The boundary of Bruton Town Council’s area
Bruton Town Council is one of the three councils serving Bruton, Wyke Champflower and Redlynch residents. This can lead to a great deal of confusion when people simply refer to “The Council”!
The majority of powers and services, and the Council Tax we pay, is the responsibility of either Somerset County Council (SCC) or South Somerset District Council (SSDC).
Somerset County Council, based in Taunton, is the largest authority and is responsible for schools, roads, children’s services and libraries, among others things. South Somerset District Council, based in Yeovil, is responsible for a wide range of activities including planning, licensing, environmental health and many leisure facilities. Waste collections are run by Somerset Waste Partnership on behalf of SSDC and SCC.
Bruton Town Council has the smallest budget and most restricted remit of the three, but it is also the most local, focussed entirely on the needs of Bruton parish. The key responsibilities for Bruton Town Council include:
- We are lease holders of Jubilee Park
- We give a local view of all planning applications in the area to SSDC
- We fund the town community office
- We take the lead in transport planning, in particular road safety
- We give grants to local organisations and events, including the Packhorse Fair and Spiral of Light
- We take the lead in providing parking facilities in the town
- We organise and fund the toilet access scheme
- We maintain a number of public spaces, including the Riverside Walk
- We maintain children’s play facilities in the town
- We provide allotments
- We are the burial authority, running the town cemetery on Frome Road
- We maintain St Mary’s churchyard
- We provide litter bins (emptied by Somerset Waste Partrnership), street furniture, grit bins and bus shelters
- We work with other local organisations to devise a plan for Bruton’s growth and development as an excellent place to live, and to implement it
Much of the work of the Council is done through its committees, which you can find out about here.
If you want to know more about the role of town councils in general, you may find this interesting.
