Thank you for Christmas invitations
This month has flown by, and we are now just a few days away from Christmas Day! As Mayor, I would like to start by thanking all the many organisations and charities who have been kind enough to invite me to their various Christmas celebrations over recent weeks, including carol services, Christmas concerts, coffee mornings and everything in between!
It’s been fantastic to see the town buzzing, with events to bring together our community, such as the Town Council’s ‘Big Switch at 6’, which saw the town centre illuminate for the Christmas period to an incredibly large crowd, all out to take in the festive fun on offer and of course, the Ice Skating in the Park, which has been as popular as ever.
Local independent shops have been embracing the Christmas period, offering a ‘warm welcome’ to shoppers coming to Bognor Regis, with unique gifts, treats and experiences on offer. There’s still time to ‘shop local’ for your last-minute Christmas gifts!
A reminder that new car parking discs for 2 hours of free parking, are now available to purchase. In a change to the parking scheme in Bognor Regis, and as the new parking discs launch on 1st January 2024, all old Bognor Regis parking discs will no longer be valid. You can purchase either a virtual parking disc or a cardboard parking discs for use in the Fitzleet Multi-storey, Hothamton or Lyon Street car parks, at a cost of £3 for the whole of 2024. Its important to note that the virtual disc cannot be used in conjunction with the cardboard disc to obtain more than two hours free parking per day. The virtual parking discs are available to purchase via the Mipermit website: www.secure.mipermit.com/ arun/application/modulelander.aspx. If you prefer cardboard parking discs then these are available from certain retailers in the town centre for £3 each, a list of which can be found on the homepage of the Town Council’s website.
If you are planning on visiting friends and relatives over the Christmas period, why not take advantage of the £2 cap on most single bus fares. The Bus Fare Cap Grant Scheme is a government funded scheme, which due to its success, has been extended until 31st December 2024, giving users a whole extra year of capped fares to travel by bus, which, is not only better for the environment, but also for your pocket.
If you’d rather go for a gentle walk taking in some of the wonderful sights Bognor Regis has to offer, then why not take part in one (or more) of the Heritage trails? With six interesting and varied walks to choose from, there’s something for everyone, including the Bognor Regis Seafront ‘fun and facts’, the Hotham Park Heritage Trust ‘tree trail’, and the ever expanding ‘blue plaque’ trail to name a few. You’re sure to learn something new about the Town we call home, whilst stretching those legs and taking a few moments to yourself, amongst all the chaos of Christmas!
The holidays will bring a few changes to normal bin collections by the district council. All collections will be a day later than usual, including recycling bins. Bognor Regis Recycling Centre will be closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, as well as New Year’s Day. The Town Council offices will be closed to the public from 5.30pm on Thursday 21st December until 9am on Tuesday 2nd January 2024.
On behalf of all at Bognor Regis Town Council, thank you for continuing to read our weekly column and, most importantly, a very Merry Christmas!