The leader of Stafford Borough Council has thanked residents for sharing their views on a potential new town council for Stafford.

More than 1000 people took part in the consultation which ran over six weeks through February and March as part of a ‘Community Governance Review.’  

Stafford is the only ‘unparished’ area of the borough and, with Government plans that will see the local authority abolished in 2028, concerns had been voiced that it would leave a lack of representation for the county town.

A cross-party working group on the borough council recommended that the area to be reviewed should "encompass the unparished area of the borough and the current parished area of Doxey.” Letters were sent to households in the county town who would be affected by the move as part of the six-week consultation which closed last month.  

Feedback from the consultation will now help prepare a report for the working group who will put forward draft recommendations to a meeting of the Borough Council in September.

Local Government Reorganisation will see district, borough, county and city councils in Staffordshire scrapped to be replaced by larger unitary authorities which will deliver all council services.

Currently every village and town in the borough is served by a parish or town council - apart from Stafford. A parish or town council is the most local tier of government and may deliver a range of services - such as managing local facilities and running events - as well as making representations on behalf of their communities on planning decisions and other local issues. They are funded through an addition to the council tax charge - called a precept.

The recent consultation closed last month and Borough Council Leader, Aidan Godfrey, thanked people for taking part.

“It is great to see so many residents have used this opportunity to share their views on whether having a new town council is the right thing for Stafford. It is important that those who will be affected by these proposals have their say - and even more important that we listen to them.

“The next stage is for the results to be analysed and then a report prepared with draft recommendations which can be considered by the Borough Council.”

If a new town council receives the green light voting would take place in 2027 to elect councillors that could serve around 49,000 residents.

More information about the Community Governance Review can be seen from www.staffordbc.gov.uk/your-say-new-town-council-stafford

And you can find the latest on Local Government Reorganisation from www.staffordbc.gov.uk/devolution-and-local-government-reorganisation

Press Release No 6281