News

New Corporate Plan is a fresh start for Thurrock

25 July 2024
Thurrock Council has taken a significant step in its journey of improvement, with a new Corporate Plan being approved at a meeting of Full Council yesterday (24 July 2024).
The Corporate Plan 2024-2029 – called 'A fresh start for Thurrock' – sets out how the council will operate over the next five years as it recovers and rebuilds trust with residents and communities.
Setting a future direction for the council as it works with its partners and local communities to best serve the people of Thurrock, the plan establishes 3 priorities:

New bus service coming to Thurrock

24 July 2024
A new council-supported bus service launching in September will link communities in Horndon on the Hill, Stanford-le-Hope, Tilbury, Chadwell St Mary and Grays.
The 375 bus will run from Monday to Saturday, on the hour, 5 times in each direction between 7am and 6:45pm. It will start from South Hill Crescent in Horndon on the Hill and ending at Grays Bus Station, taking in East Tilbury Station and Coalhouse Fort along the way.

Volunteers helping to keep Belhus woods accessible

19 July 2024
Dedicated Thames Chase Conservation Volunteers have started work at the Oakwood and Ask Plantation in Belhus, helping to clear and tidy footpaths through the woods.
The volunteer team will cut back thick blackthorn hedges, slash long grass and clear brambles from obstructing the path.

New powers will help keep Thurrock moving

19 July 2024
Thurrock Council will use new powers to help stop drivers blocking the M25 Junction 31 roundabout.
The new powers mean that the council can fine drivers who block yellow box junctions at the Purfleet Interchange. Blocked junctions can cause significant traffic congestion throughout the Thurrock, as local traffic cannot get through when the M25 is blocked.
By law, for the first 6 months drivers will first receive a warning notice instead of a fine. They will only be fined during this period if they are found to have blocked the yellow box junction again.

Community Big Lunches in Thurrock

19 July 2024
Over the summer, 10 Community Big Lunches are being held in parks and open spaces across Thurrock.
Community Big Lunches are like free mini festivals, with lots of entertainment and opportunities to enjoy Thurrock without having to spend lots of money. These events have been created in partnership the borough's voluntary groups.
Events will take place on the following dates.

Thurrock Adult Community College honours outstanding achievements

18 July 2024
On Wednesday 10 July 2024, Thurrock Adult Community College (TACC) held its annual Learner of the Year Awards. The event recognised the outstanding achievements of adult learners and brought together students, staff, community partners and other interested groups to celebrate these achievements.

Leader welcomes devolution letter from Deputy Prime Minister

16 July 2024
Responding to a letter from the new Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, inviting proposals from councils regarding devolution, Cllr John Kent, Leader of Thurrock Council, said:
"I was delighted to receive such an early indication of the new Deputy Prime Minister's clear commitment to pushing power out of Whitehall to the regions, acknowledging that councils are best-placed to drive the kind of inclusive economic growth that our communities want and need.

Young musicians take to the stage for Junior Music Festival

12 July 2024
Students from Thurrock Primary Schools were joined by singers from the Royal Opera and Ballet House as part of a special collection of performances for the 25th anniversary of Thurrock Junior Music Festival.
Over 1,120 children, aged 7 to 11, sang various songs including rock, pop and opera over 3 days of evening performances at The Civic Hall in Grays.
This year, Thurrock Music Service collaborated with The Royal Ballet and Opera to celebrate 10 years of working together on Trailblazers projects in Thurrock, which has aimed to support cultural learning through the arts.

Thurrock Council remembers Srebrenica

11 July 2024
Thurrock Council's Mayor and Leader raised a flag and held a minute's silence today as they joined the borough's Srebrenican community in remembering the terrible events of the 1995 genocide, commemorating those that lost their lives and celebrating the resilience shown by survivors as they established new lives in Thurrock.

Developer fined for leaving a mess in East Tilbury

10 July 2024
A housing developer has been forced to pay thousands of pounds in fines and costs after leaving an unsightly mess at the The Lawns development site in Coronation Avenue, East Tilbury, where he has planning permission to build 18 homes.
Tom Ingleton, Director of Ingleton Luxury Homes Ltd, pleaded guilty to not complying with a legal order to tidy the site, issued to him over a year ago by Thurrock Council, when he appeared at Basildon Magistrates Court on Tuesday 9 July 2024.
He has to pay £3,400 personally and an additional £3,492 as director of the house building company.

Sign-up for Thurrock News – our monthly email newsletter.

Media enquiries

Journalists and media professionals can make enquiries from Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, 01375 652 017 or at communicationsteam@thurrock.gov.uk.

For emergency media enquiries outside of these times, phone 07912 782 470.

The communications team email inbox is not monitored outside of office hours, so email media enquiries received out-of-hours may not be answered until the next working weekday.

We advise our staff, when approached directly by a member of the media, not to answer questions themselves but to refer you to the communications team who will provide our response.

We do not normally comment on individual cases or enquiries relating to council staff.