Aldham Parish Council

Aldham Parish Council has seven councillors who are elected every four years to represent the Parish population. Those interested in serving on the Parish Council are particularly welcome to attend meetings and should contact the Clerk for further information. Vacancies sometimes do become available between election times. The Councillors elect their Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Council annually in May.

Parish Councillors give their services free of charge and receive no remuneration for representing the community. Parish Councillors are required by the Localism Act 2011 to register their pecuniary and other interests within 28 days of their election or appointment to office. Registers of Members' Interests are maintained by Colchester City Council and can be viewed on their website at https://colchester.cmis.uk.com/colchester/ParishCouncils.aspx

The Parish Clerk is the primary point of contact for the Council and all correspondence and queries relating to the business of the Council should generally be addressed to the Clerk.

Aldham (Civil) Parish lies within the administrative area of the City of Colchester. Three City Councillors are elected to represent the Lexden And Braiswick Ward. These Councillors regularly attend Parish Council meetings to report on the progress of relevant local issues at City level and to acquaint themselves with the views of the Parish Council and local residents on such issues.

Elections and the Electoral Register

Elections of Parish Councillors are held every four years. If elections are contested, those resident in the parish are entitled to vote, subject to their names being on the Electoral Register. Colchester City Council has a policy of rolling registration and the Electoral Register is updated once a month. If you are new to the Parish you can register your name with the City Council at any time. You can obtain a voter registration form by telephoning the City Council's Elections Office on 01206 508904 or 01206 282235, or by downloading one from its website at www.colchester.gov.uk/elections.

What the Parish Council Does

In general the Council has the right of representation on planning matters, which includes all planning applications and structure plan proposals. The Council considers planning applications and submits its comments on these to the Planning Authority, Colchester City Council, who are responsible for making the decisions in such matters. The Parish Council also monitors the state of highways, signs, footpaths, bridleways and rights of way within the Parish and reports problems to Essex County Council's Highway Authority for action.

Meetings and Administration

The Council normally has a part-time Clerk to deal with all correspondence, take minutes, and execute Council decisions. Full Council meetings are held at Aldham Village Hall generally on the first Tuesday of alternate months but this may vary as notified on the notice boards and website. 

The meeting in May includes the annual Parish Meeting when the Council reports back to anyone who wishes to come and when the officers and committees are elected for the following year. The times and the agenda of all meetings are posted on the main Parish Notice Boards and on this website.

Anyone who wishes to attend even part of a meeting will be most welcome, especially if the Parish Council is discussing an issue which affects them. The Chairman can invite members of the public to speak if they indicate that they would like to. Parishioners are welcome to attend any meeting, and time is made available for them to voice any concerns. Councillors may respond and ask questions but no decisions may be taken in this period. The public may not speak once the meeting proper has started. If the item they are concerned about appears on the agenda, their points will be taken into consideration while that item is discussed. 

Grants

The Council will support local voluntary organisations through its Grant Scheme. Applications are considered annually by the Council, and should be submitted to the Parish Clerk no later than the end of September. On the Policy page of this site is the full text of the Council's Grants Policy.

Income

The Parish Council receives a small percentage of the Council Tax collected by Colchester City Council by way of a precept tax on all house owners. Other income is obtained from a variety of community grant schemes.

Audited Accounts

Like all public bodies the Parish Council must prepare Accounts each Financial Year (1 April to 31 March), and these have to be independently audited.

The Parish Council's Policies & Procedures

Aldham Parish Council has a number of established policies and procedures. The texts of these are reproduced in the Policy section.