As many of you will be aware, the
government has given the go-ahead for
major changes to local government in
Wiltshire. Five councils (1 county
and 4 district) will be replaced by
just one council covering the whole of
Wiltshire.
This will save Wiltshire taxpayers
£18million each year by 2012, as well
as providing more effective, easy to
access services and increased
opportunities for local decision making
and community involvement.
The aim is to bring simplicity, clarity
and value for money - to strip away
layers of red tape and get the services
and decision making closer to the
people.
The new council will work hard on
keeping local government local with a
raft of measures. New Community Boards
will enable local people to play a
bigger role in planning services best
for their own community, and Parish and
Town councils will have a bigger part
in decision making.
One of the new authority's first jobs
will be to review all central services
to make sure they are cost effective.
And in order to ensure the new council
keeps its promises, it has pledged to
create an independent Citizens Panel as
a public watchdog to oversee the work.
Many countywide organisations, such as
Wiltshire Primary Care Trust, Wiltshire
Probation and the Wessex Association of
Chambers of Commerce, have welcomed the
prospect of working with one authority
that mirrors their own Wiltshire wide
boundaries.
For full details of the bid, the
transition plan and a set of the most
frequently asked questions, (together
with answers!) go to
www.onecouncilforwiltshire.co.uk.
click here to register your interest in participating in the community
