Applications for apprenticeships at Gatwick Airport are now open.

The airport is recruiting four engineering apprentices to start in August and one IT apprentice to start in September.

Candidates have until the 10 March to apply.

More information can be found at the Gatwick Airport website.

Tandridge Borough Council have agreed a motion to support family farms in the district and ask the government not to implement the Family Farm Tax.

The motion was put forward by Councillor Windsor and also commits the Council to writing to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and MP Claire Coutinho, to express its concern at the decision to restrict Agricultural Property Relief and ask the government to stop the Family Farm Tax.

In addition, the Council will help promote local farm produce and encourage residents to shop local. A number of farms have received grants from the Council’s Rural England Prosperity Fund to support new initiatives and improvements and details about these projects will also be made available.

Councillor Catherine Sayer, Leader of the Council, said: “We are a rural district with a large number of working farms. We recognise the important role farmers have in our economy and environment. Many are struggling and the changes to inheritance tax are likely to have an adverse impact on family farms.”

Councillor Helena Windsor said: “I am delighted my fellow councillors supported the motion. The Family Farm Tax will have a detrimental impact on farms and the ability to pass on farms to the next generation. The number of farmers in the public gallery demonstrated the strength of feeling about this issue and I am grateful for their support.”

Full details of the motion are available on the Council’s website.

South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAMB) now have a dedicated paramedic service working out of Gatwick Airport again.

The Gatwick Solo team, also known as Gatso will see a responder unit permanently based at the airport.

They’ll respond to critically-unwell patients, potentially negating the need for an ambulance to attend.

The head of passenger operations, at Gatwick – Nick Williams, said they were “delighted” to have the service. Adding, “An on-site paramedic ensures passengers and staff receive the best professional healthcare we can provide.

Crawley Borough Council has granted planning permission for phase one of the Station Gateway regeneration scheme which will transform the public spaces on the Martlets, Haslett Avenue West, and Friary Way, and deliver major improvements to the operation of the bus station in the heart of Crawley town centre.

Phase one of the Station Gateway regeneration scheme will be funded by both government and local authority capital funding allocated from a combination of the Crawley Growth Programme and the Crawley Towns Fund.

The first phase of the regeneration scheme will benefit the town centre in numerous ways including:

• providing physical improvements to the public spaces on Friary Way, the Martlets and Haslett Avenue West, creating a better-connected transport hub for pedestrians and cyclists between the railway station, bus station and the wider town centre
• delivering an enhanced bus station with improved bus and traffic flows around Friary Way and maximise operational capacity within the bus station to boost the provision of bus services across the town
• providing high quality, distinctive and enjoyable public spaces for residents, visitors, and town centre workers, boosting footfall and vitality in the town centre and encouraging a stronger sense of place
• adding quality soft landscaping to the area with a variety of planting and greenery to enhance the quality of the environment
• providing continuous and safe cycle infrastructure to the edge of the pedestrian shopping area as an extension of the wider cycle network
• ensuring the area is accessible to all users including children, older people, people with disabilities, workers, residents, and visitors who will be using the area at various times
• transforming the living and working environment to help unlock private sector investment and development including new high-quality residential accommodation, and new commercial space

These proposals for Station Gateway are an incredible opportunity to transform Crawley town centre for the better and to boost economic growth and attract future investment, in line with Crawley’s Economic Recovery Plan.

This is just the first phase in an ambitious plan, driven by our Town Centre Regeneration Programme, to attract private investment in new residential, retail, and commercial development within the area, generating hundreds of new homes and jobs, which will enormously benefit the residents of Crawley for generations to come. This exciting new scheme simply cannot happen soon enough as far as I am concerned.

Councillor Michael Jones

Leader of Crawley Borough Council