HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ONE AND ALL!

Local Government Reorganisation

At the time of writing this article, the 2026 Mayoral elections for Sussex had been postponed by two years but it was unknown whether Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) will also be postponed. There is a live government consultation on LGR that closes on 11 January 2026 and your views are important. (LGR is closely linked to the government’s wider devolution agenda, as set out in the English Devolution White Paper.)

LGR is the process in which the structure and responsibilities of local authorities in England are reconfigured by central government. The primary goal of the current reorganisation programme is to simplify the system by replacing the two-tier structure of county and district councils with a single tier of unitary authorities.  

The creation of larger unitary councils is intended to facilitate the establishment of new, larger “strategic authorities” (often led by a directly elected mayor) which can take on more powers and funding from national government for issues like transport, housing, and economic development across a wider region. It also aims to reduce confusion for residents and businesses by creating a single, all-purpose council responsible for delivering all local services in a given area such as education, social care, waste collection and planning.

To access the consultation, the link is provided below (it is a bit of a mouthful so alternatively just do a search for “local government reorganisation consultation East Sussex”!)

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/local-government-reorganisation-in-east-sussex-and-brighton-and-hove-and-west-sussex

The proposal that you will need to consider, ‘One East Sussex’ can be found at: https://eastsussexcouncils.org/the-proposal/

Council Tax

It is regrettable that inflation and the impact of the last two government budgets has led to an increase in the average expenditure each month for the Parish Council’s (PC) day-to-day general operations. You may or may not be aware that the PC sets two budgets each year – one for general day-to-day operations (GO) and one for the Mayfield Community Centre (MCC) project. 

The increase in GO expenditure in 2025/26 has necessitated a precept increase of £5,622, a 5% rise, for the GO budget in 2026/27. The overall PC precept will be £248,949 in the next financial year. There is no budget increase for the MCC project.                                                          

Council Tax is calculated with reference to the number of estimated Band D equivalent properties in each parish area. The Council Tax amount is calculated by dividing the precept by the Tax Base. At the time of writing this article the 2026/27 Tax Base rates issued by Wealden District Council (WDC) are provisional until the decision is formally taken by their Portfolio Holder. The box below indicates the anticipated annual increase in 2026/27 for each Council Tax Band.

Parish Council Tax Increase 2026/27
Band	A	B	C	D	E	F	G	H
Annual Increase £	0.79	0.95	1.10	1.42	1.74	2.05	2.37	2.84

(Remember the annual increase for each band will be divided into your 10 monthly payments.)

WDC has proposed freezing its portion of the Council Tax for residents in the 2026/27 financial year to help with struggling households during the ongoing cost of living crisis, using reserves built up over previous years, though final agreement for this is needed in February 2026 (it will only affect their share of the total bill. 

Asylum accommodation in Crowborough

WDC’s update issued on 11 December 2025: “We recognise the strength of feeling from the local community to the Home Office proposals. We continue our strong objection to the use of this site for asylum seekers. We remain in correspondence with the solicitors acting for Crowborough Shield following their legal claim against the Home Office and continue to take expert legal advice from our two barristers on the best course of action.”

To keep afoot of the most recent updates in this issue more information can be found at: https://www.wealden.gov.uk/crowborough-army-camp/

Going to the tip

From 24 November 2025, it became necessary to book a slot to visit all household waste recycling sites in East Sussex. You can book to visit on the same day, and up to two weeks in advance. Everyone must book including pedestrians and cyclists. Most slots are for 30 minutes but some have 15-minute slots. There is no limit on the number of bookings you can make – although East Sussex County Council will monitor this to make sure it is used fairly and can limit the number if needed. 

The quickest way to book is using their online booking system – you can make an online account to save time entering your details every time (it will be deleted if not used for 18 months). Residents who need help with making a booking can phone 0345 60 80 194 open from Monday to Thursday 8.30am to 5pm and Fridays 8.30am to 4.30pm. .

You can arrive at any time within your booked slot and you will need to take your booking confirmation and proof of residency:

• photocard driving licence (preferred option) or paper licence

• Council Tax bill for the current year
• utility bill (less than 1 year old)
• bank or credit card statement (less than 1 year old)
• tenancy agreement if you live in rented accommodation
• an official letter from the Dept for Work and Pensions or HMRC (less than 1 year old)
• East Sussex older person’s bus pass
• East Sussex disabled parking permit (known as a Blue Badge)

You can book a visit on behalf of family and friends if:

• they are an East Sussex resident
• you are helping them because they don’t own a car or van
• they need assistance or are not physically able to make the trip themselves
• they cannot make the booking themselves online or by phone
• you are disposing of items that belonged to a family member or friend who died

New Year recycling and rubbish collections

Usual Collection Dates	Revised Collection Dates
Thursday 1st January	Saturday 3rd January
Friday 2nd January	Monday 5th January
Monday 5th January	Tuesday 6th January
Tuesday 6th January	Wednesday 7th January
Wednesday 7th January	Thursday 8th January
Thursday 8th January	Friday 9th January
Friday 9th January	Saturday 10th January

Usual recycling/ rubbish collections resume from 12 January,  Garden Waste from  8 January 2026. 

WDC Grants

There are a number of community grant funding opportunities open including for sport and for orchards. To see what might be available to help your organisation visit:

https://www.wealden.gov.uk/community-and-safety/information-on-grant-funding

Update from South East Water

South East Water has been granted a Drought Order by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to help conserve the water stored within its Ardingly Reservoir, aid the winter refill of the reservoir and protect drinking water supplies in Sussex. 

Parish Council meetings

The website meeting schedule at https://mayfieldfiveashes-pc.gov.uk provides information on Council and Committee meetings as well as agendas, minutes of meetings and other meeting documentation