The Town Council is the parish authority for Chickerell. We are the fourth tier of government after Parliament, the County Council and the District Council. Our legal powers are granted and regulated by various government acts.
The Town Council supplements the provision of local government services in Chickerell and provides a range of social and recreational facilities, while promoting and representing the town with other national and statutory bodies.
The Parish is divided into two Wards, Chickerell village ward and Charlestown and Littlesea ward.
HOW WE ARE FUNDED
The Council Tax is paid by households in Chickerell. It includes the spending requirements of Dorset County Council, West Dorset District Council, Dorset Police and Dorset Fire Authority as well as the Town Council. The District Council is responsible for collecting the Council Tax. A lot of people don’t realise that the Town Council does not receive any money from central government, unlike the County and District Councils; neither do we get any of the non-domestic rate which local businesses pay.
Each year the Town Council calculates the money it needs to raise to provide its services. We then deduct income which we expect to receive from fees and charges such as the hire of Willowbed Hall and the Sports Pavilion etc, to leave the amount we require to spend on the services and any projects which are planned for the year ahead. This sum, called the precept, is the amount we ask the district council to collect for us; they do this as a proportion of the total council tax paid by householders in the town.