Startforth Parish Council
Welcome
The Parish Council serves the village of Startforth, on the side of the River Tees which used to be in the North Riding of Yorkshire, but is now in County Durham.
There are just over 800 electors in the Parish Council area, which spans the A67 Bowes Road.
Welcome
We hope you find what you're looking for on this website — whether that's information about the parish councillors, what they do, how they spend the money they raise, what projects they're working on etc.
You'll find details of all Parish Council meetings, which are open to the public, and can see the agenda for forthcoming meetings and the minutes of previous meetings.
If there's something you'd like to know about the Council and can't find it here, then do please ask!
Telephone and email contact details for the Council appear at the bottom of the menu on every page of the website. Alternatively, contact details for each councillor are provided on the 'Parish Councillors' page.
Community Marquee
Startforth Parish Council has a marquee which is available for local groups to hire.
It is a traditional style 6m x 8m marquee with side walls, but comes with no flooring or furniture.
Handling the marquee is at very least a two-person job, but four is probably better!
If you're interested in booking the marquee for an event, or would like further details of the charges and terms and conditions, please contact the Clerk on tel. 01833 640893 or by email: clerk@startforthparishcouncil.gov.uk
Alternatively, the Conditions of Hire, which includes the charges details, can be accessed here.
Action Plan for 2024-2025
The Parish Council has agreed what it wants to work on and achieve in the current council year, which runs from April 2024 to March 2025.
The plan of work covers:
- The local environment
- Amenities and services
- Community Engagement and events
- administering the Parish Council
The full plan (4-page PDF) can be viewed and downloaded by clicking the button below.
Startforth Community Resilience and Emergency Plan
Whilst the Parish Council has no statutory responsibility to plan for or respond to emergencies, we recognise that preparing for one could help to reduce the impact that any such emergency might have on our community. At the same time we can support our residents, particularly our more vulnerable residents, to be more prepared for and resilient to emergencies.
The Startforth Community Resilience and Emergency Plan raises awareness of the risks our community might face and how to mitigate them and offers a plan of action for a coordinated response, if required. It also outlines how each of us can personally be resilient and prepared for an emergency.
The plan was developed by a Working Group of the Parish Council based on guidance produced by the Government and with advice from the Durham County Council’s Civil Contingencies Unit (CCU) and the Local Resilience Forum (LRF).
Of course, the emergency services and local authority will take the lead for responding to emergencies and 999 should always be called in the first instance. However, there may be circumstances when the Startforth Community Emergency Group are called upon to assist, or to activate the plan before the emergency services can respond.
The full plan (16-page PDF) can be viewed and downloaded by clicking the button below.
Statement about bullying, harassment or intimidation
We treat everyone with courtesy and respect and ask for the same in return. We ask that you treat your councillors and council staff courteously without violence, abuse or harassment.
Councillors and council staff have the right to carry out their civic duties and work without fear of being attacked or abused. Any behaviour whether that be verbal, physical or in writing, which causes either councillors or council staff to feel uncomfortable, embarrassed, or threatened, is totally unacceptable.
The zero tolerance policy includes abuse, aggression or threats made in person, over the telephone or in written communication, including on social media. The council considers threatening behaviour to be:
- Attempted or actual aggressive, or physical actions made towards any councillor or member of staff.
- The use of aggressive, or abusive language, (including raising of the voice, swearing, shouting or in writing) which threatens or intimidates councillors or council staff.
Trading Standards
Durham County Council's Trading Standards team has a new Facebook Page which will be used to share scam awareness posts, consumer protection campaigns and updates on the work the Trading Standards team is doing.
Visit the Trading Standards FacebookPage and see what you think.