PIP was founded as a political party by Castle Point residents in 2021, mainly to focus the opposition to the totally inappropriate Conservative Local Plan, which would have robbed our borough of much of it’s Green Belt, and also to counter the general blasé attitude of the Conservative administrations towards residents. 
In May 2022 we won enough councillor seats (10), to be able to form a coalition with the Canvey Island independent Party (16 councillors) and gain control of CPBC from the Conservatives (15 councillors). In May 2023 PIP increased our councillors to 16, with CIIP remaining on 16 and the Conservatives with 9. Since then the Conservatives have been further reduced to 8 councillors with the resignation their leader who now stands as an Independent. The PIP & CIIP Independent coalition has worked well for the borough and in the 18 months or so since gaining power there are many achievements we can point to, which are in additional to all the actions ongoing around the Castle Point Plan

•    In February 2023 PIP Councillor Steve Mountford (Cabinet Member for Resources/Finances), brought forward the first Independent administration budget. This was a balanced budget with no cuts to services and with the council tax rise well below the rate of inflation.
•    In February 2024 Steve Mountford brought forward the Independent administration’s second budget. This was not only another balanced budget but also closed the £1.4M funding gap inherited from the previous Conservative administration and froze the CPBC portion of Council tax for 2024/25 at 2023/24 levels.
•    The CPBC Independent Administrations first budget included £200k set aside to take steps for Castle Point Council to become carbon neutral.
•    We retained the Highway Ranger service, who look after the verges around our roads, in house to CPBC after it was defunded by Essex County Council
•    We are building new Council housing stock faster than at any time in the last decade. This means more people will have homes to call their own and is an important part of helping to tackle the waiting list for council owned accommodation. Nine homes are already under construction and funding for a further seven has been allocated. We are also looking at more possible sites to increase our council housing stock further in the coming years. The multi-million pound investment will see a range of three, two and one bed properties being built. They will be occupied by those currently in temporary accommodation. All the schemes have high environmental credentials, and each home has a dedicated Electric Vehicle charging point in one of their parking spaces. The developments have been funded through a mix of money from the sale of Council owned property under the Government’s Right To Buy Scheme, Council reserves, and loans.
•    Actions from the Independent administration have led to the council now being transformed from being officer led to councillor led, which means all important decisions will be voted on democratically by councillors. This not only means it is more resident responsive, it also allows a level of scrutiny as to where efficiencies and savings can be made. 
•    In February 2023 following an examination by The Planning Inspectorate, approval has been given for a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) to be implemented in Castle Point. This is basically a charge that local authorities can set on new developments in order to raise funds to help fund the infrastructure, facilities and services - such as schools or transport improvements - needed to support new homes and businesses. This should have been a priority many years ago, for example if implemented 10 years ago it is estimated this would have raised around £8M to date.
•    When in 2022 the Independent administration was elected, we asked the Local Government Association for an assessment of CPBC structure compared to best practices in other local councils nationwide. This has resulted in a significant overhaul and restructuring of the whole council. Major cost savings of around £500,000 per annum have been realised by reducing the number of highly paid senior officer director positions from 7 to 3, and by implementing a streamlined structure and way of working which will improve the council’s services. These improvements will make the council more accountable and transparent. These actions have since brought praise from the LGA who stated ‘CPBC is unrecognizable from a year ago’.
•    An upgrade to the CPBC website is in progress which will allow more services to be accessible and reduce the number of phone calls residents need to make. 
•    We freed up money that was allocated from central government grants for specific projects but had been left unused by the previous Conservative administration. This money has been spent on projects such as the Paddocks rejuvenation.
•    We have implemented plans to utilise the Council’s Community Halls and open spaces more effectively. In 2024, a new wave of events will commence with the offering of comedy nights, disco nights, outdoor cinemas, concerts and more.
•    We are thinking differently about how we work with other organisations to bring about change and investment across our borough. A great example of this is the refurbishment of the tennis courts at the King George V Recreation Ground. Under a new deal, the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) will invest £79,000 on bringing the Canvey Island courts back up to a high playable standard. In return for the investment, the courts will be made bookable via the LTA’s online booking system and entrance barriers and a usage charge will be introduced to help prevent vandalism. A robust maintenance programme will be put in place to ensure the courts can be maintained to a high standard in the future and the Council will ensure that any fee charged is affordable and in line with indicative pricing from other authorities. We will also offer free and discounted sessions to eligible groups. Work on the tennis courts will take place over the winter and be completed by Summer 2024.
•    We are converting 2 of the tennis courts at JH Burrows into a Multi-Use Games Area. The 2 remaining tennis courts will be upgraded.
•    We are installing a disability accessible path at Thundersley Recreation Ground and a sensory garden at Richmond Park.
•    We have provided funding to help with outdoor cricket practice nets at Hadleigh and Thundersley Cricket Club
•    We are installing 30 more picnic benches to be installed across the Borough within Council parks and open spaces.

Our transformation programme will ensure Castle Point Borough Council delivers modern services in a dynamic and cost-effective way. This will not only protect the services residents value but it will also ensure that when contacting the Council it is an easy process, day and night.
We are proud of the progress the Independent Administration has made in such a short space of time, and we are grateful for the continued support of our residents. Local People For Local People