News

Kidderminster residents voted 80% in favour of the creation of a new town council on 7 May 2015 in a referendum held at the same time as national and local elections.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

A group of influential town councils has urged their national body, the National Association of Local Councils (NALC), to campaign for fairer funding to ensure tens of millions of pounds of government funding is passed on to them.

To all parish and town councillors in England

Could the door be open for the creation of a new town council in Spalding, the only unparished part of South Holland in Lincolnshire?

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) welcomes and supports a Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) report published recently which reveals that England needs a huge investment in energy efficiency if the country is to meet its 2015 carbon reduction target and stop consequential damage to the countryside.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

Up and down the country, thousands of communities are taking action - from regulars running their local pub and protecting other assets such as the local pier, to plans for new development, the creation of new jobs and apprenticeships and services.

According to the National Association of Local Councils (NALC), a sector led approach to improvement is to be the 'cornerstone of a step change' in local (parish and town) councils.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) has responded to the publication of the three main political parties manifestos with a series of radical ideas to empower local people and communities as part of devolution in the UK.

The National  Association of Local Councils encourages all eligible local (parish and town) councils in England to participate in the My Community Rights programmes 2015/16.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

With just one week to go before the 20 April 2015 registration deadline for the general election the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) abd the Electoral Commission are calling for anyone who isn't yet registered to vote to go online and do so.

This week Quedgeley Parish Council (QPC) are our 'Council of the Week' for their great community support work, helping drive and fund local projects.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) held an excellent national council meeting last week at Westminster Central Hall with presentations from senior Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) officials on the new transparency arrangements and community rights providing the opportunity for councillors to get their views across on these important issues.

Bracknell Town Council is in the top ten of local councils by size, with a budget of £2.1m and serving 56,000 residents. The council is responsible for over 250 acres of public recreational and leisure space and 32 parks and children's play areas. It manages the usual range of services and facilities provided in our sector, such as having environment wardens, providing various grants, preparing a neighbourhood plan and running facilities such as football and rugby pitches, synthetic pitches, tennis courts and cricket squares. Pavilions in a number of parks provide coffee shop facilities, toilets and halls for hire. The council also manages eight allotment sites and a cemetery.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) has backed two tier local government in its latest contribution to the UK devolution debate, calling for the creation of unitary principal authorities coupled with the establishment of new parish councils.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) and Society of Local Council Clerks (SLCC) held their first meeting on 20 March 2015 following the agreement of a new protocol between the two key national bodies representing local council staff and councillors.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

Electoral Commission's national awareness campaign is well underway. Thanks to all of you for your help so far in driving voter registration ahead of the general election.

Frome Town Council and the Frome Twinning Association have received £26,000 funding from the EU to host a renewable energy conference in March 2016. The funding stream is part of a new approach to Twinning and aims to bring together experts and decision-makers from Frome, and its three twin towns in France, Germany and Poland, to share knowledge and best practice.

Does your parish or town council want to better connect with community groups? If so, take a look at the My Community Network on the Just Act forum. To find out what's on offer, join us next Wednesday 1 April 2015 - from 1:30pm NALC's very own Justin Griggs will be on hand to answer your questions.

Communities Minister, Stephen Williams MP has confirmed new measures that will make it far easier for communities to set up new local (parish and town) councils giving them a greater say in how their local neighbourhood should be governed.

With two town councils and one shadow parish council involved in the Neighbourhood Community Budget pilots – the forerunner to the Our Place programme and totalling 12 areas across England – the parish sector has been involved right from the outset in a new approach to bringing the community together to shape public services.

Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) have published the consultation on extending the Ombudsman to larger town and parish councils.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

The government is toasting the first-ever Community Pubs Day with an announcement of measures designed to bolster the Great British Pub and protect it for future generations.

The Government held its National Planning Summit on 2 March 2015, which saw a range of speakers from government minister, Brandon Lewis MP to the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) chief executive, Jonathan Owen.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) published its Spring 2015 edition of its flagship magazine, LCR (Local Council Review), on 23 March 2015.

Don't be told 'no' on election day – make sure you're registered!

The General Election is now just over seven weeks away, but many people will be unable to have their say unless they take action now.

You have powers to make a difference in your area - saving local pubs, shops and community centres. Support and grants for developing your area through neighbourhood planning and building for your community are available, help with owning and managing local land and buildings, running services and boosting the local economy opens on 1 April 2015. The My Community website offers a range of resources, advice and grants and to connect with others on the My Community Network.

NALC are asking local councils, communities and people the to take a moment to celebrate, debate and reflect on those rights which we can very often take for granted but which people throughout history have campaigned to make happen or fought to preserve.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) is supporting the 800th anniversary sealing of Magna Carta on 15 June 2015. NALC is asking local (parish and town) councils, communities and people to take a moment to celebrate, debate and reflect on those rights which we can often take for granted, but which people throughout history have campaigned to make happen or fought to preserve.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

A new powerful alliance of the National Association of Local Councils (NALC), Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) and Civic Voice has called on all political parties to make a firm manifesto commitment to introduce a community right of appeal into the planning system.

The Government has published a new guide on the changes and key requirements of the new local audit and accountability regime for local (parish and town) councils from 1 April 2015.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) is calling on the Government to give local (parish and town) councils the right to be consulted when Vehicle Operator Licences are issued by transport authorities.

Local (parish and town) councils should be given a new legal right to be consulted on local transport licences, according to a national committee charged with promoting new sustainability powers at grassroots level.

The move is backed by the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) and would see local councils have more say over licensing applications from vehicle operators such as local taxi firms.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

Community Clear Up Day is a 'national spring clean', backed by the Government, that aims to spruce up England’s high streets, residential and business areas, villages and parks. Together we can kick off spring 2015 with our public spaces litter free.

The Rural Housing Policy Review Group, Chaired by Lord Richard Best OBE DL, launched its report – A Fair Deal for Rural Communities – at the House of Lords on Monday 23 February.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

This week we would like to celebrate the work of Welsh Newton and Llanrothal Group Parish Council in Herefordshire.

Welsh Newton and Llanrothal Group Parish Council is quality council serving this local community in the county of Herefordshire. When we say 'quality' council we do not just mean in the usual way but that they have achieved this status in the sector's landmark benchmark scheme of Local Council Award Scheme.

The Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) is to host a live phone-in on neighbourhood planning with Brandon Lewis MP, minister for Housing and Planning on 10 March 2015.

DCLG would like lots of people involved or interested in neighbourhood planning to join conversation – including from the local (parish and town) council sector.

Communities Minister, Stephen Williams MP announced on 18 February 2015 a new £6m funding boost to the Community Rights programme.

The boost to the Community Rights programme will give even more people greater control and influence over what happens locally.

Media Watch is a weekly round-up of the latest major stories about the local (parish and town) council sector.

15 February 2015 saw the premiere of the television adaption of JK Rowling's Casual Vacancy, which shows divisions in a community played out around a fictional parish council.

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) thinks one of the points of the plot about different parts of a local community trying improve people's lives via a parish council is a right one.

The National Association of Local Councils would like to thank everyone for there hard work on 5 Februray 2015 for National Voter Registration Day (NVRD).