On Tuesday 26th January, Crawley Council hosted the fourth State of the Borough debate at The Hawth. This year we had a broader representation on the panel taking questions. I was joined by Councillors Duncan Crow (Deputy Leader of the Council) and Brenda Smith (Leader of the Opposition); Chief Inspector Steve Curry of Sussex Police and Sue Braysher, Director of West Sussex PCT (Primary Care Trust). The transcript of the event will be placed on Crawley Council’s website – www.crawley.gov.uk.
Attendance was good for such a cold evening and was probably the best for this event so far. Events like this require a lot of organisation and I thank Crawley Council staff for their commitment to making it happen. It was pleasing that this year’s debate also had a good attendance from Crawley Young Persons’ Council. I would like to thank them for joining us and participating and for their help with the roving microphones.
The evening started with a presentation reviewing the year 2009 that highlighted both progress and areas for improvement. We covered themes of community consultation, health, crime, clean streets, community cohesion, activities for young people, the quality of our services and partnership working. These elements were followed by a summary of the challenges facing us including the economy, spending constraints, improving our Crawley Homes service and stimulating more community involvement. We then moved into a question and answer session lasting for about one and a half hours.
It is easy to enter the State of the Borough Debate with some trepidation regardless of your level of experience. There could easily be a question read out to which you do not have an immediate answer. Of course, we would always get back to people later on but it feels better to make some kind of informed response in the moment.
The range of questions can often surprise but this year, it was the questions not asked that threw me somewhat. In my opening remarks, I invited questions around the impact of recent weather conditions on council services such as refuse collection and recycling, but these points were not put to the panel. Similarly, against all expectations, there were no questions on pot holes. I do not complain about this. A lack of predictability can help keep you sharp.
The questions actually put to the panel were wide-ranging and pertinent. They included youth activities and employment, parking on verges, housing development pressures, council pension funds and much else. Overall it was a stimulating event and I am grateful to everyone for their attendance and contributions.
Councillor Bob Lanzer, Leader of Crawley Borough Council
27th January 2010