A Personal Message From Your Town Councillors

From what I've heard, being a Town Councillor can be a thankless task. Such busy, dedicated people rarely get the recognition they deserve for all their hard work.

And so in mid-October, thinking that in my new role as Editor I really ought to give our Town Councillors the platform they deserve, I overcame my own reticence with all things bureaucratic and wrote individually to each of them. I suggested that they might like to let us know:

• If they find the work of a Councillor stimulating, rewarding, frustrating or challenging?
• What issues they are currently involved with and any action they are taking
• Whether they think Wincanton's Town Council is as effective as it could be
• Any issues in the area that they, as a Councillor, would like to be addressed in the future?

Here are their responses:

Mrs Dora Hibberd:

Dear Wincanton Window,

Thank you for your invitation to contribute information as to "What I am up to" as a Town Councillor.

Well, I find myself extremely busy trying to answer the general public's enquiries and to put forward to the Town Council their requests and groans, with which they approach me whenever I go up to the town. I find it extremely frustrating that most of the items cannot be sorted out by our Town Council, but have to be put to District or County because they have the final decision on everything we propose or do. So it is not Town Council's fault if things don't go as planned for Wincanton.

If anyone is interested in what goes on in Council, they are welcome to attend our Council meetings at the Town Hall, monthly, or read the Minutes and Public Notices regarding meetings in the Town Hall window and Notice Board or on the Town Council web site www.wincantontowncouncil.co.uk.

Outside the Council I represent the town on buses and transport matters. I also sit on the Patient Participation Group in Wincanton.

Yours sincerely,

Dora Hibberd

Thank you for taking the time to write back to me Dora.

And that's really the end of this article because I didn't get any other replies! It's a shame because not only did I want to give our Town Councillors a chance to be heard, I really hoped our local representatives would feel a personal obligation to keep local residents abreast of things that are important to them.

Wincanton Window is now the foremost publication specifically covering this area and so I leave our door wide open for any councillor to write to us at any time. Don't wait to be invited - let us know what matters to you so we can get to know the person we're voting for next time you're asking to be elected!

Comments

Victor Meldrew
Posts: 3

Re: A Personal Message From Your Town Councillors
Reply #1 on : Thu November 24, 2011, 12:46:51

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What a surprise that only one Councillor replied to the Editors request. I could comment further but .........

Posts: 1

I don't believe it!
Reply #2 on : Fri November 25, 2011, 18:35:20

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Come on Victor, lets concentrate on getting the Window more hits, lets leave the councillors to attend those endless evening meetings & we can concentrate on offering more articles.

Sheriff
Posts: 1

Typical press attitude
Reply #3 on : Sat November 26, 2011, 09:05:53

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Hey, just because the councillors don't respond to your correspondence doesn't mean they have no value. You seem to be adopting a typical press attitude of self-importance. Could it be that those councillors had something more useful to do than corresponding with you?

Don't ever forget that Town Councillors are unpaid and voluntary.

mandycochrane
Posts: 1

Town Councillors Have More Useful Things To Do
Reply #4 on : Sat November 26, 2011, 11:45:56

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First of all, I don't consider myself "Press". I'm a volunteer too, working for this web site on behalf of the community.

Volunteer or not, isn't it fair to state that a Town Councillor's role is to serve the community too? Is it not "useful" to correspond with the community that elected you, the community you joined up to serve?

I didn't write to the councillors demanding that they justify their positions. Quite the opposite. I think the article makes that clear. I know how hard they work and wanted to give them an opportunity to shout about it. They chose not to, That's their choice.

Even so, wouldn't it be nice, between one election and another, to have some personal interaction with them?

We'd love to hear from any of them, anytime. Wincanton Window is as much for them as any other part of our community.

Last Edit: November 26, 2011, 13:10:45 by *  

Victor Meldrew
Posts: 3

Re: A Personal Message From Your Town Councillors
Reply #5 on : Wed December 07, 2011, 11:19:11

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Thank you Mandy. I was commenting on the possibility that councillors seem to be wrapped up in their own self importance to respond to the request. It would be nice to see them let those who elected them be informed as to the points in the article. It is not a fulltime job so it would no take too much time to reply. I suppose one or two are playing politics so do not wish that be known, as well as not wishing to be seen to be saying one thig at one level and the opposite at another, especially in planning matters. As to Steve1, endless meetings? 3 a month.

Victor Meldrew
Posts: 3

Re: A Personal Message From Your Town Councillors
Reply #6 on : Sat February 11, 2012, 14:54:39

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To add to my first comment, no doubt this will either not be read or replied to. I was told by a friend the said friend had written in July asking what plans the Councillors had for the Queens Jubilee Celebrations. This friend is still waiting for a reply, I assume it is either the members decided against a written reply or were/arer not interested in doing anything about it. Either way I am most suprised, as at least one owes his career to being in Her Services.

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