LEADER funding and delivery of council services to be discussed in Chirbury
Residents of south west Shropshire will get the chance to hear about a potential new source of European funding to support local businesses and the rural economy. The Bishop’s Castle, Chirbury and Worthen, and Clun Local Joint Committee (LJC) meets on Thursday 24 July 2014 at Chirbury Village Hall.
Pete Banford from the Shropshire Hills AONB Partnership will be giving a presentation on the new LEADER funding programme for Shropshire. This will look to support a range of activities in the rural area such as increasing farm productivity, promoting rural tourism, developing small and medium-sized businesses, and supporting the cultural and historic character of the area. The meeting will be an opportunity for members to the public to find out more about the project.
Shropshire Councillor Gwilym Butler will speak on delivering services locally (locality commissioning). Shropshire Council has been piloting this in some parts of Shropshire. Details of work which has happened in other areas of the county will be presented. These will provide a starting point for discussions on what locality commissioning might look like for us, and how town and parish councils can work together to deliver our services. This could bring real benefits to the local community.
Councillor Heather Kidd, chair of the LJC, said:
“I will be fascinated to see what our sparse rural area will be given the freedom to do locally. The biggest areas of concern are road maintenance, transport and care. If we can make a real difference to those it will be a huge step forward. I hope as many members of the public as possible can come along to share ideas they have to improve services in our very rural area. This does need to be meaningful,and not just a way to hand things over to parish councils without funding or support.”
In addition to the speakers, there is also an opportunity for the public to raise issues with their local councillors, and make suggestions for future presentations at the meetings. All are welcome to attend.
