HASSOCKS PARISH COUNCIL
Welcome to the Hassocks Parish Council Website
Functions and Location/Contact
The Council Office is:
Parish Centre, Adastra Park, Hassocks, West Sussex, BN6 8QH
Telephone. 01273 842714
Fax. 01273 843836
Email - hassockspc@btconnect.com (To email click) 
The Clerk to the Council is Miss Linda Baker 
Opening Hours of the Council Office are:
Tuesdays and Thursdays 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m.
Mondays and Wednesdays 10.00 a.m. to 12 noon.
Hassocks Parish Council
Hassocks Parish Council was formed in 2000 by the amalgamation of Clayton and Keymer Parish Councils. It has fifteen Councillors, who represent the four wards in the village. The next elections will be held in 2011, but by-elections may be held to fill any casual vacancies occurring before then. Each year the Council raises a "precept" to cover its running expenses. The precept for 2007/08 has been set at £167,605. (see "Precept" for historic details)
The Parish Council:
Owns and manages the Adastra Park in Hassocks, which includes football pitches, a cricket pitch, a croquet pitch, tennis courts, a skatepark, children’s play area, a Bowls Club, and the Memorial Gardens
Owns and manages the Parklands allotments
Has recently acquired a site opposite St Cosmos and St Damian’s church in Hassocks which is being landscaped to provide a burial ground and Garden of Remembrance
Provides and maintains bus shelters, seats and litter bins in the village
Comments on all planning applications in the Parish to Mid Sussex District Council, who are the local planning authority
Provides hanging baskets, undertakes planting around the village to improve the visual amenity, and runs an annual Hassocks in Bloom competition
Maintains some of the street lights (most on main roads are the responsibility of West Sussex County Council)
Sells green rubbish bags and administers travel passes on behalf of Mid Sussex District Council
Liaises with West Sussex County Council on local highways matters, including road marking, maintenance and speeding
Has developed a Village Design Statement which it is hoped will be adopted as supplementary planning guidance to help shape future development
Organises regular "surgeries" at the Parish Centre with District and County Councillors, Mid Sussex District Council - Council Tax and Benefits department, for the benefit of residents
QUALITY STATUS
Hassocks Parish Council has been awarded Quality Status under the government’s Quality Parish and Town Council Scheme. To achieve Quality Status a council has to demonstrate to an independent accreditation panel that it is effectively and properly managed, is representative of and actively engages with its community, and has the ability and capacity to take on a wider range of activities and responsibilities. There are approximately 12,000 town and parish councils and so far 393 have achieved Quality Status. Quality Status councils can apply for special government grants and take over responsibility for some activities from District and County councils, so they can provide a better level of service for local residents. Hassocks is already part of a cluster with Hurstpierpoint, Cuckfield and Burgess Hill, carrying out some highway functions on behalf of West Sussex County Council, and it is hoped to extend this to some activities currently done by Mid Sussex District Council.
The Right Hon Earl of Lytton, President of the National Association of Local Councils, presented Hassocks with the Quality Status certificate at a reception in the Parish Centre on 19 March 2007. He paid tribute to the councillors, Clerk and staff of the Parish Council for all their hard work in achieving Quality Status, and said that Hassocks was a very vital community, with a number of organisations in the village pursuing new initiatives to make the quality of life better for local people.
