The term parish is firmly embedded in the mind as being linked with the church and this does cause confusion when talking about Parish Councils.
The word is considered to have first appeared in writings from the end of the 13th century and was indeed a term to describe both the
catchment area
of a particular church and the people within that area.
If we jump forward 600 years and to the Local Government Act of 1894 when erstwhile gentlemen in top hats and frock coats in that London decided that a
new lowest tier of
local
government was needed,
especially in rural areas,
we then see the creation of Civil Parishes and Parish Councils.
Civil Parish?
That’s right, in England, a locally elected body of local residents given limited powers to make decisions on behalf of a community but
without any political affiliation or ecclesiastical connection at all. Quite revolutionary for its day I would have thought - (limited) power to the people.
Of course in the early days the Council would have included the local dignitaries such as the vicar, doctor, JP and local landowners
but these days
any old Tom, Dick or Harry or Harriet can
be on the council.
Over the next 120 years or so the scope and range of the Parish Council’s remit changed considerably and can now include many areas from allotments to cemeteries
and bus shelters
and much
more in between, if you wish to know more visit the Wikipedia page on the subject , it’s where I nicked most of this from in the first place.
A Council has links to the Local County or Borough Council and can bring influence to bear on many decisions including planning
applications
and
how to spend the
Council’s precept (share of the Community Charge). This might include grass cutting,
footpath maintenance, upkeep of a playground or playing field in fact any of the facilities that a Parish might have.
Occaisionally it's more personal and I was recently able to bring pressure
to bear to resolve a housing issue for a local resident.
If you have a look on
North Lincs Council's planning portal at the applications that have been submitted for the land of Halkon Close
you will see just
how much effort and research this incarnation of the council has put into fighting
those applications causing the deal to stall for the last couple of years.
There is a link to map of the Luddington and Haldenby Parish here.
The most difficult part of a Council’s work is that everything is governed not just by rules but by laws and every step has a law.
As a result the community often doesn't understand the role and a body that should be driven by the community
for the
community is often
reviled for standing apart from the community and sometimes that may be the case but not in Luddington.
The Luddington Council firmly believes that the community should drive what the Council does (or doesn't) do
and we do welcome
residents to our meetings, far too often we make decisions without a community contribution.
If you’ve every said to yourself “...why doesn’t somebody do something about…..” then you need to get in touch with the Council, ask for your
concern to be added to the agenda for the next meeting and come along to discuss it.
The idea of waiting for the next meeting may seem off putting but, as noted above, the Council is bound by many rules and the agenda idea does make perfect sense.
Once published the meeting is fixed by the agenda and this means that anyone in the Parish can see precisely what the Council is going to discuss and
come to the meeting and air their views and opinions.
If it’s not on the agenda when it’s published then it cannot be discussed as that would
exclude anyone not at the meeting and that would be undemocratic. The Luddington & Haldenby Council agendas are published at least three
clear days before the next meeting and can be found on this website and on the notice board by the postbox at Axholme House.
A resident may introduce a non-agenda item at a meeting but it must be added to the next agenda for discussion.
Of course the Vicar of Dibley, however hilarious, did nothing to enhance the reputation of the Parish Council in general and it will probably take decades for that image to dissipate.
Get involved, join the Council or just come along to meetings and help your Council to act on the issues that are important to you.
Perhaps you don't think that the role of councillor is for you in that case you can always volunteer to help out with some of the
tasks of the council, the upkeep of the playing field and playground are an obvious example.
Rob Adams
Chair, Luddington & Haldenby Council
7th of July 2023