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Rawcliffe Parish Council

Rawcliffe Parish Council consists of (up to) 9 Councillors, the Clerk and two other employees including our environment officer and the rec hall caretaker.

The parish council represents and serves residents of Rawcliffe and Clifton Moor. Councillors are unpaid and are the first tier of Local Government.   Whilst parish council powers are limited the parish council is a good place to start with any issues, all councillors and employees live or work in the area and care about improving the welfare and happiness of residents.

The Council meets monthly at 7pm on the second Monday of every month.

Our usual meeting place is the side room at the Rawcliffe Rec (Pavilion) Hall.   Everyone is welcome to attend, there is no need to pre-book or register to speak as there is a special reserved slot for residents to speak at the beginning of each meeting.    Your time is limited, usually 3 minutes,  but there may be time and flexibility in the meeting to be less formal.   Should you wish to have a more formal discussion on an item that you would like placed on the meeting agenda, then please contact the Clerk who is responsible for setting the agenda.

Elections for Councillor are held every four years and those wishing to stand should obtain the relevant form from the Clerk. There may be instances when a resignation etc signals either a new election or a co-option when prospective candidates would be interviewed.

A Parish Council is a corporate body, meaning that every decision made is the responsibility of the whole council and not any individual member. You will find the names, addresses and contact details of your Councillors elsewhere on this website.

A Parish Council makes decisions on behalf of the people in the parish and is the level of government closest to the community. As this is the case, Parish Councils are invariably the first place people will go with views, complaints or ideas.

A Parish Council can make all kinds of decisions that affect the local community. Probably the most common topics are planning matters, crime prevention, managing open spaces and campaigning for and delivering better services and facilities.

However, it is true to say that on their own Parish Councils have limited powers to make decisions but they have the ability to negotiate with. and the power to influence, those other organisations that do make the final decisions.

In this respect, Parish Councils are extremely powerful.

The Parish Council also has the power to raise money through taxation: the Precept, which is the Parish Council’s share of the Council Tax and is used for purely local matters such as looking after community buildings, open spaces, play areas, bus shelters and so forth.

Being the level of government closest to the community, it has great a responsibility to use its influence and precept in the best possible ways.

The next Parish Council meeting can be found on our meeting calendar.