Last Saturday, I, along with hundreds of other locals, enjoyed time off at Twyford’s Summer Fete. It helped, of course, that the weather was fine – warm, yet not too hot, with occasional light cloud providing a break from the sun – a perfect English late-summer day would sum it up. But even if the weather had been less favourable, I don’t think the spirits of those who attended would have been dampened. The event offered something for everyone – a vintage car show, music, singing, stalls selling food and drink and promoting all manner of good causes, as well as children’s entertainment and young farm animals to see. All this was organized, and brilliantly choreographed, by Twyford Parish Council.
Similar events have taken place across Wokingham Borough over the summer months, many of them also the fruit of great planning, financial commitment, and hard work by local town and parish councils. The Twyford Summer Fete reminded me, yet again, how fortunate we are in our borough to have such active and community-minded town and parish councils.
Our town and parish councils vary greatly in size and resource, from the large town councils at one end of the spectrum to small rural parish councils at the other. Some have big budgets and play a significant role in managing extensive assets; other are less well-resourced and have a much smaller range of responsibilities. But they all have one thing in common – staff and councillors who know their areas well and are committed to serving the community. Town and parish councillors, it’s worth stressing, are volunteers, who give of their time for no financial reward.
Wokingham Borough Council has been working more closely with town and parish councils lately, as part of a wider partnership agenda, designed to harness the knowledge, data, and resources – human, material, and financial – within the borough to maximize our collective ability to serve our community.
We are developing a new and more ambitious relationship with our town and parish councils, which seeks to recognize both the desire and the ability of many to play a still bigger role in the places they know so well.
I am an enthusiast for partnership, as it seems obvious to me that the borough council cannot have all the answers to local problems and that working with those who have a deep and up-to-date knowledge of their communities makes great sense. Moreover, in cash-strapped times, it has to be a good idea to find ways for the borough council and our town and parish councils to pool our efforts and maximize the impact of what we spend for the benefit of our residents.
We are still working on the precise way our new compact with town and parish councils will work in practice. No doubt there will be different arrangements to suit different circumstances, rather than a one-size fits all model of collaboration. The relationship will evolve according to the preferences of all those involved; there will be no dictation. In essence this is about the borough council empowering those town and parish councils that want to play a bigger role in their communities.
By Cllr Stephen Conway
