Our Parish Council has 12 elected councillors with elections being held for the whole council every 4 years. The next election being May 2023. Six councillors represent the Barwick Ward and six represent the Scholes Ward. Their contact details can be found under the ‘Elected Representatives’ tab on this website.
The Parish Council is charged with looking after the best interests of the villages and is involved with planning applications, street lighting, maintaining public areas such as Hall Tower Field, Scholes Lodge Field and assisting community groups, as well as influencing county, regional and Government decisions that affect the area. Although operational responsibility for crime control lies with the police, the Parish Council monitors events closely through monthly crime reports and works with the police to ensure that the community is a safe and pleasant place in which to live. A separate committee of the council is charged with reviewing planning applications and making recommendations to Leeds City Council Planning Department regarding their progression. Current planning applications can be viewed on the Leeds City Council website or under the Planning tab on this site.
Other committees look after Finance, Allotments, Scholes Lodge Field, Scholes Sports Pavilion and The Peace Flame.
Local clubs and associations are financially independent of the Parish Council and manage their own affairs. However, where appropriate the council will support these groups with financial grants and logistical support to enable and assist these community groups to flourish. A parish council is a civil local authority found in England and is the lowest, or first, tier of local government. They are elected corporate bodies, have variable tax raising powers, and are responsible for areas known as civil parishes, serving in total 16 million people. A parish council serving a town may be called a town council, and a parish council serving a city is styled a city council; these bodies have the same powers, duties and status as a parish council
