Two new town councils to be set up in Cumbria from April 2015

The green light has been given for the establishment of two new town councils in Cumbria next April.

At a meeting last month, councillors at Copeland Borough Council backed plans for the creation of a town council for Whitehaven. The proposal had already received 75% support from those residents responding to a consultation.

The move follows similar support recently amongst councillors at Eden District Council for the setting up of a town council for Penrith. Two thirds of people in Penrith had backed the plans.

Elections for the two new town councils will be held in May next year.

According to the National Association of Local Councils (NALC), these developments mean that only Barrow and Carlisle would be left “without grassroots local democracy”.



Cllr Ken Browse, chairman of NALC, said: “I’m delighted Penrith and Whitehaven residents have voted so overwhelmingly for their own town councils, bringing power and decision making closer to home.



“This is a real shot in the arm for local democracy. And living proof of the case and appetite for devolution to our neighbourhoods, villages and towns as well as to the UK’s nations and cities.”

Cllr Browse also said that “dozens more communities up and down the country” were campaigning to set up a new parish or town council.