The Villager Spring 2017 Bluebells in Carnglaze woods: Peter Levers Dobwalls and Trewidland Parish Council Welcome to the Spring 2017 Parish Magazine Members of Dobwalls & Trewidland Parish Council June 2016 Councillor telephone /email contacts Major roles Peter Scott [email protected] Chair of the Parish Council (Dobwalls) 01579 320128 John Dunn [email protected] Vice chair/ (Dobwalls) 01579 320733 Footpaths and grass cutting Neighbourhood Plan Davina Finch [email protected] Police liaison (Dobwalls) 01579 326661 Neighbourhood Plan Hugh Francis [email protected] Parish Magazine (Trewidland ) 01503 240204 Neighbourhood Plan Tracey Kitto [email protected] Liskeard and Looe Community (Dobwalls) 07854 278789 Network Liaison Neighbourhood Plan Mhairi Mackie [email protected] Parish Magazine (Trewidland) 01503 240565 Neighbourhood Plan Dell Mills [email protected] (Dobwalls) 01579 320346 Marie Morford [email protected] (Dobwalls) 01579 320349 Mike Hassill [email protected] 01579 342944 Parish Council meetings, all starting at 7.00pm will be th held on: March 15 at Dobwalls Church Hall th April 19 at Trewidland Village Hall th May 17 at Dobwalls Church Hall Please let us know if your organisation has special events coming up in the Summer months (June, July or August 2017) or if your regular dates have changed! – contact Linda Feek or Mhairi Mackie before the next publication deadline of 1st May 2017 2 Attending and participating in Meetings Members of the public are welcome to attend any council meeting and can speak to the council about an agenda item by giving the Clerk notice of their intention to do so prior to the meeting starting. Time for those wishing to speak will be allotted either at the start of the meeting or during the meeting at the Chair’s discretion. Other items can be brought up under public participation which is usually towards the beginning of the meeting. Reporting problems and raising issues If you have an issue that you feel the Parish Council should know about, please let us know. General problems may be reported to Dobwalls and Trewidland Parish Clerk, Linda Coles by email to: [email protected] or by post to: Mrs. Linda Coles, The Firs, Lower Metherell, Callington, Cornwall PL17 8BJ by telephone: 01579 350962 Parish Councillors will be pleased to give you advice on any matters relating to their area of the parish or responsibilities. New Parish Councillors: We are happy to report that the Parish Council has recently been joined by a new councillor – Mike Hassill who lives at Little Gormellick in the Trewidland ward of the parish. There are still two places available on the Parish Council. We welcome applications to bring the council up to full strength and anyone interested in applying should put their name forward for inclusion in the forthcoming Council Elections on 4th May 2017(see p9). Cornwall Councillors Liskeard West and Dobwalls ward Clr. Michael George 07972 359480 Trewidland - Menheniot ward Clr. Phil Seeva 01579 34022 Disclaimer: The Villager magazine is published by Dobwalls and Trewidland Parish Council to provide information for parishioners. Views and opinions presented in the magazine are solely those of the Author/s and do not necessarily represent those of the Parish Council. 3 Neighbourhood Plan gets going! At the Parish Council meeting on the 5th December 2016 it was unanimously agreed that Dobwalls and Trewidland Parish would move forward in the development of a Neighbourhood Plan for the parish. The public meetings which took place in October and November in both Dobwalls and Trewidland were well attended and at each of the meetings there was unanimous support from those present for the parish council to engage with the NP process. Residents from both Trewidland and Dobwalls volunteered to be part of the NP working group, and this group met for the first time on 30th January 2017. The working group has already moved forward in discussions with Cornwall Council who will be involved in supporting the NP process, and in setting up a Steering Group and identify key information which we will need to support the initial phases. This Steering group will meet once a month over the period of the Plan preparation and additional meetings will be held by various working groups such as those already formed to support: the development of the Initial Questionnaire ( included with this edition of the Villager ) which is intended to identify the current priorities of all households in the parish the production of proposals for a Public Engagement Strategy to ensure that we have the best possible opportunity for feedback from everyone in the parish community. 4 Please complete the Questionnaire! The initial public consultation takes the form of the NP Questionnaire which has been delivered with this edition of the magazine. Please complete this Questionnaire and hand it in to one of the pick-up points in your area by the end of March 2017. The results of this survey will be analysed and the conclusions reported in the July Villager magazine. The responses that we receive from local people will set the focus of the initial discussions (Theme/Topic Groups) for the Neighbourhood Plan working group. What happens next? The process of developing the plan will take more than two years, and include several stages: 1 Starting up and the formal designation of the Neighbourhood Development Plan Area by Cornwall Council 2 Research – getting to know our Neighbourhood and its needs 3 Defining Themes, Vision and Objectives for the plan 4 Writing Policies and identifying Projects 5 Testing and Approving the Plan Public involvement: At all stages in the process local people will asked to contribute information and ideas and will be kept informed about how the Plan is developing through the villager/ parish council website and specific events will focus on important topics and provide opportunities for everyone to give their views, and to be involved in the development of the next phase. A series of meetings will be held in the next few months to explore particular issues in more detail including those that are raised by the responses to the Questionnaire. Details of the dates for these events will be published on the Parish Council Website http://www.dobwallsandtrewidland.org.uk/council.php Get involved! If you feel that you would like to help or would like further information, please contact newly elected Neighbourhood Plan secretary/co-ordinator Mhairi Mackie email [email protected] or Parish Clerk, Mrs Linda Coles, The Firs, Lower Metherell, Callington, Cornwall PL17 8BJ ,Tel 01579 350962, email [email protected] 5 6 7 Local Council Elections in May 2017 There will be local authority election on Thursday 4th May 2017. These elections are for both Parish and Cornwall councillors. This seemed a good opportunity to outline some of the key responsibilities of both the Dobwalls and Trewidland Parish Council and the Cornwall Council and to give information for those who may not already be registered to vote in the Parish on how the can engage with this election. For more information on Councils and electoral processes see: https://www.cornwall.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/elections/ What does Dobwalls and Trewidland Parish Council do? The Parish Council is a statutory corporate body, created in law, made up of elected members. The whole Council makes decisions and no individual councillor can decide on behalf of it. The Parish Council plays an important part in representing the interests of the local community. It may make its own policies and using its statutory powers can deliver services and provide facilities in its area. It must act within the law by exercising the many powers and functions which have been conferred on it by Acts of Parliament. It is how and which of these powers the Councillors decide to use that make it a vibrant, forward thinking Parish Council and can bring positive benefits to its community. The Parish Council raises money through the precept to enable it to carry out the provision of these services. It is responsible for spending this public money lawfully, without risk, and for achieving the best value for money. It can also engage or create partnerships with other Authorities and outside bodies for the Parish’s benefit. Under the ‘Localism’ Act more power will be devolved to Parish Councils making them even more responsive to their local communities. The Parish Council is also viewed as a Consultee on behalf of the Community, particularly on planning applications and can be represented at public enquiries. The Parish Council represents and serves the whole electorate; considers local issues carefully and balances the needs of the whole of its community. The Parish Council has a duty to appoint a Clerk/Responsible Financial Officer to manage its finances and activities, to record and carry out the Council’s decisions, and act as its Proper Officer. Dobwalls and Trewidland Parish Council, made up of eleven members, meets once a month and its meetings, all of which are advertised, are open to the public. Linda Coles – Parish Clerk 8 What does Cornwall Council do? Cornwall Council is a Unitary Authority created on the 1st April 2009 by merging the previous six borough and District Councils. The council is comprised of 123 District councillors who are elected every four years. Councillors are democratically accountable to residents in their electoral division. Councillors have an overriding