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Parish Councillors and their responsibilities pdf

 

More information on Parish Councils

Minutes, Agenda and Financial documents page

Chairman's Report 2007

Chaiman's Letters

2009 Parish Council meeting dates

The Kedington Parish Council meets in the Kedington library at 7.45 until 9.45, every third Tuesday in the month, except August when there is no meeting.

"Parish" is an old English word that means a local territory or catchment area, and in ancient times played a very important role in the lives of people, from providing them with a sense of communal identity through to how they were governed. A parish had two principal functions: firstly to act as a civil unit which was responsible for the collection of taxes and tithes, the dispensing of justice and the raising of armies; secondly it was an ecclesiastical institution served by a local church or chapel, with a priest or similar clergyman tending to the spiritual needs of local people.

By the late 19th Century, the two functions of civil and ecclesiastical parish were formally split in law. The civil parish went on to develop into what we call the parish or town council today, which is the principal subject of this document. The ecclesiastical parish is now an entirely separate body, usually with entirely different borders to their civil counterparts, and with the proliferation of different churches most people today will live in several different such religious parishes..

Parishes are the smallest areas of civil administration in England and provide the statutory tier of local government closest to the people. A parish council is a statutory local authority set up under the Local Government Act 1972. It operates in the area of a defined civil parish or group of parishes.

Parish Councils are an essential part of the structure of local democracy and have a vital role in acting on behalf of the communities they represent. They -

• give views, on behalf of the community, on planning applications and other proposals that affect the parish;
• undertake projects and schemes that benefit local residents;
• work in partnership with other bodies to achieve benefits for the parish; alert relevant authorities to problems that arise or work that needs to be undertaken; and
• help the other tiers of local government keep in touch with their local communities.

What powers do Town and Parish Councils have?

They have a wide range of powers which essentially relate to local matters, such as looking after community buildings, open space, allotments, play areas, street lighting, bus shelters, car parks and much more. The Council also has the power to raise money through taxation, the precept. The precept is the parish council’s share of the council tax. The precept demand goes to the billing authority, the District Council, which collects the tax for the Parish Council.. They are required to hold at least four meetings each year which are open to the public, one of which must be an Annual Meeting of the full Council. Their meetings are open to the public but only the registered electors for the Parish are permitted to speak and vote on any proposal.

Parish Councillors

Councillors have an active interest and concern for their local community. They represent local people and work in partnership with them and others when necessary. They help facilitate the provision of local services and facilities and take decisions that form the policy of the Council. Councillors are not paid and have to abide by a local government code of conduct and declare their financial interests in the parish.

Councillors must also declare a personal or prejudicial interest in any matter under discussion at a parish council meeting. Councillors Declaration of Interest. All members and co-opted Members of District and Parish Councils are required by law (The Local Government Act 2000) to complete a register of interests form to register their financial and other interests.