People in parts of Stafford and the Staffordshire Moorlands are being urged to vote now and play a critical part in deciding which community facilities and services are available in their area.

Staffordshire County Council is one of just a handful of councils across the UK that are putting the community in the driving seat of spending local budgets.

Since Staffordshire County Council's Local Member Initiative Scheme was launched in 2001, the council's 62 elected county councillors have supported support over 3,300 community projects across the county with a total spend of more than £4 million.

This year though, the county councillors responsible for representing the views of people living in most parts of Stafford, Biddulph, Endon and Caverswall won't be deciding themselves which projects will receive some of their £10,000 allocation. 

This year, County Councillors Robert Simpson, Maureen Compton, Mike Poulter, Jack Barber, Christina Jebb, Madelaine Lovatt and Bill Day are asking their communities to vote for which projects should receive a slice of the cash.

"And the time to vote is now," said Deputy Leader County Councillor Robert Simpson. "We need everyone in our areas to take this opportunity to have a direct and personal impact on where they live by voting for the projects that will really make a difference to the lives of the people in their neighbourhood.

He added: "We've had applications from some very worthy causes, but we need to know what the priorities are from our communities.  The county council is aiming to get the tax payer more and more involved in deciding on how to spend public money, and this scheme is another way that we're doing this."

"This is real community empowerment," continued Biddulph South and Endon County Councillor Christina Jebb. "The primary responsibility of county councillors has always been to represent the needs of their community when the county council makes decisions about public services.  This new scheme takes a big step towards helping us improve how we do this."

Caverswall County Councillor said: "It's a very exciting time. I'm proud to be offering my community the opportunity to work with me in improving yet another aspect of where we live. Together, we can really make a difference and generate a real sense of civic pride."

Staffordshire County Council is one of just a handful of councils across the UK that are putting the community in the driving seat of spending local budgets.

"If the pilot is successful, we may see more LMIS budgets across the county being spent this way," said the Deputy Leader. "This really will go a long way to making Staffordshire a better place to be."

You can register your vote online by going to www.staffordshire.gov.uk/yourcouncil/mycc  

Voting forms are also available at local libraries and community centres throughout the Stafford, Biddulph and Caverswall areas, or email communications@staffordshire.gov.uk .

The closing date to register your vote is Friday 31st October.

Last Modified: 30/09/2008 10:19:55
Back to top