MISSION STATEMENT

The Havens Community Council recognises its duty to be responsive to the needs of all who live and work in the Havens by helping to build a resilient, healthy and sustainable environment.

WHO DOES THE COUNCIL REPRESENT?

Community Councils are the first tier of Local Government. The Havens Community Council comprises of ten elected Community Councillors and one Youth Representative (currently vacant) who are elected to serve a term of ? years, and a Part-time employed Clerk/Responsible Financial Officer (currently vacant). They represent the residents of Broad Haven, Little Haven, Talbenny, Hasguard, Haroldston, Walton West and Broadway, and meet monthly to discuss and vote on a range of community affairs and planning applications. 

WHAT DOES THE HAVENS COMMUNITY COUNCIL DO?

Our aim is to represent the residents of The Havens Community to continually improve local services in order to meet the needs of residents and to ensure that The Havens remains an attractive place to live, work and visit. The Council is non-political and the Councillors are there to represent the residents of The Havens Community.  

This involves articulating the views and concerns of The Havens residents on a wide range of issues of public concern, and making representations to Pembrokeshire County Council, local law enforcement (Dyfed-Powys Police), the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority (PCNPA) and the National Trust, whose decisions affect The Havens and its inhabitants.

The Havens Community Council has developed a good working relationship with these authorities, and others, with a view to ensuring by its influence that The Havens remains a safe, clean and attractive place to live, work and visit.

The Havens Community Council has a number of formal powers and responsibilities and using these it sets the Precept portion of the Council Tax, reviews and comments on all planning applications, maintains the Broad Haven Playpark, bus shelters, many green areas, Christmas lights, salt bins, and village noticeboards. Other matters, such as street cleaning and highway related matters, are the responsibility of other authorities, such as Pembrokeshire County Council, the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority and the National Trust[MS1] .

The Community Council has an extremely close relationship with our County Councillor, Mr Nick Neamann, who attends our Monthly meetings.  The County Councillor is able to make additional representations on behalf of The Havens residents.

Day to day activities are coordinated by and through the Clerk.

[email protected]

GDPR and Freedom of Information Act 2000

Please note that the contents of all correspondence with the Council is subject to GDPR and to public disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and therefore the confidentiality of each message and any reply cannot be guaranteed.

Section 6 Duty - Environment (Wales) act 2016

Under section 6 of the above Act, public authorities that exercise their functions in relation to Wales have a duty to maintain and enhance biodiversity and promote the resilience of ecosystems. Whilst our protected sites and species are important the s6 duty is about taking steps to protect nature in our towns, public places and wider landscape, both through practical action on the ground, and in the way all public functions are carried out. To comply with the duty public authorities must prepare and publish a plan setting out what they propose to do to maintain and enhance biodiversity and promote resilience. The Havens Community Council is published its first edition of a Section 6 Plan which is available to view and download in the documents section.

WHEN DOES THE HAVENS COMMUNITY COUNCIL MEET AND WHAT HAPPENS AT THE MEETING?

Meetings of the Community Council are held at 7pm on the first Tuesday of each month (except August), unless otherwise advertised. You can click on the 'Meeting schedule' tab for future meeting dates. The venue alternates between the Broad Haven Village Hall and Bowen Memorial Hall, Little Haven. A summons confirming the agenda, date, time and venue is posted on this website and the notice boards in Broad haven and Little Haven a minimum of three clear days prior to the meeting, so that members of the public can see what business the Council will be conducting and decide whether to make representations in writing and/or in person.  Residents are most welcome to attend these meetings to observe and contribute to the proceedings.  They can also request to dial in remotely (see link)

The Councillors will discuss and consider each item on the agenda.  Sometimes they will resolve to take action on a matter; in other cases it will be necessary for the matter to be deferred so that further information or advice can be obtained.

Whilst the purpose of the meeting is to conduct the business of the Council, we also set aside a period of time at the beginning of each meeting for the public to ask questions and make reports.  This is also the public’s opportunity to make comments upon agenda items if they wish, but it must be remembered that once the public session has finished the public should take no further part in the meeting except with the express permission of the Chairman.  Often, if there is significant attendance at the meeting, the Chair will change the order of agenda items.  The County Councillor also takes this opportunity to brief the Council on relevant matters.

HOW IS THE COMMUNITY COUNCIL INVOLVED IN THE PLANNING APPLICATION PROCESS?

The Council is a statutory consultee on all planning applications that are submitted to PCNPA for The Havens area (see map here for confirmation of Community Boundary).  The Planning Page of this website shows all extant planning applications.

The Council's will usually consider these applications during the next monthly Council Meeting but may on occasion need to hold an EGM to meet short deadlines, and/or have further meetings as required in order to consider any applications that are referred by PCNPA.

Residents of The Havens have the right to attend any of the committee meetings but cannot participate in any of the proceedings. Time is allocated for public participation at the beginning of meetings (see above paragraph). For details of forthcoming meeting dates click on the 'Meeting schedule' tab or contact the Clerk for more details.  Summons for all meetings will be displayed on all HCC media outlets. Additionally, residents can sign up for email alerts on the home Page.

Responses to planning applications are always made in the interests of the Community. 

The Council takes into account the general policies of the Community Council, the planning policies of PCNPA and Government guidelines when coming to a decision on whether to request that an application be support or not supported.

The Council will oppose any development that has a detrimental effect to the Community and it environment.

Individual representation to PCNPA.

Whilst engagement with the Community Council over planning applications is highly encouraged, this is not a replacement for formal objections to PCNPA.  Application details can be viewed on the PCNPA website at the following link:- Citizen Portal Planning - application details

 Any comments you may have should be made online via their  website or by post/email with the relevant Application No. within applicable deadlines. If a response is not received within this period, or an extension of time agreed with the Case Officer, it will be assumed that you have no comments to make, and the application will be determined accordingly.

For further information on the PCNPA please visit their website at www.pembrokeshirecoast.wales or contact Customer Services on 01646 624800 and ask for planning support.

HOW CAN I FIND OUT MORE ABOUT WHAT THE COMMUNIY COUNCIL IS DOING?

The Havens Community Council keeps its residents informed in a variety of ways.  You can find out what the Parish Council is doing by:

• coming along to Community Council meetings. The meetings provide an opportunity for you to observe the Council as it discusses issues and makes decisions on matters affecting the community.
• looking out for reports on this website, the FaceBook page and the Community Diary.  Sign up for email alerts on the Home Page!
• keeping an eye on the noticeboards in Broad Haven and Little Haven.
• asking one of the Councillors or contacting the Clerk if you have a specific query.  Contact to the Clerk, save in cases of urgency, should be limited to the hours of 9am – 5pm Monday to Friday.  The Clerk works part-time hours only and so may not always be available, but they will try to respond to any enquiry as quickly as possible.

WHAT IS THE HAVENS COMMUNITY COUNCIL’S ATTITUDE TOWARDS OPENNESS AND HOW CAN I OBTAIN INFORMATION FROM THE COUNCIL?

The Council is very conscious that its funding comes from Public funds and takes seriously its commitment to use these in the most effective manner possible.  It is open and transparent about its business and invites members of the public to witness the decision making process by attending Community Council meetings.  In addition, in accordance with legislation, the Parish Council recognises the Freedom of Information Act 2000 which sets out the information published by Community Councils, to which the public are permitted to have access.

HOW ARE THE HAVENS COMMUNITY COUNCILLORS QUALIFIED TO REPRESENT ITS RESIDENTS

Havens Community Councillors recognise that whilst volunteers they all have a duty to represent their residents in an open, professional and efficient manner.  The Council has a number of polices to which all Councillors agree to abide by.  In order to ensure that Council business is open, Councillors sign a declaration fo Interests annual and also highlight these at the start of every Council meeting.  You can view these signed declarations on the meet your Councillors page.  

CODE OF CONDUCT

The Council has a Code of Conduct which all Councillors abide by.  See documents section for more details.

TRAINING POLICY

In accordance with recent Welsh Government legislation, The Havens Community has a Training Policy and Plan which is reviewed annually.  As a minimum Councillors are required to attend Introduction to being a Councillor and Code of Conduct training.  Additional training is then available in specialist areas such as Finance, planning etc.  The Policy and Plan are available to view and download under documents.

HOW DO I BRING A MATTER TO THE ATTENTION OF THE COUNCIL?

You might be concerned about any number of matters, e.g. the cleanliness of the streets, dog fouling, highway related matters etc.  You can bring your concerns to the Council by:

• speaking to a Councillor or the Clerk or contacting the Clerk by e-mail.  Do this as soon as you become aware of a problem – the sooner an issue is reported the sooner the chance of it being resolved.  In appropriate cases, where the Community Council has had sufficient notice of a problem (usually no less than ten days before a meeting) and the problem is such that a formal decision by the Council is needed to progress the matter, an item may be put on the agenda for a formal discussion
• asking a question or reporting a matter during the public session at the beginning of a Community Council meeting.  This part of the meeting is intended to provide a means of exchanging information.  It is not possible for the Community Council to take decisions on matters raised during this time.  If it is simply information you need then it is helpful to let the Chairman or Clerk know no less than three days before the meeting of any question you wish to raise.  This also means that there is a better chance of your question being answered as opposed to it having to be deferred because information is not to hand.  It also helps the Chairman to plan the order of questions and ensure the meeting runs smoothly.  Remember, if the Community Council is being asked to take action on a matter it must have adequate notice before the meeting, and if not it will be necessary for the item to be deferred to the next meeting.

WHAT DO I DO IF I HAVE A COMPLAINT ABOUT THE COUNCIL?

The Havens Community Council is a democratically elected body with authority to make decisions on matters within its power.  It works hard to provide a quality service to the residents of The Havens and to ensure that all decisions taken are in the best interests of The Havens area and the people that work, live and visit.  There may be occasions when it is very difficult to balance the interests of everyone in the village and not everyone will be happy with every decision made.

We hope you will always find the Council acts fairly and constructively, even if you do not always agree with its decision.  If you have a complaint about an aspect of policy, procedure, administration or conduct then please contact the Council via the Clerk or Chair.

If this is not immediately possible you will be advised of the Council’s Complaints Procedure and through that procedure the Council will try to achieve a resolution of the dispute.

 

 

 [MS1]Worth expanding about who covers what area eg The point and path to it?

Other Elected Representatives for The Havens Community

Below are detail of the County Councillor, Welsh Assembly Members, Member of Parliament and Police that represent the Havens Community.  Click on their photos for contact details and further information.

Cllr Nick Neumann

County Councillor / Gynghorydd Sir

Electoral Ward: The Havens / Yr Aberoed
Pembrokeshire County Council/Cyngor Sir Penfro

County Hall/Neuadd y Sir

Haverfordwest/Hwlffordd

Pembrokeshire/Sir Benfro

SA61 1TP

 

Telephone/Ffôn 07738 881535

Email / E-bost : [email protected]

 

 

Telephone/Ffôn 07738 881535

Email / E-bost : [email protected]