Crowborough Town Council Crowborough Town Council Logo Council Offices,
Pine Grove, TN6 1DH
Crowborough,
East Sussex,
info@crowboroughtowncouncil.gov.uk 01892652907
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Town Meetings

The Parish [Town] Meeting

The Local Government Act 1972 states that every parish in England must have an annual Parish [Town] Meeting, which must take place between 1st March and 1st June each year. In Crowborough we call this the ‘Town Conference’.

Parish [Town] Meetings are not to be confused with the Town Council meetings, or the Annual Statutory Meeting of the Council.

Parish [Town] Meetings – A Quick Summary

  • Any person on the electoral register of the parish is entitled to speak at a Parish Meeting – at a meeting of the Town Council members of the public may speak only at the Chairman’s discretion.
  • If present, the Chairman of the Town Council (in Crowborough this is the Mayor) must chair the Parish Meeting.
  • With the exception of the Chairman, councillors rank the same as other members of the electorate.
  • Agendas for Town Council meetings must be published three days ahead of the meeting – for Parish [Town] Meetings a skeleton agenda is usually published ahead of the meeting but further items are often included on the night of the meeting.
  • Only Councillors may request items to be placed on the agenda of a Town Council meeting whereas any member of the electorate may do so at a Parish Meeting.
  • Any matter pertinent to the parish [Town] may be discussed at a Parish Meeting, whereas at a Town Council meeting subjects for discussion should be limited to those matter on which the council has the power to act (conferred by various Acts of Parliament).
  • The press and general public have a right to attend Parish [Town] Meetings, but anyone not on the electoral register of the parish is ‘stranger’ and does not have the right to vote.

Finally – In essence…

A Parish Meeting is a meeting of the people of the parish [Town].

A Town Council meeting is a meeting of the Council [made up of the elected town councillors].

Town Conference Annual Report 2022-2023

Annual Report 2022-2023

Town Conference Minutes – 1st March 2023