About Us
Bladon Parish Council is committed to putting community engagement at the heart of all we do. As your most immediate tier of local government, we have a range of statutory powers and responsibilities. These include managing and maintaining the Parish Cemetery and Recreation Ground facilities; the upkeep of village assets such as the Pump, the War Memorial and the Green; holding and advertising monthly meetings, setting the budget and managing the finances of the Council; and receiving and responding to planning applications as notified by WODC. We liaise regularly with the two higher tiers of local government for our area, West Oxfordshire District Council and Oxfordshire County Council, regarding matters under their jurisdiction, and deal with public consultations. We represent the village on various other external bodies such as traffic action groups and liaise with our own local groups including the school, both village churches and The White House Community Pub, and have established a good working relationship with Blenheim Estate.
Much of what we can achieve is by enabling others and giving voice to support positive development. We are keen to foster constructive engagement with those who have ideas for improving the village or preventing unwelcome changes. The breadth of support across the community in both the establishment of the Recreation Ground and the acquisition and development of The White House as a community pub demonstrate the enthusiasm, commitment, and willingness for those who live in the village to make it a better place.
Parish Councils are Statutory Bodies, having powers under a number of different Acts (the Local Government Act 1972, the Public Health Act 1936, etc.). The Council raises funds by the annual Precept is set in January of each year. The amount required is guided by the setting of the annual budget in the November preceding. The Parish Council precept is added to the Council Tax bill and collected by WODC (on behalf of the Parish Council). The Council also raises funds through grants from other organisations.
However, although we are hard-working and enthusiastic, we are a small parish with limited resources. The Council consists of six unpaid Councillors, many of whom work and/or have caring responsibilities, and a part-time Clerk. All Councillors have designated areas of responsibility within the Council. We organise our time so that it is directed at what we see to be in the best interests of the village. We respond to all communications from those who want to improve the village or are properly concerned about potential harms as soon as is practically possible. There are however constraints on what we can do and in our responses to those who contact us and there may be some issues that we are unable to deal with.
Parish Council meetings are normally held on the 2nd Thursday of the month (bar August and December) from 7.30 – 9.30pm, the agenda being decided by our Councillors and posted on the Council website and noticeboards 3 clear days in advance. Meetings are attended by our County Councillor and two District Councillors. We are committed to the constructive discussion of what our priorities ought to be and how best to take them forward. Due to time constraints and the range of items to be covered we may limit all those making contributions to speak for no more than five minutes. Members of the public may participate if invited to do so by the Chair of the meeting. However further enquiries or contributions are always welcome outside these meetings, made via email to the Clerk who will forward them to the relevant Councillor.
We will endeavour to keep the information provided on our own site accurate and up to date. If you spot any errors or omissions please contact us by email so that we can investigate and correct.