County Council Elections 2025: Use Your Vote

On 1 May 2025, elections will take place for Gloucestershire County Council.

notice-of-election-county-council-divisions

Notices related to these elections will be published on the district council’s page:
https://cotswold.gov.uk/about-the-council/elections-and-voting/current-and-future-elections/

How to Vote

If you are not registered to vote, you can do so online at www.gov.uk/vote-uk-election (with the option to contact your district council Electoral Registration Office to request that a paper form be posted to you).

You can vote in different ways:

  • In person at your Polling Station.
  • By post, if you are unable to get to a Polling Station on 1 May.
  • By proxy, to ask someone to vote on your behalf.

You can apply for a postal vote or proxy vote online or by returning a paper form to your district or borough council.

When voting at a Polling Station, you will be asked to show a valid form of photo ID such as a passport, driving licence, Older Person’s Bus Pass, or Blue Badge. The forms of ID you can use can be found here.

If you do not have a valid type of photo ID, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate. This can be done online at www.gov.uk/vote-uk-election or by post.

The deadline to register to vote is 11:59pm on 11 April 2025.

The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on 14 April 2025.

The deadline to apply for a proxy vote is 5pm on 23 April 2025.

The deadline to apply for a Voter Authority Certificate is 5pm on 23 April 2025.

Spring 2025 Holiday Activities and Food Programme Announced ⚽

Announcement from Cotswold District Council:

An exciting programme of activities and meals for children and families across the Cotswolds in the spring school holidays has been launched.

Funded by the Department for Education and organised by Cotswold District Council and Gloucestershire County Council, the Spring 2025 Holiday Activities and Food Programme offers the chance for young people to have fun with their friends, while learning and developing new skills.

Activities include climbing, archery and fun STEM activities, with some specific sessions available for children with special educational needs. The programme will be running from 14 to 27 April with specific eligibility criteria, catering to children in school reception classes up to year 11 who are recipients of benefits-related free school meals.

Using additional funding we are also able to run the Holiday Activity Programme (HAP). This programme of free holiday activities is offered to all children between the ages of four and sixteen across the district, regardless of free school meal eligibility.

Cllr Claire Bloomer, cabinet member for communities, said: “We’re thrilled to bring the Holiday Activities and Food programme back to the Cotswolds for another school holiday.  This initiative not only provides children with fun and enriching activities but also ensures families have access to healthy, nutritious meals when they need them most.  Our goal is to make this school break a positive and inclusive experience for all members of our community.”

All activities are available to view at: https://gloucestershirehaf.com/cotswold-district-haf/  

The activity booking system will officially open on Monday 31st March at midday.

To sign up to the Children’s Activity Booking system (CABs) visit: https://www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/haf/  

Family support with HAF is also available through our Community Connectors, Bloodhound Education. They are on hand to help with booking activities and signposting families to other agencies where a need has been identified. To get in touch with Bloodhound Education, please email accounts@bloodhoundeducation.com or phone 0208 150 3767 (Monday to Friday, 9:30am – 2:30pm).

 

Householders Reminded of ‘Duty of Care’ To Help Prevent Illegal Dumping

Press release from Cotswold District Council

Cotswold District Council is reminding householders to dispose of their waste responsibly and to only entrust their waste to an authorised waste carrier following a rise in the number of fly-tipping reports.

The warning comes following a number of incidents of the illegal dumping of builders’ waste – including materials such as asbestos and concrete, as well as fixtures and fittings – in recent months, which have been centred in and around Cirencester and the Siddington area.

Since the start of April until the end of September, the Council has recorded 531 incidents of fly-tipping across the district; an increase of 15% based on the same period in 2021-22. In particular incidents of construction and demolition waste have risen by almost half during the last six months, with 33 incidents reported.

Councillor Andrew Doherty, Cabinet Member for the Environment, Waste and Recycling at Cotswold District Council, said: “Anyone having work done on their property should check that the person or company taking away their waste is operating legally. Residents have a Duty of Care for their waste, giving them a responsibility to ensure it is disposed of properly. This means people can risk prosecution if they haven’t checked what will happen to their waste and it later ends up illegally dumped.

“We know the vast majority of businesses are reputable and deal with their waste responsibly. However, to help protect themselves and the environment, residents are advised to always ask for a Waste Transfer Note or receipt when their waste is taken away and familiarise themselves with their responsibilities when it comes to passing their waste over to someone else.

“Fly-tipping is unsightly, poses a risk to wildlife and can pollute our waterways – it’s also expensive to clear. It’s not just the number of fly-tips we are seeing which is of concern but the scale. Some of the most recent incidents have needed the hire of a grab truck to remove the waste, costing £300 each time, or in the case of asbestos, a specialist contractor will be brought in to ensure the material is collected and disposed of safely. All of this is at additional expense to the Council and our taxpayers.”

Householders could face a £400 fixed penalty notice if fly-tipping is traced back to them.

Members of the public can check whether a person or company is legally allowed to carry waste by contacting the Environment Agency on: 03708 506 506 or by visiting: Waste carriers, brokers and dealers (data.gov.uk).

Businesses who fail to register for or renew a licence, can face a fine of up to £5,000.

Anyone witnessing fly-tipping or who finds dumped rubbish should not touch the items. Instead, incidents can be reported to the council online at: https://www.cotswold.gov.uk/environment/report-fly-tipping/ or by calling customer services on 01285 623000.

Summer 2024 Holiday Activity and Food Programme

Dear Families,

On 17 June at midday the Summer Holiday Activity and Food Programme’s website will be ready to view. The website link is here https://gloucestershirehaf.com/cotswold-district-haf/

Cotswolds HAF Community Connector: Bloodhound Education 0208 150 3767  accounts@bloodhoundeducation.com  9.30am- 2.30pm Monday to Friday – Kirsty & Nishani

In Cirencester Bloodhound Engineering, Sportily, Go Wild Open to All activities,

Across the district in Bourton = School of Larks and Go Wild with World Jungle / in Tetbury = Tetbury Youth (TAYTC), Go Wild with World Jungle / in Stow = Cotswold Active Camps, Go Wild with World Jungle / Moreton = Bloodhound Engineering, Cotswold Active Camps, / Chipping Campden = Go Wild with World Jungle, Fairford = More Go Wild and Working for Wellbeing events.

We will have tickets for The Kitchen Club where you can make food from scratch, guided family walks, Horses for Wellbeing, Batsford Aboretum and Westonbirt Aboretum, Giffords Circus and Cotswold Farm Park. We stagger the release of some activities so that everyone will get the opportunity to do more activities and we are still waiting on confirmation from some activity providers but as soon as these are confirmed they will be on the website. We will have activities in other areas too and please also be aware that we only have a limited number of places, but keep an eye on the website for activities as they are released.

We look forward to seeing you at the Holiday Activity and Food Programme activities in a few weeks’ time.

The Cotswold Holiday Activities and Food Programme Team

Northleach’s Waste Collection Day Is Changing

Press release from Cotswold District Council:

Cotswold District Council has announced it is changing the waste collection days for 60 per cent of households in the district as the local authority drives for greater efficiency within its waste and recycling service.

The new collection rounds, which will start from week commencing 24 June 2024, are projected to deliver cost-savings of £375k in the current budget year with annual savings of £500k annually thereafter.

As part of the new collection schedules households may see a change to their collection day or the week on which their waste and recycling is collected, or both. Collections may also take place at a different time during the day, even for those who are not having a date change.

The District Council is assuring residents that they will continue to receive the same level of service and is starting the process of notifying those affected this week (commencing 27 May).

Councillor Mike Evemy, Cabinet Member for Finance, including waste and recycling, at Cotswold District Council, said: “Changing our collection rounds will make sure we meet the demand for waste and recycling services as household numbers in our district increase and ensure we continue do this in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible.

“We’re asking residents to look out for the introductory flyer which will be sent at the end of May to those affected by the changes. This will be followed up with new waste calendars and letters explaining what the changes mean for those households, which should arrive on doormats by 13 June. Properties that receive no communication from us in the post will not be changing.

“However, whether they are changing or not, households may find that their collections take place earlier or later in the day than they are accustomed to due to the new routes crews will be taking. Because of this, we’re reminding all residents to put their containers out by 7am to make sure they don’t miss their collections.

“We spend more on waste and recycling than any other service and like other councils across the country we are facing financial challenges, so it’s vital that we spend our money wisely. The money we save here will help us protect other vital services.

“These latest cost-savings have been made possible by our investment in the onboard technology used by collection crews which has allowed us to understand collections routes better and identify opportunities to make the service more efficient.”

While most households with a bin day change will receive their first main waste collection after 24 June earlier than under their current collection schedule, there will be delays for some. During the changeover, 28% of those having a collection day change will experience a delay of either one or two days. However, 17% of households that are changing will have to wait longer than 12 working days between their main collections as they move over to their new schedule.

To support these households, the Council is offering an additional collection of waste and recycling, and garden waste for those who subscribe, details of which will be outlined in the letter to be sent out in June.

The reorganisation of the collection rounds is likely to reduce the overall mileage waste vehicles need to travel, so should deliver important environmental benefits too.

More information about the changes, including a list of Frequently Asked Questions and a ‘look up’ tool enabling residents to check their future collection dates online, can be found online: www.cotswold.gov.uk/bindaychange.

 

Police & Crime Comissioner Election in Gloucestershire – Statement of Persons Nominated

The Statement of Persons Nominated and Notice of Poll for the election of a Police and Crime Commissioner for Gloucester local area has been published.

The deadline for requesting a postal vote for this election has now passed. Electors may request a proxy vote up to 5pm on Wednesday 24 April and this is the same date for anyone needing a Voter Authority Certificate if they don’t have acceptable photo ID.

A list of acceptable photo ID can be found on the Electoral Commission’s website:
www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id/accepted-forms-photo-id

Polling stations will be open from 7am until 10pm on Thursday 2 May.

Check your poll card for details of your local polling station. The local polling place in Northleach is The Westwoods Centre, Basset Road, GL54 3QJ.