Menu- 9 Members
- 3 Wards (Areas)- Central, East and West
- 3 Councillors in each Ward
- Elected by local people: next elections to be held in MAY 2021
- No Pay : No Job Description
- No Qualifications necessary
- Must be over 18 years old with no criminal convictions
- At least one meeting held on the second Thursday evening every Month with others at various times as necessary
- The Clerk guides the Councillors in the legal issues and the rules to follow
6 ASPECTS OF A COUNCILLOR
1. ROLE
You speak for everyone in the area, whether they voted for you or not; you must consider the wider needs of the community as well as individual concerns
2. ACCOUNTABILITY
You need to be prepared to answer for the actions of your Council as well as yourself– people ‘keep an eye’ on you
3. COMMUNITY LEADER
You work with others in the Community for the Community, to build up a bigger picture of actions to help the Community
4. REPRESENTATION
You may be sent to other Organisations to put forward the Council’s point of view and to report back to them
5. HONESTY AND RESPECT
You must be truthful and try to understand others’ point of view and concerns. Admit if you don’t know the answer– try to find it and report back
6. TEAMWORKING
It is best to work with people as a team. You may not always agree but you can agree to disagree and move on to another topic without ill feeling
Every Councillor agrees to a Code of Conduct which gives guidelines on all aspects of the role including fairness and respect in their treatment of fellow Councillors, the Clerk and the public. Councillors can be reported for not following this Code of Conduct and the ultimate sanction is being banned from being a Councillor.
At present, Town Councillors do not receive any payment but may reclaim travelling expenses when on Council business and a small amount for printing expenses if they desire.