Ever thought about becoming a councillor?People stand as councillors for different reasons:

1. to help local people whether as a district councillor or a parish councillor
2. to pursue their political beliefs
3. to give professional or business skills to the community
4. to fight for or against a particular issue

What is involved and what are the responsibilities?

You can do as much as you like! The council has a number of committees councillors can get involved in, as well as issues in their wards.The time it takes up all depends on how much you want to get involved. Most meetings are in the evenings and you would normally be required to attend a Full council meeting once per month as well as a Committee meeting once per month. Other meetings occur that you may decide to go to. In particular if you belong to a political group you will be expected to go to group meetings. Councillors are also responsible for dealing with finances, setting the budgets and setting the council tax.

Who can stand as a councillor?

Just about anyone can stand as a councillor. You must:·       be over 18 years old and live or work in the District ·       be a British Citizen, a Citizen of the Irish Republic, the Commonwealth or another member state of the European Union ·       not have been declared bankrupt To stand as a parish councillor the same criteria applies, except you must live or work within 3 miles of the parish you would like to be a councillor for. Councillors come from all walks of life, backgrounds and age groups, united in the fact that they care about their communities.Most councillors, once elected, work well with other councillors and party politics rarely occur, on most issues, as councillors’ search for the best solutions for the district – together. Personalities play a great part in who you listen to rather than party politics.

Want to know more?

Contact David Simpson or if you wish to represent a different party from the Liberal Democrats search out their website. David will tell you “If you find a Party you agree with 80% of the time join it. If you find one you agree with 100% of the time it is called Respect and your name is George.”