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Chippenham is the largest market town in Wiltshire and forecasted to continue to grow over the coming years. Its great location and excellent transport links makes it a popular area to live. A recent £21m redevelopment of the Wiltshire College campus, £705k refurbishment to create a new Neeld community and arts centre, rail electrification, first year of Chippenham Business Improvement District (BID). The town is committed to building on this potential.

Two weeks ago the Lords voted in favour of an amendment to the Housing and Planning Bill to introduce a neighbourhood right of appeal.

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

Whitwick is an ancient village mentioned in Domesday Book. It lies between Coalville, an industrial revolution mining town, and the rural Charnwood Forest.

Following campaigning by NALC, the Housing and Planning Bill was recently amended in the House of Lords to include a new clause giving parish and town councils a limited right of planning appeal.

The NALC Larger Councils Committee met on 26 April 2016 and called for larger local councils in England to make good quality proposals to solve national policy problems they are facing – using the Sustainable Communities Act 2007.

NALC this week backed the Rural Coalition’s support of the government’s intention to respond positively to the cross political party concerns for safeguards for rural affordable housing raised during the passage of the Housing and Planning Bill in the House of Lords.

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

The parish of Yate is located in South Gloucestershire – approximately 11 miles from the City of Bristol. The parish has a population of over 22,000 people, represented by 17 councillors.

A cross political party group of Peers won the fight for the introduction of a new limited neighbourhood right of appeal.

This jointly delivered event on 1 June 2016 from the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) and the Local Government Association (LGA) will explore the opportunities devolution presents for principal and local councils to work more collaboratively.

East Peckham is a rural village between within the borough of Tonbridge and Malling, Kent and is twinned with Chereng in the Nord de Par de Calais region. The village has approximately 1,200 homes with 3,500 residents and continuing to expand. The council includes its own Jubilee Hall, educational facilities and a vibrant village centre. There is a network of paths and cycle ways that connect the commercial and residential parts of the village.

Scores of MPs lined up in Parliament yesterday to signal their support for England’s localist powerhouse during a Lobby Day organised by the National Association of Local Councils (NALC).

This week we are celebrating the work of the largest town council in Cambridgeshire.

The Chancellor's recent Budget announced in Clause 2.125 that 'the government will allow local authorities in England to use their discretionary relief powers to support publicly owned public lavatories from 1 April 2018', which at a time of austerity and devolution is seen as a triumph by both local (parish and town) councils and national bodies.

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

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) has today (announced that it will be running its second Star Councils awards in 2016, following the success of the first year of the programme in 2015.

Anstey is a large village in the north of Leicestershire, with an electorate of 5,247 and a population of over 6,000. It has 14 councillors and eight members of staff to manage the day to day operations of the council. A precept of £217,272 is raised with a total budgeted income of £255,967 for 2015/16.

Cllr Mike Evans from Whiteley Town Council has joined a high profile panel of local government experts on the Councillor Commission as 'parish commissioner'.

Budget 2016 announcement could signal end to parish councils paying ‘toilet tax’

The Government's National Living Wage (NLW) comes into force on 1 April 2016. It replaced the National Minimum Wage (NMW) for all workers aged 25 and over.

The Practitioners’ Guide (‘the guide’) has been published by the Smaller Authorities Proper Practices Board to support the preparation by local (parish and town) councils of statutory annual accounting and governance statements.

New rules have been introduced at the beginning of this year in the effort to improve water quality and reduce pollution.

The planning system is unfair. It is one of the few decision-making processes that gives no right of appeal to affected third parties.

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

Jonathan Owen, chief executive of the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) said: "This is a bittersweet budget for councils at all levels with positive steps forward on devolution countered by a further reduction in spending on public services.

National Association of Local Councils (NALC) in partnership with the Society of Local Council Clerks (SLCC) and the Association of Drainage of Authorities (ADA) welcomes that the Government has committed to continue supporting the multi-million pound ‘transparency fund’ to help thousands of small parish councils meet new audit and transparency rules and join the digital age.

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

HRH The Prince of Wales today (22nd February 2016) saw first-hand the results of an innovative online tool that supports communities to influence the quality of new development.

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

NALC is supporting the ‘Clean for the Queen’ campaign, which aims to clear up litter from all our communities in time for Her Majesty the Queen’s 90th birthday.

Parliament celebrated some of the best parish and town councils in the country this week with a cross-party group of MPs and Peers calling for more power to be devolved from Whitehall to England’s town and village halls.

NALC's Policy Committee met on 9 February 2016 and formally agreed to adopt a position seeking exclusion from the proposed Right To Buy extension – of housing in rural areas, particularly where the land has been originally provided to meet local housing need.

NALC have been lobbying the Government to undertake more research and analysis of the parish sector for everyone to get better understanding of these communities and neighbourhoods.

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

NALC supports and welcomes the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) new toolkit that can help local councils make sure they are meeting data protection rules.

NALC has welcomed the publication of Public Sector Audit Appointments Ltd (PSAA) Corporate Plan for the period to 2018. The Plan sets out how the company will discharge the functions delegated to it by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which include managing audit contracts originally let by the Audit Commission and supporting a smooth transition to the new audit regime introduced by the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014.

The National Association of Local Councils' (NALC) Larger Councils’ Committee met on 26 January 2016 and following intelligence that high street bank closure in many market towns of south west England is a major problem.

Today (29th January), NALC has re-launched its Direct Access Scheme.

 A campaign to ‘parish’ all of England received a huge boost yesterday (27 January). As dozens of communities from across the country gathered in Birmingham at a meeting organised by the National Association of Local Councils.

Councillor Kevin Wilson is the new chairman of the Larger Councils' Committee of NALC.

Members of the House of Lords have been told that the government’s flagship Housing and Planning Bill has not been sufficiently ‘rural proofed’ to assess its impact on rural areas.

At a time when the Government is pushing ahead with new devolution plans to move power from Whitehall to local communities, there are huge opportunities for local people to become local leaders. Whether helping an area to survive the harsh economic climate, protecting services that are under threat, or providing the events, culture and fun that puts the heart into each local community – town and parish (local) councils have never had a better opportunity to make a difference.

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

[To all parish and town councillors in England]

Dear Councillor,

The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) is one of the 47 organisations taking part in a campaign to celebrate the value of our trees and woods and secure their future by creating a new Charter for trees, woods and people.