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In their role as democratically accountable bodies,
local councils offer the means of decentralising decision-making and
the provision of services, as well as revitalising local governance.
In turn, local councils recognise the strategic role of the County
Council, with the economies of scale and equitable distribution of
services which it can achieve.
The first Parish Council Charter was adopted in
1995. This revised version builds on the experience of enacting the
original Charter and reflects the increasing importance attached by
the Government to partnership working. It sets out how the County
Council and local councils in Staffordshire can proceed together
into the next century.
Consultation
1. The County Council will give local councils the
opportunity to comment before making a decision which affects the
local community.
- The County Council has consulted every local council
regarding the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Structure
Plan 1996/2011.
- The County Council obtained the views of local councils
on improvements to rural bus services arising from the
allocation of the Rural Bus
Grant.
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Service Provision
2. If a local council (or group of councils) wishes
to take on delegated responsibility for service delivery, the County
Council will encourage this, where it is cost-effective and
practicable.
3. Where a local council takes over service
provision, the level of funding will be agreed by the County Council
and the local council.
- Local councils have signed agreements to undertake
routine highway maintenance (including grass cutting, sign
cleaning etc) on behalf of the County Council (eg Betley
Parish Council)
- Under the Community Paths Initiative, local councils
look after public footpaths and rights of way in their area.
- Local councils are to be invited to help monitor mineral
extraction and waste management sites for the County
Council.
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Local Community Life
4. The County Council will promote local community
life through capital grants to village halls and community centres,
and through the community discount scheme for the disposal of
surplus property.
- The County Council advises the Area Committees of the
Staffordshire Parish Councils’ Association of all property
declared surplus in their locality.
- The County Council will encourage schools to develop
links with their local council to promote the best use of
the facilities (eg Lapley, Stretton and Wheaton Aston Parish
Council office on school
premises).
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Information and Complaints
5. When the County Council consults local councils,
it will provide them with sufficient information to enable them to
reach an informed view on the matter, and give them adequate time to
respond.
6. The County Council will also keep local councils
informed by sending them as many copies of "County News" as they
require.
7. The County Council will hold meetings with local
councils (or groups of councils) to discuss matters of common
interest, as required.
8. If a local council is dissatisfied with the
County Council’s actions, its response to a request for information,
or its failure to consult, it may initiate the County Council’s
formal complaints procedure.
- In line with its Customer Charter, the County Council
will acknowledge letters within five working days of receipt
and provide a full reply within 10 working days for
straightforward matters, or 20 working days if the issue is
complicated.
- The County Council will take the necessary steps to
ensure that all staff are aware of the existence of the
Local Council Charter and its commitments.
- The County Council will publish as much information as
possible on the Staffordshire Web site and encourage local
councils to develop their own pages of
information.
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Practical Support
9. The County Council will offer local councils
access to its own support services, to enable councils to take
advantage of facilities such as training, printing and
purchasing.
- County Council staff have led training courses for local
councils (eg on Health and Safety).
- Local councils have purchased IT equipment at
competitive prices through the County Council’s Information
Systems Service.
- Local councils have used the County Council’s Central
Print and Design Unit for their publications, leaflets,
etc.
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Sustainability
10. The County Council will work in partnership
with local councils to promote the creation of a sustainable
environment in Staffordshire.
- The County Council continues to support the
Staffordshire Environment Forum and its Specialist Working
Group (in which local councils participate) and to develop
its Local Agenda 21
programme
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Local Governance
11. Representatives of the Staffordshire Parish
Councils' Association sit on area advisory committees, including
those being established with District/Borough Councils, and on other
local groups such as those convened to consider sensitive
developments, for example opencast mining sites.
12. The County Council will continue to maintain
its close working relationship with the Staffordshire Parish
Councils’ Association through the annual meetings between senior
Members and the SPCA Executive and its Area Committees.
13. Where local people so wish, the County Council
will help to empower communities by supporting the creation of
parishes in those areas which currently do not have them.
14. The County Council will ensure that the
commitments arising from this Charter complement those given by
District/Borough Councils in their respective Parish Charters.
- Local council representatives sit as co-opted members on
various Area Advisory Committees.
- In addition to the meetings with the SPCA, quarterly
meetings are held between County Council officers and the
clerks of the larger local councils in Staffordshire.
- The County Council has supported the creation of parish
councils in the urban area of Burton upon Trent, and in
Hednesford.
- The Local Council Charter is consistent with the
Charters produced by East Staffordshire Borough Council,
Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, Stafford Borough
Council and Staffordshire Moorlands District
Council.
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February 1999
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