What is the annual parish meeting?
Annual parish meetings (sometimes called annual town meetings or annual assemblies) are not a meeting of the council but instead are a meeting of the electors. The meeting for each parish must assemble once a year between 1 March and 1 June (inclusive). The meeting is intended to be a useful forum for the community to discuss parish affairs. There are no guidelines on what may count as a parish affair, but it could be anything that affects the parish which is reasonable for discussion.
The meeting may be convened by:
- the chair of the parish council
- any two parish councillors for the parish
- where there is no parish council, the chair of the parish meeting or any person representing the parish on the district council
- any six local government electors in the parish
Public notice of the meeting must be given 7 clear days beforehand specifying the time and place of the meeting, with an agenda of what will be discussed and signed by the person(s) convening the meeting. The notice can be posted in a conspicuous place or places, such as a noticeboard, and anywhere else which might help publicise the meeting.
The meeting cannot commence earlier than 6pm, and may not be held in premises which are used for the supply of alcohol unless no other room is available free or at a reasonable cost.
The meeting must be open to the public and the press. If the chair of the parish council is present at the meeting then they must preside over the meeting.
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