Becoming a Councillor

Town Council elections are held every 4 years - the next election is due in May 2015. Are you in a position to stand as a Councillor?  Read further

What is the role of Honiton Town Council?

Honiton Town Council is an elected tier of government which is vital in representing the interests of the local community it serves and improving the quality of life and the local environment. It is one of over 8,000 parish councils in England. Although other Councils, such as Devon County and East Devon District, have legal duties to deliver a range of services such as education, town and country planning, environmental health and social services, Honiton Town Council has a role to play in influencing these decision makers and can often deliver services to meet local needs.

Issues that particularly concern the Town Council are planning, highways, community safety, housing, street lighting, allotments, playing fields, community facilities, street cleanliness, seats and shelters, rights of way.

Over the past couple of years Honiton Town Council has been responsible for

  • Consulting residents on a wide range of issues
  • Introducing CCTv into the town
  • Providing the Christmas lights in the High Street and New Street
  • Providing more bus shelters, seats and bins
  • Commenting on a range of planning applications including the Tesco appeal
  • Taking responsibility for advertisement applications in the town centre
  • Supporting community activities such as Charter Day, Hot Pennies Day, the Youth Arts event
  • Providing grants to a wide range of local charitable organisations to ensure they can continue to help and support the people of Honiton
  • Fighting for better road infrastructure, especially the A35/eastern bypass
  • Taking responsibility for flower beds and other floral planters in the town
  • Attending twinning events
  • Working on the regeneration of The Glen
  • Keeping the network of footpaths and lanes accessible and safe
  • Working on improving access to Roundball Wood
  • Financially supporting the Senior Citizens’ Centre
  • Seeking areas to build new allotments
  • Commenting on a range of policy documents from Government and other organisations

To carry out its work, the Town Council raises an annual precept. This is added to the community charge imposed by the County and District Councils. On average the work of Honiton Town Council costs each local household approximately £34 per year and the finances of the Council are very carefully controlled and audited to ensure that public money is not wasted.

Could I be a Councillor?

The diversity of parish and town councils is their strength. Each can make a unique response to the needs of their community with a sensitivity that is more difficult for principal authorities to achieve. The diversity of the Town Council often arises because Councillors have different enthusiasms and interests. The Council needs a range of skills to work as a team.

To be a Councillor you must be over 18, a British citizen (or a qualifying Commonwealth citizen or a citizen of any other member state of the European Union) and living or working within a 3 mile radius of Honiton. The Town Council meets monthly in the evening and twice monthly to look at planning applications. There are also a number of committees and working groups on which Councillors may wish to serve but a Councillor’s role is also about working in the community and being available to the residents. Councillors’ time is voluntary although an annual allowance is paid to defray the day to day costs such as travel and postage.

So if you want to do something positive and hope to make a difference by influencing decisions that affect Honiton, maybe you should think about putting yourself forward a vacancy when it occurs.