Parish Council
Role of a Councillor
How does the Parish Council Work?
The Parish Council is part of the Government in your local area. It is a legal entity in the same way as a Company is an entity, or a living breathing person is an entity. It can only do what it is legally allowed to do (or in other words what it has the “power” to do).
It takes its income from residents of the Parish in the form of a precept (part of the Council Tax). The money is used to pay for a variety of smaller things in and around your village such as bins, and benches, and bus shelters. It also assists the Village Hall and makes donations to charities. Generally speaking, it is not responsible for bigger more expensive things such as road repairs, rubbish collections etc.
The Parish Council is consulted on planning and other issues.
The District and County Councillors may attend Parish Meetings as a way of keeping in touch with peoples views and opinions.
Parish Elections are held every 4yrs. However often there are more vacancies than there are candidates, this means that the election is uncontested and everyone applying gets a seat. Parish residents pay for the cost of Parish elections through the precept. Wrentham Parish Council is particularly keen to encourage anyone 18+ years to join the Council.
More Information is contained in the Good-Councillors-Guide.pdf
The Role of a Councillor
Councillors are summonsed to attend Parish Council Meetings each month. They will look at a variety of local issues on the Agenda which is published a week before the meeting. Individual Councillors have no powers but can collectively vote and make decisions as a whole Council.
Outside of the meetings, individual councillors can carry out research into issues, canvass opinions, or do voluntary work for the Parish.
