Co-Option Vacancy on Todenham Parish Council

Being a Councillor

Todenham Parish Council needs a new team member; if you think you would like to be involved in representing your community, and are over 18 years of age, please email me: clerk@todenhamparishcouncil.co.uk

What is a councillor?
Councillors are elected to represent an individual geographical unit on the council, known as a ward or parish – in Todenham it is the entire parish. They are generally elected by the public every four years, but there is a Co-option space available on the Parish Council at the moment as Councillor Bill Joss has retired and therefore given his resignation to the Parish Council.

What do councillors do?
Councillors have three main components to their work.

1.    Decision making – Through meetings and attending committees with other elected members, councillors decide which activities to support, where money should be spent, what services should be delivered and what policies should be implemented.

2.    Monitoring – Councillors make sure that their decisions lead to efficient and effective services by keeping an eye on how well things are working.

3.    Getting involved locally – As local representatives, councillors have responsibilities towards their constituents and local organisations. These responsibilities and duties often depend on what the councillor wants to achieve and how much time is available, and may include:

•    Going to meetings of local organisations
•    Going to meetings of bodies affecting the wider community
•    Taking up issues on behalf of members of the public
•    Attending quarterly meetings and occasional extraordinary meetings held through the year

How much time does it take up?
Quite often councillors say that their duties occupy them for, on average, about an hour a week. Obviously, there are some councillors who spend more time than this – and some less, but in the main, being a, parish councillor is an enjoyable way of contributing to your community, and helping to make it a better place to live and work.

Todenham Parish Council holds regular meetings quarterly in March, June, September and December. and they usually last for between an hour and an hour and a half. In addition there is the AGM held in May and occasional Extraordinary meetings held in between these times.

As a councillor representing your community you will help keep it a great place to live and work.  You will be supported in your role and will be expected to undertake any necessary training.

You should have a positive outlook and a can-do attitude and be willing to work as part of a team.

Further Information & How to Apply

Co-option is expected to take place at our next regular meeting to be held in June (date to be confirmed); it will be held at Todenham Village Hall at 7pm. Whilst applicants are not required to attend the meeting where co-option takes place, it is recommended.

If there is more than one applicant, the current Councillors will vote at that meeting until one candidate holds a majority vote.

If after reading this notice you are interested in applying, please contact the Clerk to the Council (myself) at the above email address for an application form.

Georgina