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About Puriton Parish Council


In this section you will find information about parish councils in general and Puriton Parish Council in particular - just click on a blue heading below to go directly to that section.

What are Parish Councils
What does the council pay for?
What does it all cost?
Who pays for it?
About Puriton Parish Council


What are Parish Councils?

Parish and town councils in England are the first tier of local government and deliver a vast range of services at a community level.

They have a large range of powers and the activities in which they are involved are immense.  Many are involved in planning, promoting tourism, licensing, representation, management of town and village centres and providing community halls.

Parish Councils are statutory bodies.  They are not a part of the Church - administration of church matters is undertaken by parochial church councils.  Members are elected for a term of four years and councils are funded principally by an annual precept.  Income and expenditure for the next financial year are calculated in the form of estimates.  The net amount (the precept) is added to council tax, collected by the county, borough or district council (principal authorities) and paid to parishes in two six-monthly instalments.

Councils can also apply for other funding such as grant and funding awards, but they do not receive funds direct from central government, as principal authorities do.

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What things does the council pay for?

Apart from staffing and administrative costs, the council also has to pay for things like general maintenance, village improvements and grants.

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What does it all cost?

The total net cost in the current financial year (2009/2010) has been estimated at £26,000, which is an increase of 16.4% on last year.  This will cost an average band D house in the village an extra £3.14 per year, or 6 pence per week. Back to top

Who pays for it?

The Precept is paid by the district council out of council taxes so we all pay for it. More detailed information about the precept and how the money is spent can be obtained by contacting the Clerk to  the Parish Council.

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About Puriton Parish Council

Puriton Parish Council meets in the village hall on the second Tuesday in the month.  Meetings normally start at 7.45 and members of the public are most welcome to attend.  However this does not include the right to speak on any matter except at the commencement of the meeting providing that prior notice has been given to the Parish Clerk by 12 noon on the Friday prior to the meeting.

In addition to monthly meetings, the council's planning committee also meets to consider planning applications.  The parish council will consider applications only in respect of planning regulations, although it will also take note of representations from individuals where appropriate.

Members of the public can attend these meetings and may make representations prior to the meeting commencing.  They may not however speak or take part in the meeting itself.

The parish council does not have the power to grant or reject permission for planning but simply makes a recommendation to the planning officer/committee at Sedgemoor District Council as to whether or not permission should be granted.

To see a list of your parish councillors, together with the areas for which each is responsible in relation to planning applications click Parish Councillors.  Please note that the areas shown are not ones for which councillors are representatives because parish councillors do not represent areas in the same manner that district and county councillors do.  Instead all councillors, as a body, represent the whole parish.

If you have any issues you wish to raise with the Parish Council then you should first of all contact any of the councillors listed, unless your query relates to a planning application, in which case you should contact the councillor responsible for the relevant area.  You can contact a parish councillor via this website by clicking the Raise An Issue With a Council Member button on the left of the page.

If you would like to know more about parish councils and what they do, visit the web site of the National Association of Local Councils at www.nalc.gov.uk

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