Thinking of becoming a Councillor?
What matters to you in Sedgefield? Is it preserving our village green and open spaces, improving and maintaining community facilities, elevating community events or the need for more youth activities? Do you have innovative ideas for the Council driven by passion for our community?
Whatever it is, why not get involved by becoming a Town Councillor?
Perhaps you are already involved in local affairs and want to take the next step. Or you may be looking for a worthwhile and rewarding way to make a long-lasting difference in your local community. There are approximately 20,000 local Councillors in England, each representing their local community and all with their own reason for doing so. No other role gives you a chance to make such a huge difference to quality of life for people in your local area.
To find out more about what is involved, read on!
What is a Town Councillor?
A Councillor's primary role is to represent their Parish and the people who live in it. Councillors provide a bridge between the community and the Town Council, putting the views and needs of the residents they represent at the forefront of decision-making for the benefit of the town.
A Councillor’s role can include developing strategies and plans for the area, helping resolve problems and bring fresh ideas, representing the community, working with other local community groups, making important decisions, and talking to the community about their needs and what the Council is doing.
A Councillor's role has three main areas:
- Decision-making — At Council meetings, Councillors decide the priorities of the Council, where money should be spent, what services should be delivered, and what policies should be implemented.
- Monitoring and feedback — Councillors ensure that their decisions lead to efficient and effective services by monitoring how well things work.
- Getting involved locally — As local representatives, Councillors have responsibilities towards their constituents and local organisations. The single most important task is to listen to the views of the people and be the voice of their community. By doing this, councillors gain important information about the concerns and aspirations of the people they represent. The matters that an individual Councillor may focus on can often depend on what a given Councillor wants to achieve and how much time is available.
So what do Town Councillors do?
Many people's impression of what a Councillor does is just attending Council meetings. While meetings are an essential time for decision-making, it’s the ordinary day to day contact with local people that Councillors experience in their own community that is the most important part of being a local Councillor.
The day-to-day work of a Councillor may include the following:
- Listening to residents and taking up issues on their behalf, such as writing a report for the relevant Council committee or making representations to a relevant organisation
- Reading and analysing reports and information issued by the Town Clerk to best prepare for decision-making or discussions at meetings
- Attending working group meetings
- Joining other meetings if appointed on local bodies and organisations whose work affects the whole community
No! It is important that Councils have Councillors who not only reflect and represent the communities they serve but also have a broad range of skills and life experience. You don’t have to hold certain qualifications or be in a certain profession. Skills gained through raising a family, caring for others, volunteering, or being active in faith or community groups are just as valuable. Whilst you don’t need any special qualifications to be a Councillor, having or being able to develop the following skills, knowledge and attributes will help you in the role:
- Communication skills
- Problem solving and analytical skills
- Team working
- Organisational skills
- Ability to engage with your local community
- Keeping up to date with local government issues
Councillors are expected to, as a minimum, attend the Monthly Meetings which take place one Monday evening a month. The meetings combined usually lasts around 2-3 hours. In addition, there are several other committees which meet the same evening. The required reading of Committee packs in advance may take a further 2 hours or more.
The Town Council’s Annual Town Meeting takes place in May and may last 3 hours including Mayoral donations and Citizen/Young Citizen of the Year awards.
Joining Working Groups and other Committees that meet outside of the monthly Monday evenings is optional.
Councillors can also choose to represent the Council within other organisations or local bodies, who may hold meetings on a schedule.
Outside of meetings, Councillors may be approached by residents directly and will receive regular emails from Town Council staff when an issue arises and requires a prompt response, so an approximate additional 2 hours a week should be allowed for engaging with Council staff and residents.
To be able to stand as a candidate at a Town Council election, you must be:
- British or a citizen of the Commonwealth
- At least 18 years old
- Registered to vote in the area or have lived, worked or owned property there for at least 12 months before an election.
However, you cannot be a Councillor if you:
- Work for the council you want to be a councillor for, or for another local authority in a politically restricted post
- Are the subject of a bankruptcy restrictions order or interim order
- Have been sentenced to prison for three months or more (including suspended sentences) during the five years before election day
- Have been convicted of a corrupt or illegal practice by an election court.
You can either stand as an independent candidate, or as a group or political party candidate. The political parties in your local area are already looking for people interested in representing them and will be pleased to hear from you. They will be able to support your election campaign and your work as a Councillor.
How to apply
There are two ways to becoming a Councillor at Sedgefield Town Council: standing for election or filling a vacant seat.
If local elections are scheduled in the near future, the best thing to do is contact the Electoral Services team at Durham County Council to register your interest in standing as a Councillor, and they will send you a nomination pack for the forthcoming election with all information on the process from start to finish. You can contact them on 03000 269 714, via email democraticservices@durham.gov.uk or by visiting the website https://www.durham.gov.uk/article/2276/Become-a-councillor.
The next local council elections in County Durham will tale place in May 2025.
From time to time, the Town Council may have vacancies that need to be filled. When there is a vacancy to be filled, this will be publicised on the news page of our website, in the town noticeboard, in the Council office windows, on our X account @SedgefieldTC and through our Residents’ Database. Depending on timing, it may also be advertised in the Sedgefield Extra.