If so, then Neighbourhood Forums are for you.
Following a successful pilot year, Dover District Council, in partnership with Kent County Council and the Town & Parish Councils throughout the district, has extended its Neighbourhood Forum meetings for another year.
This is a new way of involving local people in the way public services are delivered. The Neighbourhood Forums replace the Dover Local Board (run just by Kent County Council) joining all three tiers of local government to form one forum, giving residents greater influence over local services.
The forums are designed to help engage more closely with residents throughout the district and to work together to tackle common issues.
Come along to our neighbourhood forums and tell us about the issues affecting life where you live.
There are five forums within the district, made up of county, district and town and parish council members, and they act as an advisory body for the both County and District Councils. The Forums will consult residents’ opinions and views on local issues, gathering suggestions at a neighbourhood level, and will also recommend projects for grant funding.
The five neighbourhood forums are:
Each forum holds quarterly public meetings to give all residents the opportunity to learn about why services are delivered in a certain way and to have a say in services for the future.
Although the district is divided geographically, if a topic interests you in another area you are more than welcome to attend.
Examples of topics already discussed include issues such as air quality, transport and highways, waste and recycling, community safety and the Local Development Framework (LDF). The special LDF Neighbourhood Forum meetings, arranged as an addition to the normal quarterly meetings, gave residents a chance to gain a better understanding about the what, why, where and how of the LDF consultation and process.
Meetings are usually held in a different venue for each meeting, our aim is to reach to as many communities as possible. We try to give at least a month's notice of the venue. All meetings are open to the public and you can just turn up to any meeting. We publicise the dates, times and venues of forthcoming Neighbourhood Forum meetings locally and in the local media. Meeting times vary between each forum, but there is always a half-hour period before a meeting opens where you can have an informal chat with your local district, county or town and parish councillor.
For further information please contact:
Michelle Traylor or Caroline Hargreaves |
Louise Bolton |
