Freedom of Information
The Freedom of Information Act 2000 requires all local councils to publish information about their business and make that information easily accessible to the community. To help define what must be made available the Information Commissioner approved a ‘Model Publication Scheme’ which all local authorities had to adopt by 1st January 2009 or be in breach of the Act. The Parish Council adopted the scheme in its entirety in December 2008.
The Model Publication Scheme sets a standard model for all Parish and Community Councils in general. For St Nicholas at Wade and Sarre some of the information requirements are simply not relevant and have been marked ‘not applicable’. Conversely the Council feels that other information not specified in the model scheme should be made available to the public and has therefore included it in its own scheme.
Who we are and what we do
St Nicholas at Wade & Sarre Parish Council is both a village and a civil parish in the Thanet District of Kent.
If all councillors are in post, the Parish Council is made up of nine councillors, one of whom is elected Chair/Chairman for the year at the Annual Parish Meeting. Seven of the councillors represent St Nicholas-at-Wade and two represent Sarre. The Council has four part time employees, a Clerk/Responsible Finance Officer, two maintenance personnel and a website administrator.
The Parish council receives a precept which forms part of the Council Tax and some additional support payments from Thanet District Council to undertake the functions and it carries out in St Nicholas-at-Wade and Sarre. Various Local Government Acts give the Parish Council a wide range of powers to carry out these functions which include the management of allotments, burial grounds, public seats, memorials, provision of a village hall, playground, recreation and sports facilities and consultation on highways and planning matters.
One councillor sits on both the bell Meadow Pavilion and the Village Hall Committees to represent the Parish Council’s interests.
What our priorities are and how we are doing
The Parish Council’s priorities change regularly to reflect current issues in the villages. Councillors discuss their objectives and plans at each of their monthly meetings. See Agendas & Minutes page for the latest developments or contact the Clerk to the Council if you have a more specific query.
How we make decisions
The way Parish Council business is carried out is governed by a number of policy documents. See Policies and Procedures page for more details of these documents.
Debates on local issues takes place at the monthly Parish Council meetings around a set agenda where the Chair/Chairman, Clerk to the Council, District Councillors, County Councillor, Community Warden and Police Community Support Officer usually attend to give reports and make themselves available for consultation. Parish Council meetings are held in The Pavilion in Bell Meadow from 7.30pm to 9.30pm on the second Tuesday of every month and the public are welcome to attend. Members of the public present have the opportunity to address the meeting in relation to any of the business on the agenda. See Agendas & Minutes page for the latest agendas and minutes.
What we spend and how we spend it
See the Finance page for general details or contact the Clerk to the Council if you have a more specific query.
Services we offer
The Parish Council is the level of government closest to the community it serves and councillors respond to requests or complaints from the public about a whole range of public services, whether provided by the Parish Council itself, Thanet District Council who are responsible for street cleaning, refuse collection, dog bins etc or Kent County Council who are reasponsible for highways, street lighting, maintenance of grass verges etc. The Parish Council assesses any requests or information brought to their attention then decides what action is appropriate, if any.
The Council maintains the allotments in Shuart Lane and the cemetery in Shuart Lane. See the Community pages for more details about these facilities.
The Parish Council maintains the grassed areas in Bell Meadow for general recreation purposes and provides a wide range of play and exercise facilities for children and adults there. Regular inspections are carried out to ensure that the equipment and facilities are safe to use.
Enquiries relating to use or hire of either The Village Hall in The Street or The Pavilion in Bell Meadow, should be directed to the venues and contact detail can be found on the Community pages.
Schedule of charges for information provided
Charges for any hard copies of documents provided are set at 10p per page copied plus postage costs. The Clerk to the Council has the discretion to vary these charges however based on the amount of work involved on a case by case basis.