What is a parish council?
A parish council is a local authority whose members are elected by the electors
of the parish area and serve for four years. Some parish councils are known as
town councils but all abide by the same legislation passed by Parliament.

What legislation?
There have been over 25 Acts of Parliament over the last two centuries
conferring, directly or indirectly, various powers on parish councils including
Gladstone's 1894 Local Government Act which established them in their
modern form. The Local Government Act of 1972 revised their role substantially.

How many parish councils are there?
There are about 8,700 parish and town councils in England serving 30% of
the population as their most direct tier of government. The total budget for
these councils is almost £500 million. Individual council budgets range from
£100 to over £1 million, making councils very different in size and activity.

What can parish councils do?
Parliament has given many powers to parish councils. These powers relate
to issues such as grants, planning, provision of recreation facilities,
community centres and public buildings, crime prevention, community
transport, public toilets, tourism, allotments, footpaths, litter, open spaces
and traffic calming.

The desire of Government is to increase the powers of parish councils.
Parish councils also act to represent residents of the parish on issues such
as the environment, transport and youth activities.

How are parish councils funded?
The major income for most parish councils is a precept to be raised by the
principal local authority as part of Council Tax.
This is paid by residents of the parish. Parish councils may also receive
other income such as grants and fees for letting buildings. The income is
used to improve the quality of life for parishioners.

Click Here to view a background of Knowsley Parish Council