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The Burnt Oak Opportunity Support Team (BOOST) and the National Careers Service will be promoting work and apprenticeship options at Brent Cross Shopping Centre this Friday. This will be one of the main events Barnet Council is hosting this week as it celebrates the achievements of apprentices, as part of National Apprenticeship Week. Apprenticeships are available for anyone over the age of 16. People who are already working can also use an apprenticeship to upskill, for example, when a worker wants to gain promotion to become a manager.

However, following consultation, the council will apply a three per cent social care precept to bills in 2018/19. This will be spent exclusively on helping to provide support and take care of elderly and vulnerable adult residents. Barnet has the largest population of any London borough and is home to a higher population of older people compared to the rest of London, many of whom require care. The precept will generate an additional £4.9m per year, adding £2.89 per month to Council Tax bills for a band D property.

The ceremony on Sunday 25 June, will see army reservists, cadets and ex-servicemen and women assemble for the parade at Hendon Town Hall, in The Burroughs. As part of the event, the Worshipful the Mayor of Barnet, Councillor Brian Salinger, will raise an Armed Forces Day flag above the town hall. The annual ceremony is one of many taking place across the country to acknowledge the contribution of both those currently serving in the Armed Forces and those who have served in the past.

The new service allows residents to stream meetings live via the council’s website and listen in as the debate takes place during a selection of meetings. The technology also allows residents to listen to recordings of what was said at the committee and even select which agenda item they would like to hear. A schedule of which meetings will be available to stream is published on the council’s website.

Barnet residents, partners and local organisations are invited to read the draft framework which covers 2016 to 2021 and respond before the deadline of 13 November. The feedback will help the council test its proposed vision and commitments, to encourage a collaborative approach to creating a more active and healthy borough. The draft framework also involved working with partners in health, including housing associations, developers, and transport and other community providers.

Barnet Council has been awarded £324,000 to help renovate Silkstream Valley parks, Silkstream Park and Montrose Playing Fields. The development of these green spaces will include two new playgrounds, new facilities for sports such as basketball, parkour and tennis, a café, events spaces and more. In a separate development, Barnet Council was also awarded funding of nearly £80,000 from the Environment Agency Water Environment Improvement Fund to go towards the river restoration element of the Silk Stream & Montrose Parks project.

The Inside Housing Development Awards are an opportunity to celebrate the very best residential development across the UK from the past year. With 13 categories recognising schemes, teams and solutions, there is a category to suit all the key players, including landlords, developers, architects and funders.

Teams cleared overgrown vegetation and rubbish from the gardens of three properties in the borough after the owners failed to heed official notices requiring them to clear their land. The owners will now have to foot the bill for the work being carried out. At one of the properties in Gaydon Lane, Colindale, teams removed around four trailer loads of rubbish from the front and back gardens.

The consultation, which runs until 29 February, gives people the chance to help shape what the Barnet Safer Communities Partnership should concentrate on in 2016/17. The partnership is made up of a number of organisations including the council, Metropolitan Police, Fire Service, Victim Support, Probation Service and Middlesex University. The consultation is intended to gather people’s perceptions of crime and anti-social behaviour in their area, their feelings about how well the partnership is tackling crime and what the 2016/17 priorities should be.

The Autumn 2016 Residents’ Perception Survey reveals that 85 per cent of people questioned are satisfied with living in Barnet, with 81 per cent agreeing people from different ethnic backgrounds get on well together. 78 per cent of residents think it is a family friendly place to live. Asked about the work of the council, 78 per cent of residents questioned say they think the council is doing a good job, with almost two thirds agreeing it provides good value for their Council Tax. Overall, 71 per cent of residents say they are satisfied with the way the council runs things.