Parish council raises concerns over service devolution plans

Parish councils are being consulted on plans that could see them take on responsibility for some local services currently delivered by Wiltshire Council.  

Wiltshire Council is reviewing its Service Devolution and Asset Transfer (SDAT) policy, which sets out how town and parish councils could choose to take on extra services and assets such as parks, cemeteries and open spaces. 

Bratton Parish Council has raised concerns about the potential impact on its finances and ability to deliver additional services. 

It said taking on further responsibilities would be “most detrimental to the residents of Bratton Parish”. 

At a recent area board meeting, parish council chair Cllr Keith Rayward said the idea would place significant pressure on the council. 

“I think it would be an absolute disaster. We were absolutely horrified at the concept,” he said. 

The parish council currently employs one member of staff, the parish clerk, and said any increase in responsibilities would likely require additional staffing and higher costs, which would be reflected in the parish precept paid by residents. 

In its response to Wiltshire Council, the parish council warned it could require a 50 per cent increase in the precept if it were to take on additional duties. 

It said, “We submit that such devolution of responsibility would necessitate a 50% uplift in parish precept to fund the additional workload on the parish clerk – though we would question where the skilled specialist resource will be found if this is widely rolled out. 

“Wiltshire Council, through the breadth of its responsibilities, enjoys considerable economies of scale. It can therefore afford to have resources knowledgeable in such matters as legal, environmental and construction regulations. It is also in a good position to negotiate beneficial terms for contracted services. 

“Bratton Parish Council clearly lacks this knowledge base, and would have to contract out where such advice is required. Its requirements are also too small to be able to obtain the best deals for contracted-out services. 

“We therefore submit that there would be a considerable, but as yet unmeasured, additional cost should Bratton parish have to take on the management of such devolved service.” 

Wiltshire Council says it is seeking views from town and parish councils as part of the ongoing review and that any transfer of services would be agreed on a case-by-case basis.