Our Parish Council was “born” in the week after local elections on May 5th 2016. This is the first time a council has existed in Pannal since way back before the Second World War. When there was no parish council, Pannal Village Society fought on behalf of residents against unsuitable and sometimes unscrupulous development plans for the past few decades. However, despite its many successes, it didn’t have the teeth or status to fight both developers and bureaucracy. What it did have, was the spirit and initiative to implement the process to get Pannal and Burn Bridge its own parish council. So now we have our own statutory body, approved by Harrogate Borough Council and through due process of consultation and democratic election, we have our council consisting of seven local councillors.
The business conducted in the council is according to a set of nationally accepted rules. This may sound very formal and indeed it has to be, so that democracy can be seen to be done in a consistent manner. However, that does not stop us from being a very approachable group of people. Your councillors come from all walks of life and being volunteers, perform their tasks purely for the good of the parish and without any remuneration. We want to hear from parishioners about things they feel need improving or indeed new suggestions for the benefit of the parish. Parishioners are most welcome at council meetings and indeed some have already been asked, or volunteered, to help out our parish council where they have special areas of expertise. If you have a suggestion, then please email the parish clerk or chairperson with the details. The current chairman is open for face-to-face discussion if you prefer not to put pen to paper or fingers to iPad. Then, it may be possible for your idea to be incorporated into the agenda and discussed in council and you could have the opportunity to promote it yourself.
Being a brand new parish council, we don’t have preconceived ideas and we’re happy to take advice and suggestions that will benefit our parish. As councillors, we have been elected to serve and represent our community. The enthusiasm shown in our Have Your Say, Questionnaire and Community-led Plan showed a real commitment from the village. Now you have got the parish council that an overwhelming majority wanted, please use it. We’re here to do our utmost for Pannal and Burn Bridge.