DO YOU WANT A TOWN COUNCIL FOR MARGATE AND A PARISH COUNCIL FOR WESTGATE?

All residents of Thanet are being asked to give the council their views on a new proposal for a Town Council for Margate and a separate Parish Council for Westgate.

The proposal has been put forward for public consultation by the council’s Boundary and Electoral Arrangements Working Party as stage three of the Community Governance Review of Margate. Stage one of the review was a public consultation which ran from 3 March to 2 June 2014 and asked which form of local governance would be best for Margate.  The second stage of the review was the consideration of the stage one consultation responses at the Boundary and Electoral Arrangements Committee meeting on 3 July and the agreement to consult on the following proposal:

A division of the existing unparished area into two separate Parishes:

• a Town Council which will serve the wards of Cliftonville East, Cliftonville West, Dane Valley, Garlinge, Margate Central, Salmestone and Westbrook and will be known as Margate Town Council. Ward boundaries will remain unchanged and 17 Town Councillors will be elected;
• a Parish Council which will serve only the ward of Westgate-on-sea and will be known as Westgate Parish Council. The ward boundary for Westgate-on-sea will remain unchanged and 10 Parish Councillors will be elected.

Elections to the proposed Margate Town Council and Westgate Parish Council would be held on 7 May 2015 alongside the scheduled Parliamentary and local elections.

Should the above proposal be agreed, the indicative annual cost to each resident has been estimated as:

Margate Town Council:

Before Parish - Margate Charter Trustees: £6.57

Should a Town Council be established: £14.86

Westgate Parish Council:

Before Parish - Margate Charter Trustees: £6.57

Should a Parish Council be established: £24.58

The consultation on this proposal will run from 4 August 2014 to 29 September 2014 is open to all residents, businesses and stakeholders.

Two public meetings to discuss the proposal will be held:

• 7pm Wednesday 27 August at The Westgate Pavilion, 44 Sea Road, Westgate-on-sea CT8 8QW

• 7pm Thursday 28 August at the Council Chamber, TDC Offices, Cecil Street, Margate CT9 1RE

Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Regeneration and Chair of the Boundary and Electoral Arrangements Working Party Cllr. David Green said: “Margate is the last remaining area in Thanet without a Town or Parish Council. I encourage all our residents to take part in this consultation and give us their views on the proposal for two new Parish/Town Councils in Margate. We want to ensure that Council can take full account of public opinion when deciding whether or not this should go ahead and need your responses to do this. Information explaining the proposal and what it would mean for Margate, including the powers of Parish/Town Councils, is available on the council’s website and I recommend that everyone, particularly those living in Margate read this and respond.”

Visit www.thanet.gov.uk/speakup for more information to take part in the consultation.

  

ENDS