Parish Council

East Boldre Parish Council is a small local authority. It is community based and has a policy of making itself accessible to the public. It has five councillors who are elected by the residents of the parish. In addition it has a Parish Clerk who is employed by the parish Council to perform all the necessary administrative duties of the council.

The East Boldre Parish Council has few direct powers. It is responsible for providing and maintaining some local facilities such as bus shelters, seating etc. plus it has a responsibility for providing allotment fields for the residents who wish to cultivate their own vegetables.

The main strength and authority of the Parish Council is through communication. It provides a conduit through which the County and District Councils can communicate with the residents. It also represents and communicates on behalf of the community in its relationship with the higher tiers of local government. It also tries to resolve problems within the community without resorting to formal action by any authority.

The Parish Council responds to requests by the District Council for advice, comments etc on matters for which they are responsible. Every planning application that is made by a resident of East Boldre is decided by the District Council but they formally request comments from the Parish Council before making a decision to approve or otherwise. In the event that the Parish Council object to any application, the District Council must then consider the application in a full session rather than leaving it to the planning officers.

The Parish Council exerts influence within the community by discussion and debate. It has a policy of supporting and helping to develop the village facilities, groups and societies. To a limited amount, it can directly help some of these groups by a direct financial grant. However, it can make a far larger contribution by being involved and directly supporting applications to other bodies who have sufficient funds to support the groups. The Council can help by being a catalyst.

It has taken a leading role in enhancing the Safety and Security of the community. As a representative of the residents, it is able to involve the local police and District Council organisations. It is able to support initiatives by the residents themselves. (e.g. Neighbourhood Watch). It will also support those residents who are suffering from anti-social behaviour by other residents or visitors and can involve the authorities.

The Parish Council holds a meeting each month, with the exception of the holiday months of August, December and April, on the last Tuesday of the month, always at 7.30 pm and always in the Village Hall. The format of the meeting is intended to advise all the public of developments and decisions that affect the general community, to give each and every resident the opportunity to address the Council with their concerns and to have open discussion and to give their comments on matters being debated plus the Council has certain decisions which have to be formally taken in open session.

The budget for the Parish Council is set each year, agreed and published in open session and then the necessary funding is from a precept drawn from the local District Council tax. The precept for East Boldre is currently (2007-08) £6,250.