We want to encourage and support residents to become more active in their community, so you can make things happen, have your say and take part in decisions that affect you.
We recognise, and value, many people are already active in the Dover district, giving up hours of their time to make life better for themselves and their neighbours.
Active in your community
Being active in your community is about being involved, having your say on local issues and taking part in decisions that affect you. It's about people making things happen – becoming actively involved in tackling the things that need to change around you. As a result you will be able to improve the quality of life in your local community.
How do I get more involved?
There are so many ways to Get Active in the district, both big and small. For example:
Do You ...
- Vote in local elections or take part in surveys?
- Attend community meetings, such as the Neighbourhood Forums?
- Help a neighbour with their shopping?
- Recycle?
Are You...
- Involved in community events?
- A volunteer for a charity or group?
- In a Neighbourhood Watch scheme or a member of the residents group?
- A trustee or school governor?
If you can answer 'YES' to any of the questions above, then you are already active in your community!
What’s in it for me?
Becoming active in your community gives you the opportunity to influence decisions about your neighbourhood and public services. You will have a real chance to change things for the better in your local community and gain a sense of satisfaction from doing so.
Voluntary work also looks excellent on your CV and can show all kinds of skills to a future employer.
For local Councillors, or other representative of the community, it is a great opportunity to engage with your community and take action on their behalf.
DDC is committed to listening to our residents and involving you in planning and delivering council services.
Help us to help you – become active in your community
Only by knowing what you want from us can we work to provide the best possible services in the district. We need the people we serve to tell us what they think of the Council and what they think we can do to further improve our services.
Decisions made by Dover District Council affect all residents in the district. Make sure you use your chance to influence the way your Council works for you.
There are many examples of how individuals, communities, groups and organisations can get involved and express their opinions, such as:
- Attending the Dover District Neighbourhood Forum meetings
There are five neighbourhood forums in the Dover District:
- Dover North
- Dover Town
- Dover West
- Deal
- Sandwich
County, district, town and parish councillors will be at the meetings to talk to you and gather opinions and suggestions about issues in your neighbourhood. Please click on the link to find out more
- Contact your Councillor
- Suggest issues the Council should be scrutinising
- Keep up-to-date with the latest Council, Executive and Committee Meetings
- Planning and Development
Find out how to comment on planning and development issues:
- Local Development Framework
Register to be kept informed of Local Development Framework Developments
- Responding to surveys, questionnaires and consultations
Giving us your views will help us to provide better services. To find out how to make your opinion count, please click on the link to find out about the current consultations.
- Public Petitions
- Give us feedback
Telling us what you think of the service we provide
- Joining the Dover District Citizens Panel
One way in which the Council consult the community is through our Citizens Panel. Would you like to influence the Councils policies and services? We are actively recruiting to our Citizens Panel to make it more representative of the adult population of the district. Find out more here.
- Freedom of Information
Find out how you can request information held by the Council.
- Sustainable Community Strategy
Information on how to become involved in the review of our Sustainable Community Strategy will be available soon. This will be developed from the views of local people and organisations.
- Kent Agreement 2 (Local Area Agreement):
Information on how to become involved in our Local Action Plan will be available soon.
- Town and Parish Councils
There are 32 parish council's and 3 town councils covering the district. The town and parish council's provide many local services and, as the third tier of local government, speak for their communities.
- Use your vote
Make sure you are registered to vote; find information on voting and elections.
- Contact your MP
Phone, write or e-mail the Members of Parliament covering the Dover district.
- Joining the Dover District Community Network and the Dover & District Compact
A Community Network is being set up by CASE Kent (Insert hyperlink - www.casekent.org.uk) with partners, including DDC. For more information, please call Louse Rogers on 01304 21959 or e-mail louiserogers@casekent.org.uk
- Local voluntary and community groups
You can also express your views through umbrella organisations such as CASE Kent, the Dover and District Volunteering Centre and Dover, Deal and District CAB; as well as other groups and bodies you may belong to, such as residents associations, village hall committees and forums.
- Customer Access Reviews
We will be asking local voluntary and community groups to help us complete our Customer Access Reviews to improve services to the benefit of the whole community. These focus on specific equality strands to highlight where we need to promote equality of opportunity for a particular group. These will be co-coordinated by the Dover District Community Network.
- How to get involved with the Councils Partners
Information will be available soon.
The views expressed through these mechanisms are used to inform local decisions and, in the end, shape the way in which we achieve the ambitions of the Dover District Council Corporate Plan and Sustainable Community Strategy.
Contact
Tel: 01304 872314
Email: policy@dover.gov.uk
