News from SODC – grants available, etc
Is your electric blanket safe?
Get your electric blanket checked by Oxfordshire County Council Trading Standards and Fire and Rescue:
- 3 October – Thame Town Hall
- 17 October – Didcot Fire Station
Testing is free, all you need to do is book in advance by contacting the county council on 01865 898642 or by email.
New grants to help voluntary groups
The council has launched a pilot grants scheme to give voluntary groups the chance to apply for grants to support them to recruit volunteers.
Community groups have told us that one of the biggest obstacles they face when trying to attract volunteers is finding money to meet training, transport and insurances costs, so we’ve set aside £25,000 to provide financial support.
Small voluntary groups can apply for a grant of between £250 and £750 to help cover costs.
The grant scheme is being trialled and could be extended in the future, depending on its success in helping to improve the district’s voluntary sector.
To find out more and apply, see our website.
Councillor grants up for grabs
Each of our 36 district councillors has £5,000 to award to good causes that benefit their local communities. A total of £180,000 is available from our councillor grants scheme.
Last year, councillors gave just over £154,000 to 105 different community organisations to projects throughout the district for building improvements, updating playground equipment, wildlife and environmental projects, sports equipment and special events and celebrations.
This year’s grants scheme is open until 17 December. To find out how to apply, see our website.
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Continuing work on our Local Plan
We’re continuing to review the available sites for major housing development in South Oxfordshire as part of ongoing work to finalise our Local Plan.
We’ve recently agreed a timetable setting out how the Plan will move forward and are expecting councillors to make a decision on sites, following completion of assessment work, in December.
We’ll then publish the plan and you’ll have a chance to comment on its technical ‘soundness’ in early 2019. All of your comments will be passed on, along with all the thousands of other comments already received, to the independent inspector appointed to examine it.
At this time, we’re expecting to submit the plan for examination in March. This means that we will meet a deadline agreed with the government and the Oxfordshire’s other councils to bring extra money to support housing growth and infrastructure, such as roads, in the county.
Find out more about the review and see our website for further details about the Local Plan. See the Oxfordshire Growth Board website for information about the Housing and Growth Deal.
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South Oxfordshire District Council
135 Eastern Avenue
Milton Park
Milton
OX14 4SB
www.southoxon.gov.uk
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