Congleton’s traditional Annual Town Meeting will be held in Congleton Town Hall on the evening of Thursday 9 May, but in a change from tradition, local people are also invited to call in during the day between 11am and 5pm to view the displays from local groups and organisations and speak with a Councillor or member of staff.
Doors for the main event open at 6.30pm and the meeting will start at 7pm. This is not a council meeting but an opportunity for the people of Congleton to make comments or ask questions about any aspect of town life. The meeting must be held every year in the town before June 1.
The meeting will be chaired by the current Town Mayor, Cllr Rob Moreton, who will open the meeting with a summary of the past year. A new Town Mayor will be elected on the 16 May.
At the Annual Town meeting there will be short presentations on:
- Congleton’s Neighbourhood Plan
- Totally Locally Congleton
- A Greener Congleton
- Equal Access in Congleton
- Impact of Local Authority Funding on Congleton
The presentations will be followed by a question and answer session on the items for discussion, and then an open session where anyone present can ask questions and raise issues that concern Congleton. Questions submitted in advance will be dealt with first. To submit a question or comment email info@congleton-tc.gov.uk, or post/deliver to Congleton Town Hall, High Street, CW12 1BN or telephone 01260 270350 ext 1. Please give your name, address and contact details, specifying if you prefer to ask your question in person or have it read out. Questions can be asked on the night, but the submitted questions will be taken first. Questions may need to be limited to fit with the available time and the meeting is expected to close at 8.30pm.
Chief Officer, David McGifford said: “The Annual Town Meeting is a great chance for local people to get together and raise questions about issues affecting the town. It is not a council meeting and councillors have the same rights as attending members of the public. Issues raised in the Annual Meeting will be picked up by the council or forwarded to the appropriate organisation for consideration. I hope that many Congleton residents and representatives from local organisations will take the time to attend. To give more people more opportunity to look at the information on display for the Annual Town Meeting, the Main Hall will be open from 11am – 5pm.”
