Horizon scan
Horizon Scanning Log
13 June 2026 -- Back to Brightlingsea Index
News and mentions
- Tendring District Council's planning committee has proposed removing site SAH4 (up to 300 homes off Samsons Road) over landscape sensitivity and single-road access, favouring five smaller sites (~90 homes). Mentions our representatives: Cllr Jayne Chapman BEM (lobbied against the site) and Town Mayor Cllr Ric Morgan.
- Ric Morgan has been appointed Brightlingsea Town Council mayor for 2026-27, with Kate Mitchell as deputy mayor. They succeed outgoing mayor Cllr Chris Paveley. Source: Clacton & Frinton Gazette.
- Police shared a new video of missing psychologist Vitória Figueiredo-Barreto, last seen 3 March 2026 at Essex University. She is reported to have got off a bus at Bellfield Avenue, Brightlingsea, around 1.30pm and was caught on doorbell CCTV in the Hurst Green area. Investigation ongoing.
- Brightlingsea man Joseph Dines sentenced for drugs offences (c. June 2026)
- Joseph Dines, of Western Road, Brightlingsea — previously given a suspended sentence for indecent images of children — received a 27-month sentence, suspended for three years, for cocaine and cannabis supply offences, plus a drug-rehabilitation requirement and GPS tag.
- Fox's Yacht Sales joins Brightlingsea's Morgans Group (c. June 2026)
- Ipswich-based Fox's Yacht Sales has been acquired by Morgans Group (parent of Fox's Marina & Boatyard and Fox's Chandlery). Charles Vinten appointed sales director. Local maritime business news.
- Brightlingsea Lido reopens for the season (late May 2026, Bank Holiday weekend)
- Brightlingsea Lido — described as Essex's last remaining lido, run by a volunteer group since 2018 — has reopened for the Bank Holiday weekend and summer season. General admission £5.70–£7.70.
- Alan Fletcher (Dr Karl Kennedy in Neighbours) and The Alan Fletcher Band will play the Brightlingsea Free Music Festival on 2 August 2026 as part of a UK tour.
- Sport England's Active Lives survey found activity in Tendring rose 9.5 percentage points in the year to November 2025, with inactivity down 5.6 points — the strongest improvement in Essex. Mentions our representatives: Cllr Mick Barry credited the council's Sport and Activity Strategy.
Representatives' activity (largely social media / lower-authority sources — included for an impression of activity, not as verified fact)
- Aimée Keteca confirmed as Reform UK county councillor for Brightlingsea (current, 2026 record)
- Open Council Data lists Aimée Keteca (Reform UK) as Essex County Council member for the Brightlingsea division, term to 2029. No substantive news this period; she appears in local Tendring community Facebook groups (welcome post, ~May 2026).
- Cllr Mick Barry promotes local environmental efforts (c. June 2026)
- A Tendring community Facebook post quotes Cllr Mick Barry, as District Councillor and environment portfolio holder, noting he was cited in the Guardian on environmental work. Low-authority/social source.
- Bernard Jenkin MP — Westminster activity (c. June 2026)
- Our MP Sir Bernard Jenkin has been active on patient-safety (co-signing a cross-party letter opposing abolition of the HSSIB) and on defence/military preparedness. Not Brightlingsea-specific; included as representative activity. Source: his X/social accounts.
- Cllr Graham Steady in Town Council Local Plan discussion (c. June 2026)
- Cllr Graham Steady (Independent) appears in Brightlingsea Town Council social-media discussion around the Local Plan. Low-authority social source; one post's title attribution is inconsistent with current records (Ric Morgan is the 2026-27 mayor), so his title is not asserted here.