Holne Parish Council is an elected body of Parishioners who live within the boundary of the Parish or within a 3mile radius of this.
Councillors are elected every 4 years. Elections have just taken place and the present members of the Council are listed below. Committees will be changed after the June meeting.
Holne Parish council is made up of seven councillors and a clerk who is appointed by the council. She or he takes the minutes of the meetings, produces the Agenda for meetings, undertakes the Council's correspondence, and takes care in accounting for the finances of the council. The Council can also delegate certain tasks and minor expenditure to the clerk.
The Council's finances are paid for out of the council tax levied by District
Council. This money is used to pay the clerk's wages and to fund either projects
created by the Council or payments of things such as the Poppy Wreath and
grant aids such as the Churchyard maintenance and Village Hall maintenance.
Such projects are limited to those where Parish Councils can spend money on
matters covered by powers given to them by various acts of Parliament, in
particular the Local Government Act 1972. The yearly finances are budgeted
for by the Finance committee which in Holne's case is usually two councillors
appointed by the Council to sit and consider the next year’s expenditure
in November or December each year and then approved by the full Council. All
the financial records are audited by the Audit Commission through an "Annual
Return" completed and authorised by the Council. All these records are
available for parishioners to view by arrangement throughout the year and
in particular for a statutory period before the Audit.
Holne is peculiar in the fact that it is within the boundary of the Dartmoor National Park and so all its planning matters are dealt with by the Development Control officers and members at the Authority's headquarters at Bovey Tracey. South Hams District Council at Totnes deal with some issues arising within the Parish (for instance waste collection and housing, aswell as managing Holne's playground equipment and paying a parish lengthsman). The County Council's Highways Dept deals with most aspects of the infrastructure of our roads and with other areas such as some of the rural transport.
Holne Parish Council meets on the first Wednesday each month throughout the
year except in August dealing with such issues as planning applications, road
problems, ecology areas of the village, footpaths and the playground. It is
also consulted by District and County Councils along with central Government
on certain matters (recent consultations have included those on the County
Structure Plan, the Dartmoor National Park Local Plan, the Rights of Way Improvement
Plan.) In addition to the regular monthly meetings and Annual Parish Meeting
is hosted by the Parish Council when parishioners may make and vote on resolutions
which the Parish Council must then consider at its regular meetings. Occasionally
special meetings are held to discuss certain issues, and meetings to discuss
planning applications may have to be held in between regular monthly meetings.
All such meetings are open to the public and should be advertised as such.
Meetings are held in the Village Hall. Before each meeting members of the public present may make comment or request help and information from the Council. Also on the occasion of a planning application the applicant may well attend and explain their application to the council and members of the general public. This is the best time to voice an opinion to the Council though public may approach any council member at any time, and keep up to date with issues and information by reading the notice board on the Village Hall outside wall.
Your villages Parish Councillors are as follows
| Position | Name | Telephone | |
| Chair | Paul Arrowsmith | 01364 631361 | |
| Vice Chair | Belinda Owen | 631200 | |
| Finance |
Paul Arrowsmith, Cynthia Irish,
Belinda Owen |
631361 631184 |
|
| Planning Committee | Belinda Owen Gill Simpson Cynthia Irish Liz Ross |
631344 631146 |
|
| Village Hall Management Committee | Belinda Owen Gill Simpson |
||
| Affordable Housing Working Party |
Paul Arrowsmith,, Belinda Owen,
Gill Simpson Liz Ross |
|
|
| Member | Ru Roberts | 631159 | |
| Member | Richard Copus
|
631212 |
Clerk to the Council:
Karen Gilbert, Jolly Lane Cottage, Hexworthy, Yelverton, Plymouth, Devon