What’s missing these days is some of the mentality of previous generations

From: Lynn Langlands, Collington Lane West, Bexhill
Your letters to the newspaper SUS-190315-084020001Your letters to the newspaper SUS-190315-084020001
Your letters to the newspaper SUS-190315-084020001

I was born in a post-war London where grief and hardship were at the very core of the community.

I do not wish to return to history to make a point, but it is certainly from history that we learn to move forward into what we like to call a more modern world, and on many occasions leaving behind some of the real value of what we had.

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Control at local level simply mirrors the political shenanigans that we see within central government. Brexit is not destroying our communities; Government have been doing that over a very long period in the blind belief that austerity will be good for the country.

People are struggling to maintain a quality of life, and as a community many have turned inward to survive, so they can gather the strength to meet the next challenge that might be thrust upon them. They no longer want to engage with what is happening around them, as they do not see it holding any value for their future.

From a local perspective Rother councillors should do their very best to make their citizens believe they are valued. This can only start when they collectively put aside party politics and start listening to local people.

Further cutbacks to councils indicate that we are far from climbing out of the black hole of austerity, so in order to maintain services and tackle some of the very social and economic issues encountered within our communities, they need to instil trust, share information, and adopt an inclusive approach to decision making. There are many stakeholders within a community’s framework, and their ideas, skills and support can help to improve the lives of many people in their area.

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We have reached a time when the governing structure of Bexhill Town needs to change. The current Rother District Council failed to listen to nearly 9,000 people in Bexhill who wanted to have a Town Council that could truly represent the town and help to improve local services.

All other towns and parishes in Rother already have that privilege, so effectively half the population of Rother saw their rights being challenged, and have subsequently lost trust in the very people that are there to represent them.

This has been borne out particularly with the recent SPINDAG planning application in Little Common, which is being tossed around Rother Council, because we are led to believe the planning committee’s decision was inconclusive. Are they not competent? With no voice and the belief that their views will not be heard, the community resorts to banners, posters and placards. Protests increase and the general spirit of the community changes. This has to stop.

The pyramids of power need to revert to their original purpose as tombs for dead rulers, and from the sinking sand of despair we need to build a society that retains some of those post-war values of community support, community love, community trust and faith that they will build a safe and happy society for the next generation.