Update on heating oil aid

 

Heating oil – support for vulnerable households.

 

Uttlesford residents who have oil heating, are on a low income and are struggling with rising costs can apply for financial support.

 

The Crisis and Resilience Fund is administered by Southend City Council on behalf of Essex County Council and is open to local residents from 1 April. 

 

Visit the Southend City Council website for information or email elfforessex@southend.gov.uk for help with an application.

 

25 March 2026

A written ministerial statement was made to Parliament today, setting out the Secretary of State’s decision to implement the proposal for 5 unitary councils to be established in Essex.

Uttlesford will combine with Harlow and Epping under the title of

 

West Essex Council

 

Heating oil – support for vulnerable households:

You may have seen the government announcement of £53m of support for vulnerable households who rely on heating oil.

The support will be targeted to help low-income households in rural communities affected by the recent surge in costs.

The additional funding will be distributed by local authorities via the Crisis and Resilience Fund, which comes into effect on 1 April and replaces the temporary Household Support Fund.

Locally, the fund will be administered by Essex County Council. Please direct residents to them, not UDC.

If help is needed before the Crisis and Resilience Fund starts in April, people can apply to local councils (Essex County Council) for support, but any cash would need to be from existing pots of money.

The Cost of Living Support section on our website (UDC) has been updated to make it clear who enquiries should be made to if residents need help with their heating costs.

 

DISTRICT COUNCILS REPORT FOR APM​​

New kerbside small electricals recycling service
This makes it easier for residents to recycle their broken or unwanted
small household electricals.
The project has joined the Recycle Your Electricals campaign and other
projects around the country in making it easier for people to recycle their electricals through kerbside collection services. 25% of UK residents already have kerbside recycling available to them and Uttlesford District Council is now adding to that.
Small electricals - such as toasters, kettles and hairdryers and in my
case a small TV, are collected weekly at the same time as wheeled bins, just put it on top of the relevant bin.
If it fits into a carrier bag it is small enough to be collected. 

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Housing repairs - tenanted properties 

In December a significant change to the way housing repairs and
maintenance services are to be provided, with a renewed focus on
improving standards and providing a better experience for the council’s
tenants. They are in the process of bringing the current external contract 
to an early close and to establish a new in‑house service to manage
council housing repairs and maintenance directly.
The decision reflects the council's ambition to provide tenants with a repairs service that is consistent, responsive and better aligned to local needs.

Councils are changing
Greater Essex currently comprises 15 councils serving nearly 1.9 million residents. Southend and Thurrock operate as unitary authorities,
meaning they manage most local services independently. In contrast, the rest of Essex follows a two-tier system:
District councils like Uttlesford handle local services such as waste
collection, street cleaning, and leisure facilities, while Essex County
Council oversees broader services including highways, adult social care, and special educational needs.
As part of the governments devolution agenda aimed at streamlining
local governance, these 15 councils are set to be replaced within the
next couple of years by a smaller number of new unitary authorities.
These new bodies will consolidate responsibilities, delivering all local

services except those managed by Town and Parish councils, which will
remain unaffected.
The government will announce their decision towards the end of March
with the first scheduled Unitary elections expected in May 2027. The
current council network will stay in place until April 2028, shadowing
each other for a smooth handover.

UDC’s Planning Team has been shortlisted for a prestigious national award.
The Local Government Chronicle Awards are one of the most
respected accolades in local government, celebrating quality,
innovation and commitment across the sector receiving more
than 1,000 nominations this year, reflecting the strength and
ambition of councils nationwide.
Uttlesfords Planning Team has been recognised for its far-
reaching transformation programme and has been nominated
for the Large Team of the Year category.
In recent years, the team has driven a step change in
performance - moving from being designated by government to
becoming a high-performing planning service for both
applications and appeals. The team has also made significant
progress on the districts Local Plan.
Once at risk of government intervention for not having an up-to-
date plan, Uttlesford has now produced a draft Local Plan that
is at the forefront of climate change action and environmental
standards, setting a benchmark for sustainable development.
And what I consider to be the best news for Uttlesford is that
the Secretary of State has given UDC permission to Make that
Local Plan, a vote at full council will be required and this will
take place on Wednesday 25th March. If voted for, then the plan
will be in force within weeks after all procedures have been
carried out.

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Community Infrastructure Levy – CIL
UDC announced last week that the Uttlesford Community
Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Draft Charging Schedule and all
associated documentation have been officially submitted for
independent examination. This is part of the process for
adopting CIL in Uttlesford. The period to submit representations
(comments) regarding these modifications or to request to be
heard by the Examiner is currently open and will run until 23:59,
10 April 2026.

Residents in Uttlesford will head to the polls
On Thursday 7 May will choose who represents them at Essex
County Council. These elections replace those postponed from
May 2025 due to Local Government Reorganisation, with
Essex included in the national Devolution Priority Programme.
To vote, you must be registered. If you've recently moved or
turned 18, it is especially important to check. The deadline to
register is midnight on Monday 20 April.

As at 31 January any postal vote that required to be renewed
and had not been by this date, were removed.

Postal votes now have to be reapplied for if over 3 years old by
31 January 2026 as they do now only last 3 years.

Anyone who wants a postal vote has until Tuesday 21 April at
5pm to apply. Note - This is also the deadline if you wish to
cancel your postal vote. For any information check out the
government website. www.gov.uk/register-to-vote