To help shape these priorities and keep West Sussex a safe place to live, anyone who is resident in West Sussex is being urged to complete the survey, which will take about 10 to 15 minutes and is available from 30th April to the 31st July.  To fill out the survey online, click here.

Foster Care Fortnight runs this year from Monday May 14 to Sunday May 27 – West Sussex County Council is using the national campaign to highlight the need for more foster carers to come forward and give security and stability to children in care.

Foster carers come from all walks of life and from a range of cultural and ethnic backgrounds. People from a variety of backgrounds can apply to foster, regardless of their marital status or sexuality. You don’t just need to be a good parent. Other important skills are patience, energy, a good sense of humour and the ability to treat children and young people as individuals.

Fostering can be either short or long-term and can range from just a few days to several years. There are also several types of fostering including short and long-term, respite, and parent and baby. Foster carers give children the chance to develop and flourish in a safe, secure environment. The County Council aims to try and place children with foster carers in their local area, so they can continue to stay close to their school, friends, people and places they know.

Being a foster carer is very rewarding and is a chance to help support children and young people. Foster carers receive a comprehensive support package from the Council, including ongoing training and financial allowances to meet the needs of the children and young people in their care.

Informal fostering drop-in sessions are being held throughout West Sussex this year and are a chance for anyone interested to find out more and ask any questions they may have. For further information visit the website at www.westsussex.gov.uk/fostering or call 01403 229333.

Fostering drop-in sessions run from 10am to 4pm. The sessions taking place in West Sussex in 2012 are:

• Saturday 19 May, Crawley Library, Southgate Avenue, Crawley, RH10 6HG.
• Tuesday 22 May, Chichester Library, Tower Street, Chichester, PO19 1QJ
• Monday 18 June, East Grinstead Library, 32-40 West Street, East Grinstead, RH19 4SR.
• Tuesday 17 July, Bognor Regis Library, London Road, Bognor Regis, PO21 1DE.
• Wednesday 15 August, Burgess Hill Library, The Martlets, Burgess Hill, RH15 9NN.
• Tuesday 18 September, Selsey Library, School Lane, Selsey, PO20 9EH.
• Tuesday 16 October, Worthing Library, Richmond Road, Worthing, BN11 1HD.
• Tuesday 20 November, Crawley Library, Southgate Avenue, Crawley, RH10 6HG.
• Thursday 6 December, Henfield Library, off High Street, Henfield, BN5 9HN.

There is an upcoming donor session at Majestic House, Blatchford Road, Horsham on Friday 18th May 2012, so to book an appointment call 0300 123 23 23 or visit www.blood.co.uk

The Safe Place Scheme is a joint County Council and Sussex Police initiative that provides a place of safety for anyone with a learning disability whenever they feel threatened or unsafe.

Scheme members carry a card that can be presented to staff at participating businesses and shops, displaying the person’s name and number of someone they trust who can be contacted.  A ‘Making Our Community a Safer Place’ sticker is displayed in shop windows of participating businesses.  Membership is free.

For more information, visit www.westsussex.gov.uk/safeplace
or email gary.capelin@westsussex.gov.uk

Local Action Teams are community led groups that come together to address issues relating to crime, disorder and other community concerns.

The inaugural meeting of the Local Action Team will take place in the Roffey Millennium Hall, Crawley Road on Tuesday 15th May 2012 at 7pm.

For further information please contact PCSO Claire Bonnyman on 07917 501716 or Neil Worth, Community Safety Officer on 01403 215116.

The service is a free ‘one stop shop’ for information and advice on physical, mental, emotional and social aspects of people’s wellbeing.  It is a friendly and impartial service, where people are able to talk to an advisor about their health concerns and find out about local services and support groups.

Among the many areas people may wish to get help with are getting themselves or their family fitter, doing some regular exercise, eating a balanced diet, avoiding illness, dealing with stress, loneliness or isolation, kicking a habit or simply improving their general wellbeing.

The application is for the demolition of current buildings at the site, and the erection of 14 new dwellings consisting of four 2-bedroom flats, two 1-bedroom flats, and eight 2-bedroom houses, as well as parking for 21 cars.

The Parish Council will be displaying the proposed plans for the site, which will be on Wednesday 2nd May 2012 from 11.30am to 8.30pm at Roffey Millennium Hall.  Please come along to discover the intentions for this important site in the centre of Roffey.

Our new Litter Warden has been with Team North Horsham since October 2011 and has fitted in very well with staff and local residents.  Some of the community have commented on how polite and hardworking he is and also how clean the areas are.

Neil collects litter from certain areas on different days so if you see him out and about with his distinctive North Horsham Parish Council yellow vest on, please don’t hesitate to speak to him about any litter concerns you have or the fact he is doing a great job for the local community.

You can see the areas that Neil visits on which days of the week here.

If you would like to report a litter hotspot to the Parish Council, please fill out our online form which can be found here.

Throughout the site, you will find information and news about the activities and work of North Horsham Parish Council, as well as useful information about local services and amenities that can be found in the Parish.

If you would like to see something included on the site, please contact us.

We hope you find the site is interesting and informative and that you will visit again.

From sports pitches to woodlands, children’s play areas to gardens and bicycle trails to parks, the Queen Elizabeth II Fields Challenge will protect a diverse range of outdoor spaces ensuring that there is something to appeal to everyone. Whether you live in a dense city or the middle of the countryside, recreational spaces are the heart of any community and the Queen Elizabeth II Fields Challenge will ensure that these outdoor spaces are guaranteed for future generations.

Securing access to grassroots sporting facilities is particularly relevant given the other milestone event taking place in the UK in 2012 – the London Olympics. What better way to mark the greatest sporting show on earth?

The Queen Elizabeth II Fields Challenge will give communities an opportunity to vote for an outdoor space in their area to become part of the scheme and be permanently protected as a tribute to the Diamond Jubilee.

To find out how to get involved in the Challenge, go to www.qe2fields.com