Have Your Say on Potential Town Council for Market Harborough

People in Market Harborough are being encouraged to have their say on whether the town should have its own council.

A public consultation has been launched following a petition signed by more than 1,800 residents calling for the move.

Supporters believe a town council would strengthen local representation, particularly with changes to local government structures on the horizon.

Campaigners presented a petition to Cllr Phil Knowles, leader of the council

Cllr Paul Beadle, Cabinet lead for Corporate and Wellbeing, said: “This is an important and exciting opportunity for residents living in Market Harborough to have their say and help shape the future of representation where they live. What you say genuinely helps shape what we decide to do.

“We want to ensure community governance continues to be robust, representative of the locality and able to meet future challenges.”

The idea of creating a town council was supported by the district council’s cabinet in July last year, however councillors decided not to pursue it at a full council meeting in October.

A campaign was then mounted by the town’s four Neighbourhood Forums, which gathered the backing of 7.5% of local residents — the legal threshold required to trigger a Community Governance Review by Harborough District Council.

As part of the review process, Harborough District Council is now consulting residents and will also hold a referendum in April to help gauge public opinion on the proposal.

Have your say HERE

Paper consultation forms can be collected from the concierge desk in The Symington Building.