Halton Parish Councillors

THE  COUNCIL

Town and Parish Councils, established in 1894, form the first tier of local government in England and are the closest to the communities they represent.  They are elected bodies with discretionary powers and rights, all of which impact on the local community.  These discretionary powers allow local councils to provide and maintain a variety of important local services including allotments, bridleways, burial grounds, bus shelters, open spaces, community safety and crime reduction measures, events and festivals, footpaths, litter bins, dog bins, planning, street lighting, traffic calming measures, war memorials.

As a statutory consultee, Parish Councils must be notified by the Local Planning Authority of any planning applications for the area. Any comments submitted by the Parish Council to the local planning authority must be taken into account by the planning case officer when determining the application.

A parish council’s written rules are its Standing Orders which regulate its procedures, i.e. the way its meetings take place, and its affairs are managed. Unless a parish council delegates its functions to its committees and officers, decisions for the discharge of its functions can only be made at council meetings.

Council members are either elected at local elections or appointed by the council, after any vacancies have been advertised within the Parish (i.e. co-opted). All Halton Parish Councillors are required to comply with the Council’s Code of Conduct.