Annual Town’s Meeting

All Parish and Town Councils throughout England are required by law to hold an Annual Town’s / Parish Meeting. The Annual Town’s /Parish Meeting is a meeting of all the local government electors for the Parish. It is not a Meeting of the Parish Council.

Members of the public (including the press) are welcome at the meeting but the only persons entitled to speak and vote are the persons registered as local government electors for the parish.

Purpose of the Annual Parish Meeting

The purpose of the meeting is so that the Council can explain what it has been doing over the last year and is an excellent opportunity for electors to have their say on anything they consider is important to the people of the Town.

The Mayor will read the Chard Town Council Annual Report and there will be a Police Report and update.

Any registered elector may ask questions of the Council, which will usually be answered by the Mayor, the Clerk to the Council, or a designated Councillor.

An elector may also make suggestions and comment on anything pertinent to the people of Chard. This is very much welcomed and is the whole purpose of the meeting.

As always at the Annual Parish Meeting the Mayor will be honoured to give out the Outstanding Citizen’s Awards to local residents of Chard who have contributed to the town in some outstanding way.

Annual Town’s Meeting 2026

This years Annual Town’s Meeting took place on Monday 27th April.

The Mayor, Cllr Victoria Bates who chaired the meeting was delighted to be able to award recognition to many groups and individuals who have contributed to the town in a positive and impactful way in the previous year.

Please see a selection of images below, both of the presentation of awards and community grants. Many of our grant recipients attended the meeting and gave meeting attendees an oral update on the significant difference the grant money has made to their respective organisations.

A Service Level Agreement for the Hive Young People’s Centre was discussed and signed by its Directors.

Attendees received a presentation from the Chief Executive & Town Clerk on KINDChard – a Knowledge Information Network Directly that has grown out of the Chard Community Plan and is soon to be launched.