Becoming a local Councillor is an extremely rewarding experience. It gives you the opportunity to get involved in, and support, your local community whilst having a real say in its future. You will be joining a great team of local people who are driven by a desire to make a difference and deliver the best possible local services.
Councillors play an important leadership role in our communities. We need passionate, motivated, community-minded local Conservatives to come forward to represent their area. Perhaps you are already involved in a local community or voluntary organisation and want to take the next step or you have an interest in local politics that you want to pursue. If you are motivated by wanting to improve your community for the better and being a voice for your neighbours, then become a Councillor!
We welcome applications from people from all walks of life, with lots of experience or none.
In Taunton and Wellington we have two tiers of local Government:
Somerset Council: Somerset Council is responsible for adult and children’s social care services, education and cultural services including libraries and museums, highways maintenance and public transport and regional and strategic infrastructure and planning (amongst other things!)
Taunton and Wellington Town Councils both elect political representatives. Town Councils are responsible for the civic life of the town from the organisation of local events to supporting our town centres, investment in local parks and play areas and grants to voluntary organisations (amongst other things!).
While you don’t need any necessary skills to become a Councillor, in order to be eligible to stand you must be:
- A British citizen, an eligible Commonwealth citizen or a citizen of any member state of the European Union and be resident in the UK.
- At least eighteen years old on the day you are nominated (April of the election year).
- Either on the electoral register for the council area in which you are seeking election
- Or have lived or worked in that council area for at least twelve months to the date of nomination (April of the election year) and the election.
Individuals who are not currently members of the Conservative Party will also need to join in order to stand as a Conservative candidate.
If you would like to know more about becoming a Councillor, we have answered some of the most frequently asked questions below. At the very bottom of this page is a downloadable booklet from the Conservative Councillors Association which we would highly recommend to anyone interested in taking this step. Or, for an informal chat, please call our office on 01278 423110 or email us [email protected].