Wedmore Parish Clerk Update –
Hello Friends!
As we reach the end of the financial year, it is a good time to reflect on what your Parish Council does. Much of the work is steady rather than dramatic, keeping things running, looking after shared spaces and ensuring public money is properly managed. It may not always be visible, but it supports many of the things we rely on day to day.
The budget for 2026/27 was agreed at the end of last year, and the total net budget is £193,400, funded mainly through a parish precept of £151,050. That contribution maintains the cemetery, public toilets, allotments, playgrounds, bins and other parish assets. It supports community events and small grants, covers insurance, audit and staffing, and allows us to plan ahead for elections and maintenance rather than reacting when something fails. We are required to set a balanced budget, approve spending in open meetings, keep proper accounts and undergo annual audit. Those safeguards protect parish funds and ensure transparency. Highway repairs, planning decisions, social care, schools and policing sit with Somerset Council or other statutory bodies. We are consulted and represent Parish views, but we do not make those final decisions.
At the Full Council meeting on 18 February, councillors approved payments totalling £9,883.33; adopted a new Events Support and Community Events Protocol; awarded a £375 grant to the Wedmore Health and Wellbeing Group; and agreed to seek further professional advice regarding the Panborough Drain. We are looking
forward to the presentation of the Henry Butt Trophy Award on Thursday, 16 April, recognising outstanding service to the community. We also have a small number of allotment plots available: Full plots – £50 per year, and Half and quarter plots – £25 per year. If you are interested, please contact the Parish Office.
We are fortunate to live in a parish where people care about shared spaces, about local events and about one another. Parish government only works because the parish itself works. Whether that is nominating someone for an award, taking on an allotment, 1 attending a meeting or simply raising an issue in good faith, it all plays a part.
The Parish Council’s role is to steward what we share, manage public funds carefully and make decisions in the open. It is a corporate body with legal responsibilities, but it is made up of local people who give their time to serve the parish. Councillors and Officers are your neighbours. They live here, raise families here and care about the
same issues you do.
Decisions are not made in isolation; they are made by people who are part of Wedmore. As we move into a new financial year, the focus remains simple: steady stewardship, practical action and doing our part for the community we are all proud to belong to.
Lindsey Baker, Clerk, Wedmore Parish Council