Positive thoughts on a very negative situation
Over the last 2/3 years an ever widening void between the self elected NPC members and the average non political village resident has opened up.
I am concerned that this has no real benefits for the village as a whole and I am very perplexed as to how the average village residents views seem to be in conflict and oppose to the NPC views and aims.
My understanding of a parish council is is that it usually consists of a body of village residents, who want to help run and improve a village.
A possible resolution of the current dire situation, would involve something that the current NPC are currently very bad at. Namely getting out and about and most importantly communicating with residents.
Which would involve LISTENING
Involve local people at some level, at this moment in time residents are made to feel like they get in the way of Parish council decisions and are told that they repeatedly ask the NPC same boring questions.
It would be useful for NPC members to ask themselves why they keep getting asked the same questions, perhaps the NPC don’t resolve or act on enough genuine resident based concerns.
Please don’t set up another committee, working group etc., or have a tea and cake meeting in the village hall.
As safe and easy options as they are, village history has shown them to be a poor tool for communicating and ineffective in creating cohesive relationships, although there should be no big differences between the average residents views wishes and a NPC members.
I believe that as a group the NPC has lost it’s way and desperately need to change their working practices and more importantly adopt a can do attitude and thinking about possible actions from a positive can do point of view, instead the current long winded problem finding bureaucratic and possible litigation fearing current model.
A hard but maybe useful task, could be for each NPC member to do a self audit of what they have achieved and what motivates them to be part of the Parish council. Continuing on the communication theme this could be part of a new profile section that could be added to this web site.
Please do not dismiss this as another negative input, it is written with a view to try help resolve the current situation.
Finally. If you are unsure if this can happen, spend an afternoon travelling round local East Riding villages looking what they have achieved. Or read other local villages web pages and PC minutes and agenda's etc
Regards BB
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Comments
throwing brix
so why don't you stand on the Council?
Hi jack, Thanks for
Hi jack,
Thanks for reading my post . Good point, but how do you know I am not already ?
BB
Ps Perhaps your title throwing bricks, is a little negative !
Blowing in the wind
Wortnep makes some very interesting and challenging ( for the NPC ) points. Obviously well thought out.
There is a vacancy on the NPC, but one new person is not likely to create any change to the existing council and is likely to find it very frustrating.
Wortnep has hit the nail on the head though - COMMUNICATION ! Very few read this website, OK minutes on notice boards etc, but how many pass by them, and of course an odd news letter.
Last year there was a spate of burglaries in the village, it seemed to be months before the NPC raised the issue.
We live in the electronic age now, why not collect all the residents email addresses ( most will have them ) and send out regular emails?
Walking the dog is a very good way to meet and talk to people, most raise the same issues over and over again and complain that the NPC do nothing ( apart from costly playgrounds ).
Wortnep is correct, other NPCs seem to have a more positive attitude and achieve more, with less. So perhaps THEY do listen!
And perhaps the NPC should also reply to emails, I've not had a reply to my latest email, not even an acknowledgement!
Yes, many residents may not be sufficiently motivated to attend NPC meetings, but it is up to NPC members to find ways to engage them. Have you any ideas Jack?