Notice of Public Rights and Publication of Unaudited Annual Governance and Accountability Return (Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2020) – Click here to view

Town Mayor shows support for local voluntary organisation

On Monday 15th June, as Sprowston Town Mayor I visited Lorraine Dawn on the first day of her shop reopening to thank her and her helpers for the voluntary work they are doing. “Dawn’s New Horizon” is a shop which offers support to people who need information on domestic abuse. Lorraine and her small team have also been delivering food and essentials (300 parcels to date) to vulnerable people in Sprowston.

John Ward

Town Mayor Sprowston

Your New Town Council

Councillors elected to serve you on Sprowston Town Council are:

Front row from left to right:

Councillors R J Knowles,  I J Mackie, W F Couzens, J M Ward, N Shaw, D Coleman and M G Callam

Back Row from left to right:

Councillors S C Walker, A J Barton, J F Fisher, J Leggett, J H Mallen, B Cook, B J Lashley and C T Rumsby.

At the first meeting of the Town Council Mr J M Ward was elected as Chairman of the Council and Mr W F Couzens as Vice-Chairman of the Council.

As Sprowston is a parish that has the status of a Town the Chairman of the Council is entitled to be called the Town Mayor and therefore Mr J M Ward will hold the office of Town Mayor of Sprowston.

Councillors celebrate the Topping Out of Sprowston Diamond Centre phase 4.

The tradition of placing a leafy branch, in this case a sprig of yew, when a building structure reaches it’s topmost point was carried out by Chairman Ian Moncur assisted by Simon Dazeley, on-site Construction Manager.

This was followed by a short ceremony where Mr Moncur acknowledged with thanks the contributions made by some of those involved in bringing this project to fruition, in particular fellow Councillors,  who without their vision and confidence the centre would not be a reality, Jason Menezes, Project Coordinator Bidwells LLP, Ben Ling Building Services Engineer Ingleton Wood LLP, and Martin Worrall, Managing Director Omnis Construction Limited.

Windsor Park Gardens to have new play equipment.

Having completed the play scheme at Wilks Farm Drive the Council is to refurbish the play space at Windsor Park Gardens. The enclosed area will be enlarged to accommodate a wider variety of equipment to give a greater play experience.   

Work is due to start in early summer and the play area will be closed to the public for approximately 4 – 6 weeks, dependent on weather, and reopen in time for the summer holidays.

The swings and zig zag twister will be refurbished but there will be lots of new exciting play opportunities with the introduction of a flymobile spinner, rotaweb climber, planet jungle multi-play unit and more, with additional swings and slide.

It is hoped that this wider range of play features will allow more creative play and increase the number of children that can play at one time.

The Chairman, Mr Moncur said “It will make a big difference to the site, bringing exiting new features and lots of play value”.

Other work includes the installation of two new benches so parents or carers have somewhere to sit and further safety surfacing.

Broadland Community at Heart Awards celebrate the achievements of Broadland residents who have made an exceptional contribution to their community. A judging panel chose winners for the awards’ 11 categories from nominations made by members of the public.

Winners of Sporting Achievement of the year were Sprowston FC Under 16 Girls team pictured with Mrs J Leggett Vice -Chairman presenting them with their trophy.

New Play Equipment at Wilks Farm Drive

The new £75,600 play scheme at Wilks Farm Drive is now open.

Children from toddlers to teens will now be able to enjoy the latest play equipment including a buddy board, timber trail, dizzy roundabout, multiplay unit, climbing frames and a variety of swings.

The area in which the the play equipment has been installed has been enlarged and a new perimeter fence installed enabling families using the play area to enjoy a larger dog-free grassed area with picnic table and benches away from other park users.

A new litter bin is on order to replace the current one.

Sprowston Town Council wins Community Biodiversity Award

The Norfolk Community Biodiversity Awards are an annual accolade for environmental projects in the county. Run by the Norfolk Biodiversity Partnership’s ‘Communities and Nature’ Topic Group, the awards celebrate the achievements of individuals and groups who have worked within their local community to make a difference for wildlife and people.

The Council won the category of Parish and Town Councils for its work at Harrisons Woodland on Blue Boar Lane/Salhouse Road.

Harrisons Woodland was formed from the Breck and Harrisons Plantation, originally part of Mousehold Heath in the 18^th century and covers 27ha. Working in partnership with Broadland District Council and Norwich Fringe Project the Town Council has made the woodland accessible to the public, as presented in the Neighbourhood Plan.

Initial works included selective felling of trees, the creation of entrances and pedestrian pathways, new gates and signage, an interpretation board, dog and litter bins, and safety measures on Blue Boar Lane at Cottage Plantation car park.

A five year management plan has also been developed with partners to conserve wildlife and biodiversity; risk asses trees and woodland areas; define uses including nature conservation, recreation, nature trails and other group activities. A section will be managed to promote heathland restoration as lowland heathland is considered a priority habitat for conservation.

Chairman, Mr Ian Moncur who accepted the award on behalf of the Council said “I am delighted that the work of the Council and our partners in strengthening nature conservation and biodiversity is being recognised. It shows what success can be achieved by working together as a community.”

 Ground works at Sprowston Recreation Ground have now been completed.

2017 will see the start of redevelopment at Sprowston Diamond Centre to bring community and sports facilities to the area. When complete the centre will have a large multi-activity sports hall and multi-purpose hall, meeting rooms and reception area and is set to become a community hub for a variety of activities. The Council office will remain in the building and the car park will be resurfaced and lined.

Picture: Town Council Chairman Ian Moncur accepting a Certificate of Commendation.

From left to right Mr I. Moncur, Mr S Jolly, T A Gill Builders, Mr G Sibley, Architect and Mr J Ward Chairman Broadland District Council.

The Town Council were pleased to be awarded a commendation in recognition of the work to extend the thatched Pavilion to create additional facilities at Sprowston Recreation Ground.

The scheme, run by Broadland District Council, highlight improvements that make a positive contribution to and enrich the local environment.

The extension is simple in its design so doesn’t compete with the main Pavilion and is very well planned to maximise the space providing for 2 communal changing rooms and two official changing rooms.
Black cladding and small pained windows were used to blend the extension into the original building which belies the modern spacious interior.

Grants were received from The Premier League and FA Facilities Fund and the Veolia Environmental Trust towards the cost of this development.

At the Annual Town meeting Councillor Ian Moncur ended his Chairman’s report by announcing that the Town Council had been awarded Quality Gold status as part of the new Parish and Town Councils’ National Quality Council Award Scheme.

The Local Council Award Scheme is designed to celebrate the successes of the very best local councils, and to provide a framework to support all local councils to improve and develop to meet their full potential. The scheme offers councils the opportunity to show that they meet the standards set by the sector, assessed by their peers, and to put in place the conditions for continued improvement.

The Award Scheme provides the tools and encouragement to those councils at the beginning of their improvement journeys, as well as promoting and recognising councils that are at the cutting edge of the sector. It is only through the sector working together, to share best practice, drive up standards and supporting those who are committed to improving their offer to their communities that individual councils and the sector as a whole will reach its full potential.

The Quality Gold Award demonstrates that a council is at the forefront of best practice by achieving excellence in community governance, community leadership and performance management.

On receiving the award presented by Helen Ollett-Nash of the National Association of Local Councils, Mr Moncur said “It gives me great pleasure to accept this award on behalf of the Town Council. We are the first to achieve this prestigious award in Norfolk and one of only seventeen Councils to achieve it nationally”.

Mr K Leggett, Chairman of Broadland District Council congratulated the Town Council on their achievement and hoped that other Town and Parish Council’s in the Broadland area would follow Sprowston’s lead in attaining Quality Gold.

New £160,000 sports facility opens in Sprowston to boost grassroots football

Ian Moncur, Chairman of Sprowston Town Council, formally opened the new £159,011 changing facilities at Sprowston Pavilion.

Mr Moncur said “Bringing more sports facilities to Sprowston has been a long aim of mine and having grown up locally I am particularly aware of the need for these additional amenities. It gives me great pleasure in officially opening this facility and would like to thank our sponsors the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund through the Football Foundation and Veolia.”

The grants have enabled the Town Council to refurbish and extend the previous pavilion, which now includes four team changing rooms complete with toilet and shower facilities, two officials’ rooms with en-suite facilities.

This new facility will be used by local community partner clubs, such as Sprowston FC, who predict a rise in junior teams from seven to 13 as a result of this funding. The side also plan to double their girls’ teams from three to six.

Mr Moncur was joined by Councillors Bob Fowkes, Barbara Lashley, Ken Lashley, Judy Leggett, Chris Noble, John Ward and Town Clerk June Hunt at the opening.

The Town Council would also like to thank Broadland District Council for their support in realising this project.

Sprowston Town Council is honoured to have been recognised by the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) as Council of the Week.

NALC in recognition said “Sprowston Town Council captured our attention recently when looking for case studies to demonstrate, and promote use of, the General Power of Competence. Sprowston has made use of the power in so many ways and achieved so much, making us pleased to be able to share their story as inspiration for others to follow.”

Full details…

Chairman Ian Moncur picked out two lucky winners each to receive a £50 Marks and Spencer’s Voucher in time for a Christmas treat.

Questionnaires were delivered to households in Sprowston and available on-line, to find out if residents supported the Council’s desire to build a sports and community hall with changing facilities at Sprowston Diamond Centre. Returned completed questionnaires were entered into a prize draw.

To apply for funding the Council must show that the local community wants, and would use, such a facility and the survey was used to establish this. Those residents who expressed a view wanted badminton and tennis courts and larger spaces for a variety of sporting activities.

This information will now be used when applying for grants to fund the development.

Winner Mr Duncan Brown of Corbet Avenue said “Having recently retired he looked forward to seeing more facilities in Sprowston”

Our second winner Monika Bieliauskaite of Post Mill Close added living so close to Sprowston Diamond Centre “I welcome any additional activities this development will provide.”

Park downsizes as School expands

Land at Sparhawk Park is to be returned to Norfolk County Council later this year following the termination of a long held lease with the Town Council.

An area of land to the east of the park is to be incorporated into Sparhawk Infant and Primary School to accommodate redevelopment of their premises due to increasing pupil numbers. This will not affect the two play areas or WC facility.

Councillors were concerned that access from Peregrine Road should remain available to residents, as this is a popular route to other areas of Sprowston, and has negotiated a 20 year lease from Norfolk County Council for a strip of land from the entrance gate adjacent to the rear of properties on Tiercel Avenue.

Work to enclose this area of the park is expected to be completed by 1 December 2015.