Every parish has one (I think we have at least six) – older gentlemen of the village, full of profound local knowledge who are the eyes and ears of the parish. There are experts on ditches, hedges, farming, deer … all manner of rural life. Some will happily escort me to troublesome places, pointing out the defects.
Each time I bump into them, I come away knowing much more about traditional methods of doing things, yet I still don’t know enough. In parish council work you learn something new every day.
However … even with the assistance of these wonderful residents, there are times when I really need the help of Dorset Council. It could be a tricky highway issue or a question about planning. I might need to speak to a qualified engineer about a problem with gullies.
I was intrigued, then, to see a recent local report about the savings Dorset Council is making simply by not replacing staff when they leave. Apparently, they expect to save £1.3 million over the current and next financial years this way, with up to 30 vacancies left unfilled.
We’re all aware just how tight the council’s budget is … but in the back of my mind was another question. If all these people are leaving, who exactly is doing their work?
Knowing what the same action would mean in my day job, I can just imagine some council employees having to contend with inheriting someone else’s portfolio, or at least parts of it.
Is it me?
Then I put two and two together and a few things started to add up.
For weeks I have been trying to arrange a site meeting to deal with a challenging rights-of-way and planning issue. Emails have disappeared into cyberspace and there has been no response whatsoever. Meanwhile, residents are inconvenienced and annoyed at the lack of progress. I have to go in disguise to the village shop to avoid being questioned – again.
The lack of response was what bothered me. I had begun to wonder whether it was just me, and the council had a vendetta against the village. I re-read my emails, and there was nothing abrasive about them. It just seemed as though ‘no one was in’.
And before you say it, this has nothing to do with Storm Chandra: it has been going on for months. Was it just me?
I decided to do a little market research and phoned a couple of fellow parish councillors from across the county.
One promptly said they were trying to get a town council vacancy advertised. He was tearing his hair out – all the correct forms had been submitted in a timely manner, but no one responded, the post wasn’t advertised and of course people were asking what’s happening. Finally, giving it one more go, he managed to speak to a human. The person who managed this aspect of council work had left – and, crucially, no one had set up any email forwarding, nor had the inbox been delegated to someone else.
Another friend was asking for some planning advice, having faced down some bullish developers who were trying to ride roughshod over a pending development. Help and advice was very much needed.
Instead, there was no response to her query – now she’s considering standing down as a councillor as she feels so ineffective.
We should not have to put up with that.
I expect a reply
I noticed this week that if Simon Hoare rings the council they jump to attention – as happened at Winterborne Kingston when the residents were desperately trying to get some help. To be fair, it was an urgent problem and it needed sorting fast.
But perhaps I should start mimicking Simon Hoare when I ring the council?
Or should I stage a sit in at County Hall until I get a response?
Of course I do not expect the council officers to spend all day checking emails and responding immediately. Nothing else would get done.
I know it’s also easy for an email to get buried. However … I do expect a response from a department when I have to raise an issue. I have to go back to my parishioners and explain why nothing is happening.
Why is there a system where the local MP gets a response but parish councillors are ignored? I don’t contact the council for fun or to be a nuisance. I – and every parish councillor I know – only contact them when there is a serious issue that needs an answer.
I know how the council portal works: if I’m asking, it’s because it’s a complex issue that cannot be answered through the automated service. And if I can’t get through to someone to sort out my issues, how does a vulnerable person manage to get help?
All that said, I am also rather concerned for the welfare of some of the council officers – those having to take on the additional work in order for the Cabinet to be able to crow about savings.
And ‘saving’ what exactly? Corporate memory and expertise are valuable assets. When they are not replaced, gaps begin to show. As an elected parish councillor representing a community, I’d really like to see Dorset Council being more helpful and responsive, instead of hiding behind a metaphorical brick wall. Especially to those representing their local communities.
