordable home ownership and key worker housing. Moat also provides general needs homes for affordable rent, supported accommodation and tenancy support services.

Moat is one of the Housing Corporation’s development partners and is also the government’s appointed HomeBuy Agent in Essex ,

Kent

and

Sussex

. Moat employs 450 people and manages over 18,000 homes for rent and shared ownership.

Moat is a leading housing association offering excellent customer service and building high quality affordable homes within thriving communities.

To obtain further information about the session, callers can contact the Town Council Help Point on 01444 247726.

Mid Sussex (South) Access Group, which works to promote disability awareness and access in Mid Sussex, holds twice monthly advice surgeries at the Help Point, 96 Church Walk, Burgess Hill. The service is available on the 1^st and 3^rd Friday mornings of the month from 09.30 – 11.30am . Surgeries this month will be held on Friday 6 and Friday 20 May. There is no need to make an appointment as the surgeries operates on a “drop-in” basis.

The surgery provides service providers with advice on how to make their services more accessible to everyone in the community. It also provides people with the opportunity to discuss problems of access to shops, other buildings, and services such as local transport. So, if you would like information on access issues as a carer, as a disabled person or as a service provider please come to the Help Point to speak to a representative from the Mid Sussex (South) Access Group.

To obtain further information about the sessions, callers can contact the Town Council Help Point on 01444 247726.

Are you struggling to solve housing-related problems, such as debt, homelessness or anti-social behaviour from neighbours? If so, a new advice surgery at Burgess Hill Town Council’s Help Point may be able to help. The West Sussex Signpost Service outreach surgery is run by Southdown Housing Association, and will operate on the second Friday of each month, from 9.30-11.30am . The next session takes place at the Help Point, 96 Church Walk, on Friday 13 June.

The Signpost Service is available to anyone who needs advice or support to help resolve their housing related issues. Many people have already used Signpost in other parts of Mid Sussex receiving advice to solve problems such as homelessness, rent arrears, anti social behaviour, debt, claiming benefits and accessing health and community care services.

The facility provides telephone advice, face-to-face support and referral onto specialist care and support services.

Chris Thomas-Atkin, Chairman of Burgess Hill Town Council, said, “The Signpost Service is a valuable asset to our town’s residents, some of whom may be struggling to cope with severe housing problems and desperately need impartial advice to improve their situation. That advice and help is now available at a convenient location.”

Local people can find expert advice on pension issues at Burgess Hill Town Council ’s Help Point, 96 Church Walk. The next advice session takes place on Monday 9 June 2008.

State pension advisers have helped people with their number worries for some time. No appointment is necessary for the advice surgery – simply call in. The service is available at the Help Point on the second Monday of each month from 0900 – 1600 hours.