Taking over the reins in St John

Recently appointed Constable of St John, Andy Jehan, spoke to Kieranne Grimshaw about his future plans for the Parish and as a States Member

Andy, as he likes to be known, is a man who knows Jersey well. He was born and raised in the Island and worked at Jersey Post for 38 years, making his way up to Director of Operations. He has had a number of voluntary roles, including at the local football club and the St. John’s Recreation Centre as a Trustee and Director.

He also served as a Procureur du Bien Public for eight years so has gained much experience in leading a team and managing Parish administration.

Andy has enjoyed being made to feel very welcome and declared that meeting all the people is the best part of the job as a Constable. His main aim is to strengthen the community and connect the Parish.

Sitting in the States is quite different ‘I’ve always been a keen observer, but when you’re actually inside, pressing the voting button it’s for real’ he said, ‘I’m really looking forward to it, but my focus is on the Parish. ‘A big surprise for me on my first States sitting was there were as few as four people in the Assembly in one day. I think it’s wrong as the States encourage businesses to return to the office - for them not to lead by example, so one of my first questions was: “how are they going to try and encourage members back into the Assembly?”’

As Constable, Andy’s challenge will be to tackle a number of existing ongoing projects. He also aims to bring people together across the community. ‘The core of my campaign is all about connecting the Parish. I’d also like to get people talking about St. John for all the right reasons.’

Regarding the role of States members, Andy believes Jersey needs to evolve and Constables have to make themselves more relevant. He agrees with the recent decision to end the role of Senators and have more Deputies, responsible for districts, starting next year. ‘The public voted for change and it should have been implemented sooner. What was appropriate 30 - 40 years ago isn’t appropriate in 2021. I want to enhance the role of Constable and I’m committed to them remaining in the States. As the Parish link, they have an important part to play in encouraging more people to turn out and vote,’ he said.

“The core of my

campaign is all about connecting the Parish. I’d also like to get people talking about St. John for all the right reasons

Balancing the increasing need for affordable housing with the ecological and environmental impact will be an important on-going project for Andy in the Parish. ‘We need affordable housing for young families and the older generation. It’s currently too expensive for people with large properties to downsize. If we can retain equity in some sheltered housing and allow people to buy a portion of them, when they sell the property other people can then buy an affordable step-down property.’

On population, Andy feels we should take a cautious approach to managing it. ‘We also need to be aware of technology coming and the cost of doing business in Jersey which is very expensive. Both those things will take work away from the Island.’ he said.

“It’s about making

sure we’re on these different social media platforms, without ignoring traditional communication. Going into the community and talking to people is still vital. I’m trying to reach out to everyone and engage with them

“The public

voted for change and it should have been implemented sooner. What was appropriate 30 - 40 years ago isn’t appropriate in 2021

Some of Andy’s immediate targets will be to finalise work on the memorial garden, car park and forest school. ‘We’ve also got to do something about children’s safety at the school and I’d like to see us improve safe routes for walking and cycling.’ Andy has already set a number of wheels in motion and is committed to greener transport. ‘We’ve recently talked to the Evie Bikes for the Sion area and also to the JEC about charging points in the Parish.’

As a new States Member, Andy sees his immediate role as a learning curve ‘I may go on one or two Scrutiny Panels but I’m a firm believer that Constables shouldn’t be Ministers.’

To better engage and connect the Parish, Andy plans to hold a 60 minute ‘meet your representatives’ meeting after each Parish Assembly to encourage parishioners to discuss parish matters and question him directly about his voting record.

‘I really want to listen to what people want’ said Andy. In his first few weeks as Constable he has already modernised certain Parish practices, including publicising the Parish Accounts on the website and accepting credit card and online payments. He also continues to promote his Facebook page set up last year and is active on Twitter. ‘It’s a really powerful tool’ said Andy ‘it’s about making sure we’re on these different social media platforms, without ignoring traditional communication. Going into the community and talking to people is still vital. I’m trying to reach out to everyone and engage with them.’

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