The island’s Policy & Finance Committee has said it is to extend the process and will hold the next stage of the exercise in the autumn. So far there have been 130 responses and engagements received, alongside public workshops and discussions with residents.
‘Future Sark has already shown how much people care about the island and how much thoughtful input there is across the community,’ said Conseiller John Guille, chairman of Policy & Finance.
‘We are grateful to everyone who has taken the time to contribute so far. Extending the timetable is the right thing to do because it gives more people the chance to get involved and helps ensure the final work is stronger, more representative and more useful.’
Chief Pleas has said the project, which was launched in March, is intended to help the island think clearly and confidently about its long-term future, but with £30,000 of public money allocated to it, it has proved controversial for some.
Mr Guille said that the work to date had shown how strongly islanders care about Sark, its character, its community and its resilience. It had been hoped that the Future Sark work would have been completed in time for the island’s next general election in at the end of the year, but P&F has now reflected that summer in the island is the wrong time to ask people about long-term planning.
‘The committee feels it is more important to make sure that as many people as possible have the chance to understand the work, consider what has been heard so far, and contribute meaningfully before the survey is completed.’
P&F denied that a pause was a step back, but instead said it was ‘an opportunity to strengthen the next stage of Future Sark’.
The next stage will take place in the autumn, with a final report now expected in the new year. Similar projects were conducted in Sark in 2012 and 2023, with little in the way of tangible outcomes realised.
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