The Arbor closure
The Arbor is currently closed today (26 April) but will be open as normal on Monday 29 April. We are very sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.
Councillors play a vital role in shaping services and making improvements for the benefit of local people, working with partner organisations in both the public and private sector to achieve these aims.
Broadly speaking councillors have three main areas of responsibility: ward representation; decision-making; and community leadership, and this can involve:
Being a councillor is an important position requiring a significant time commitment. If you work, by law you must be permitted a 'reasonable' amount of time off work to carry out your duties, but you should discuss this with your employer before making the decision to stand for election.
Councillors do not receive a salary, but are entitled to a basic allowance and payment for travel and subsistence expenses. Councillors appointed to specific roles are entitled to further allowances to cover their additional duties.
All Councillors are provided with a comprehensive induction programme to equip them to carry out their role. An example of the programme which took place following the May 2021 elections can be found here. (DOC, 1.4 MB)
For more information on the role of a Councillor have a look at the Council's member role profile (PDF, 197.5 KB) , which have been adopted as advisory notes.
To qualify as a candidate for elections to a local authority, a person must be at least 18 years old on the day of nomination and must be either:
A prospective candidate must also meet one of four qualifications:
You cannot stand for election if you:
If you'd like to stand for election, you'll need to contact Electoral Services for a nomination paper when the next Notice of Election is published and return it no later that 19 working days before the poll takes place. More information on when the next election is taking place.