Parish Council

The Watton-at-Stone Parish Council, which is elected every 4 years, comprises 10 members and is a proactive body that strives to:

• protect and maintain our local environment
• improve the facilities and amenities available to our Parishioners
• ensure that the needs and concerns of our community are made known to local and national government, and to other bodies and organizations

Although the Parish Council receives annual funding (i.e., the Precept) from East Hertfordshire District Council and income from hire charges, it is not enough for us to achieve all of our objectives. Therefore, we always apply for grants from local authorities and other suitable organizations whenever possible. This means that we can take on major improvement-programmes, etc. without having to use public money (the Precept) that is needed to pay for other things.

With the exception of August, the Parish Council meets once a month in the Nigel Poulton Community Hall. The Agendas are posted within the village on the Saturday prior to the date of the meeting. Members of the public are always welcome and are encouraged to attend Parish Council meetings where they have an opportunity to address and/or comment on a particular issue.

To maximize the use of the time at the main meetings, the Parish Council is divided into subcommittees that perform much of the detailed work associated with a specific area of responsibility. These meet as and when required to discuss major issues, programmes and problems, and then make recommendations to the full Parish Council.

Representatives of other bodies (e.g. the Police, local government officers, our District Councillor, County Councillor, MP, etc.) are often invited to our meetings to discuss issues that need special attention.

To keep up to date with what is going on, Parish Councillors are assigned as representatives to village organizations. This provides a good communication link that enables the Parish Council to give direct help and support as appropriate.