Town Council for Melton Mowbray
Your views on a Melton Mowbray Town Council
We are considering the benefits and implications of establishing a town council for Melton Mowbray.
We would like to hear your views and understand if there is an interest in setting up a town council in Melton Mowbray.
Please read the following information and then answer the questions below.
What is a parish or town council?
A parish or town council is the first tier of local government. They are separate elected bodies made up of local people representing the interests of their community. They have the same powers and can provide the same services as a parish council.
They can be the voice of their local community and work with other tiers of government, such as a borough, county or unitary council, and external organisations to deliver services and improve the quality of life in the area.
Find out more about the different types of councils on GOV UK.
Is there a difference between a parish and town council?
They both have the same powers and can provide the same services.
The only differences are that a town council has decided that it should be known as a town council instead of a parish council based on geography, and a town council usually has a mayor.
What responsibilities do town and parish councils have?
Parish and town councils have fewer statutory functions (things they have to do), compared to borough, county or unitary councils. They will still hold meetings, manage their finances, provide services and look after assets, but these will be at a lower level than those currently provided by Melton Borough Council.
They can choose to exercise certain discretionary powers, and provide a variety of local services including:
- allotments, parks and open spaces
- bus shelters and community transport schemes
- community centres and leisure facilities
- crime reduction and community safety measures
- festivals, celebrations and tourism activities
- litter bins, street lighting and street cleaning
What are the costs?
Setting up costs
The cost of undertaking the legal process required to consider and then implement a town council is anticipated at £150,000-£200,000. This would be met by Melton Borough Council.
Ongoing costs
Once established, the ongoing costs of running a Town Council are met from what is called a ‘precept’. This is a separate charge which is added to and collected together with Council Tax. This is payable by those who live within the town council boundary. A similar charge is already paid to parish councils by those who live in rural parts of the borough.
Town councils set their own precept and the amount charged depends on the levels of service they choose to provide. Town councils are not limited in the amount of precept they can collect.
Why are we considering this now?
The Government is planning big changes to local councils across the country, including the councils throughout Leicestershire. They want to create new, larger 'unitary' councils that provide all services to residents.
This is called Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) and from April 2028 we expect the 10 existing principal councils across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, to be replaced by a smaller number of ‘unitary’ councils that will provide all councils services to the areas they serve.
Existing Parish Councils, which currently serve all rural parts of Melton Borough will be unaffected by LGR. They will remain and work with the new unitary council for their areas.
The town of Melton Mowbray does not currently have a parish or town council.