Another Year and No Change

Last year about this time we published an article called "Local Democracy – it starts and ends with You" about the Annual Parish Meeting. A comment at the time was: "It is rare for such meetings to be packed out, but last night the turnout was particularly disappointing. In fact, there was not a single person present who was not either on the Parish Council, or presenting a report."

It seems that this year there was a great improvement, when ONE member of the general public did turn up on Thursday May 4th to hear the reports from the Parish Council and the organisations that it supports. It is a situation that causes much concern to the Parish Council and to those organisations that depend on public support.

One year the meeting was held on a Saturday morning and there was a better attendance. Tarporley Parish Council are trying the same approach but no doubt they will find their wrists slapped, when they are informed, as was Tarvin, that BY LAW, meetings should be held after 6.00pm!

In a display of blue skies thinking, Councillor Lush, in his report on the Annual Meeting to the Parish Council on Monday (May 22nd) has put forward a radical approach, suggesting that the Primary School be invited to prepare the report as a project. With research and interviews throughout the village, they might come up with a more attractive and interactive report, and perhaps parents would come along to appreciate their childrens' work. Is this feasible? Is this appropriate? Is this even legal?

It is perhaps possible to leave things as they are in the knowledge that nothing much will happen anyway. Despite being an election year with politics dominating the news bulletins, the workings of our local democracy seem doomed to remain interesting to only a few, though those few will continue to serve and strive to reflect the views of the residents. But if they feel that no-one appreciates and recognises their efforts, perhaps they will too will drift away leaving the village in a poorer state.

Let's hope that we don't have to write the same article again in 2018.