Parish Council Vacancy

Curry Rivel Parish Boundaries

Vacancy on the Parish Council

Have you thought about Being A Councillor?

In the words of Lord Kitchener "Your Parish Needs You" !

Marcus Hembrow , Chairman, Curry Rivel Parish Council writes -

Curry Rivel Parish Council has a Vacancy for a Councillor. If you want to get involved, have your say in how the Parish is run or have experience or skills on how we can do things better then please get in touch.

In the coming months we have two matters ahead of us, the setting of the annual budget and precept which we aim to set in November and December and the Village Plan which intends to be a 10 year plan and requires renewal in 2025.

If you are interested or feel you have skills to offer please be in touch with either myself or our Clerk, our contact details are below.

What is a Councillor and where is the Parish ?

• Councillors are elected to represent an individual geographical unit on the council, known as a ward or parish.
• Curry Rivel it is represented by a Parish which extends beyond the village and includes outlying areas such as Oath, Wick, Portfield, Westover Langport and an Eastern Boundary that follows the River Parrett from Langport Bridge to Oath. The Southern Parish boundary used to include Hambridge but that is now a Parish bordering us at approximately Crabtree Lane and the Western Boundary follows Moortown Lane and the A378 as far as Burton Pynsent.
• Councillors are generally elected by the public every four years, but there is currently a space available following the resignation of Les Hood upon reaching a significant birthday!

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

• Decision making – Through meetings and attending committees with other elected members, Councillors decide which activities and initiatives to support, where money should be spent, what services should be delivered and what policies should be implemented. The Key to all of this is the setting of the annual Budget which in essence decides how much is added to the Council Tax as the Parish Precept and how that is apportioned. t
• Monitoring – Councillors make sure that their decisions lead to efficient and effective services by keeping an eye on how well things are working.
• 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 and taking up issues on behalf of members of the community.

What's required and how much time does it take up?

• In the main what's required is a can-do attitude and a willingness to influence and shape the community in which we all live and work. In simple terms help make Curry Rivel a great place to live, work and bring up a family.
• Councillors reckon reckon the role occupies about an hour a week coupled with a monthly meeting that happens 10 times a year and limited to 2 hours duration. Obviously, there are some councillors who spend more time than this and some less.

The days of reliance on post is long gone and most communication is via Email, Phone, Text and Zoom. A dedicated Council email account is made available separate from your own personal or employers email accounts. We are flexible and very aware that we are all volunteers and that life gets in the way at times. Support in the role is always given and specialist training is also available. If you are interested in the role or want to find out any more about what we or how you can help then please contact the Chair or Clerk on the details below. Alternatively, please visit www.nalc.gov.uk/election

Contact Details

Chairman – Marcus Hembrow: email marcus.hembrow@curryrivel.org.uk, Tel 07920 765940Clerk – Elaine Owen: clerk@curryrivel.org.uk, Tel 07534 318840

How well do you know your parish?

There's more HERE and on the Parish Council and Parish Council News tabs on this website.