Shape your local community
Surrey’s Local Government Reorganisation means that there will no longer be separate Mole Valley District and Surrey County Councils. While this presents potential positive benefits, it also risks leaving communities in Dorking and Horley without a local team focused on the issues specific to the town and the immediate surrounding communities.
Currently, many villages across Surrey already benefit from parish councils, which act as a strong advocate for residents on local priorities. However, many areas in the Dorking and Horley constituency remain unparished
That’s why a Community Governance Review is now underway, giving local people the chance to shape the future of how our towns and communities are represented. It contains three options:
Create a new town council or several parish councils across the area
Changes to your current town or parish council
No change
I’m personally in favour of a town council for several reasons:
It gives residents a stronger and clearer voice on local issues unique to your community – whether that’s about town centre regeneration, youth services, parks and playgrounds, or the future of local community facilities.
Town council funding and powers are clearly defined in law, giving residents greater transparency, certainty and control than alternatives.
Local decision-making would bring the chance for communities to directly shape the services they value, and how they are paid for.
A town or parish council could help safeguard community assets and green spaces from being sold off to help cover the financial challenges facing Surrey.
If there are no town (or multiple parish) councils for the town area, this will place the area in a fundamentally different (and in my view, negative) position compared to those areas that already have parish councils.