As we go about our daily lives, many of the local services and infrastructure we rely upon are rightly controlled and determined by local authorities, run by local councillors through devolved powers from the national Government in Westminster. Every four years, we as local residents get to choose how those services are run and who runs them for us. Our next opportunity is on 4th May.
All 56 seats across 30 wards are up for election on South Kesteven District Council, with contests in 26 wards.
Since my own election in 2019, I have been fortunate to build an excellent and constructive relationship with many of our councillors, forming an effective partnership to champion our area and secure more support from the national government.
Councillors are almost uniquely placed to give back to serve our community, and good local councillors often utilise their local knowledge alongside significant amounts of energy, passion, and hard work to make a real difference to our everyday lives.
We are fortunate to have many excellent elected representatives across all levels of our local government, including parish, district, and county councils. Our councillors are entrusted by us with significant and wide-ranging responsibilities including local education, social care and housing, waste collection, local infrastructure, planning applications, and leisure and recreation.
Local councils have also proven to be an effective way for the national government to direct central funding to local communities, making use of their detailed local knowledge. Most recently, our local councils distributed almost £11 million of targeted central government funding to provide extra support for the most vulnerable households with the cost of living for example, and of course many more millions for people and businesses during the COVID pandemic.
Finally, for the first time, you must provide a form of photo identification in order to cast your vote. This measure, which is new to England, but is long-standing in Northern Ireland and most western democracies, is essential to create an electoral system, which the public can be confident is secure. It cannot make sense that you require ID to pick-up a parcel from the post office, yet not to vote to decide who governs our area.
Our councillors are a vital part of our democracy, and our community, so that is why I hope that whichever way you wish to vote, you do make your voice heard by voting. Too many don’t, in fact at the last 2019 SKDC elections only 29% of people did so. If you want your voice to be heard, please do vote.
