Residents across Tendring can look forward to continued improvements in services, value for money and opportunity for the future.

Tendring District Council last night agreed its annual budget and Leader David Lines promised its effects would be felt over the next 10-15 years and beyond.

He called it a Triple A budget which was Affordable, Appropriate and Ambitious.

The budget would add just under 11p a week to the average Council Tax bill but would see the authority move forward with its priorities and provide the resources to take a significant step towards transforming Tendring and all its various communities.

Cllr Lines said that Project Tendring was at the very heart of those plans and would deliver real regeneration.

"This includes not only economic development but also the physical, social and environmental improvement of our district," he said.

"Project Tendring recognises the disparate needs of different parts of the district and the necessity of engaging with individuals, partners and groups in the diverse communities of Tendring."

The Leader said there were five main components to Project Tendring:

 Harwich and the Stour Valley
 Clacton and the coastal towns
 Brightlingsea and the villages of Mid Tendring
 Addressing the specific and complex issue of Jaywick
 Improving the quality of life for all residents through culture, sport and other activities under the banner of Dynamic Tendring.

Cllr Lines said that a proposal to provide £1million of expected future capital receipts for Jaywick had received cross-party support. He also believed that other bodies may be looking at making a financial contribution to Jaywick.

He added that he had become acutely aware of the different needs of different communities within Tendring, and Project Tendring would address the individual needs of each area.

He hoped that the initiative would get the backing of the whole Council in the interests of speed and efficiency. Therefore Members of the opposition groups would get the chance to be involved with project delivery boards along with outside partners.

As a first step in an effort to engage all Members they will each get a budget of £2,000 in 2008/9 to spend for the benefit of people living in their ward.

The Leader was quick to point out the major regeneration and transformation could not be achieved by the Council on its own. It would need to involve partner public service providers and closer working with voluntary and community based organisations.

"In essence we are looking to engage and involve people and communities to work with us in partnership," he added.

Additional resources from outside will also be required and the aim will be to lever extra cash to deliver better housing, living environments, town centres and jobs.

Cllr Lines said that new proposals will be put before Cabinet in the next month on the practical steps to get Project Tendring underway.

He also proposed that a further £1.5million of potential future capital receipts could be allocated to Project Tendring over the coming years and shared out around the district.

That work would work out to around £25,000 per Councillor to help make a real impact in their communities. That might be shared out among villages - where a Member represents more than one - or added together where a ward has more than one Member and used to lever extra investment from outside.

"The building of a new football pavilion in Lawford, the purchase of a 4youth centre building in Brightlingsea or the redevelopment of Dovercourt Town Centre could move a significant step closer to reality," said Cllr Lines.

The Leader said the budget which had been agreed was very different to those which had been put before the Council in the past.

"It is a budget for change, it is a budget for economic prosperity and social well-being," he said. "It is a budget which deals with the present and a budget that deals with the future."

Further information can be found on the Project Tendring page.