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What is a Town, Parish or Community Council?
Parish and Town Councils in England and Community and Town Councils in Wales are the first tier of Local Government. They deliver a vast range of services at a community level.
There are around 10,000 Community, Parish and Town Councils in England and Wales, made up of nearly 100,000 Councillors. These first-tier councils can respond to the needs of the Community – delivering the services or representation it most needs.
At present, but not in all locations in England and Wales, there is a three-tiered structure of local government. Milton Keynes is a 2 tier structure as it is a Unitary Authority
Town/Parish/Community Council
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District/Borough Council
Milton Keynes is quite unique inasmuch as it is fully parished (45 Parishes)
Powers and duties
Parish and Town Councils have a large range of powers, and the activities parish and town councils are involved in are immense. Many parish and town councils are involved in planning, promoting tourism, licensing, community halls, representation, management of town and village centres and providing community halls.
Woughton Community Council
Woughton Community Council is based in the very heart of the Parish area at the local centre in Netherfield.
The Community Council employs 22 staff - only 7 of the staff are full time.
Woughton Parish is situated in the south of the city. The parish area takes in 9 housing estates and 2 industrial estates.
• Beanhill
• Bleak Hall (non residential)
• Coffee Hall
• Eaglestone
• Leadenhall
• Netherfield
• Peartree Bridge
• Redmoor (non residential)
• Tinkers Bridge/Passmore
• Woughton on the Green
• Woughton Park
HOUSING
There are 5,241 houses with a population of around 12,300.
The area has a mixture of social housing, owner occupier and houses in multiple occupation (HMO’s).
The housing design within the area is varied and includes:
Single person flats
1 bedroom bungalows
2 and 3 storey houses
2 and 3 bedroom bungalows
Materials used for construction in the Parish area vary from timber framed housing to traditional brick built homes.
BUSINESSES
There are 150 businesses based within the parish area.
These include:
Local shops based at local centres on most estates
Industrial estate (Bleak Hall and Redmoor)
One of the largest employers within Milton Keynes is Milton Keynes General Hospital.
FACILITIES
Village Hall
5 Community meeting places
BENEFIT CLAIMANTS
There is a significant variation in the rates of income support claimants between the wards in Milton Keynes. Woughton Ward maintains having over twice the national rate for Income Support claimants per 1,000 population.
Lone Parent families claiming (64.4 per 1,000) which is 3 times the national average
Pension credit claimants 400 per thousand
LIFE EXPECTANCY BY WARD (at birth)
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2001/05
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Highest (yrs)
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Lowest (yrs)
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MK Average(yrs)
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Male
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80.7 (Middleton)
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70.8 (Woughton)
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76.5
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Female
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85.1
(Stantonbury)
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73.6 (Woughton)
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80.2
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All
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81.7 (Middleton)
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72.3 (Woughton)
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78.4
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2004/08
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Highest (yrs)
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Lowest (yrs)
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MK Average(yrs)
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Male
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81.9 (Middleton
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72.1 (Woughton)
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77.3
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Female
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90.6 (Middleton)
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76.6 (Woughton)
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81.3
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All
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86.2 (Middleton)
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74.4 (Woughton)
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79.3
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Figures from the 2004 index of multiple deprivation indicate that Woughton ward has more residents who are more likely to rely on benefits expect much poorer health. have a lower standard of education and suffer from crime than the average person in England
It is not all doom and gloom, Woughton Parish has a thriving community working together to make Woughton Parish a better place.
Frequently asked questions:
What services can it provide?
A Parish or Town Council has an overall responsibility for the wellbeing of the local community.
The work falls into three main categories:
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representing the local community
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delivering services to meet local needs
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striving to improve quality of life in the parish
How are decisions made?
The parish council is made up of a number of councillors who meet regularly to make decisions on the work and direction of the council. As an elected body, the parish council is an “it” and, through the councillors, is responsible to the people it represents – that is the local community.
Attending a council meeting is the best way to find out what it does. Have a look at the other pages on this website to see what the Parish Council has been dealing with recently.
Where does the money come from?
Each Year a sum of money called a 'precept' is collected through your council tax. Parish/ Community Councils can also apply for grants and loans
What do parish or town councillors do?
Councillors have three main areas of work:
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Decision-making: through attending meetings and committees with other elected members, councillors decide which activities to support, where money should be spent, what services should be delivered and what policies should be implemented;
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Monitoring: councillors make sure that their decisions lead to efficient and effective services by keeping an eye on how well things are working;
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Getting involved locally: as local representatives, councillors have responsibilities towards their parishioners and local organisations. This often depends on what the councillor wants to achieve and how much time is available.
The day-to-day work of a Councillor may include:
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going to meetings of local organisations
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going to meetings of bodies that affect the wider community, such as the Police, the Highways Authority, Schools and Colleges
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bringing parishioners concerns to the attention of the council
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