Dear Member,
First, I would like to send all of you my best wishes for the New Year.
This year going to be an interesting one for our sector with far more extensive changes to local government coming a great deal faster than we expected. We had already identified Devolution as a key topic for our next Annual Conference but with the publication of the Devolution White Paper it looks as though it will be an on-going issue throughout 2025.
Currently, DALC is missing a staff member who is taking a period of sick leave. We are looking forward to their return later in the new year. Councils may be concerned that DALC’s services will be reduced as a result. Moreover, many of you will have a lot of questions about proposed reorganisation of local government in Devon and what it will mean for town and parish councils. I can assure you all that DALC staff and the Board have plans in place that maintain our usual services of advice, information and training. One of the benefits of putting resources into an additional Member Services officer is a more resilient staffing structure so there will be no interruption to our core services.
One of the benefits of working more closely with the principal and district councils, is that we have improved relationships and channels of communication. As a result, we have made some progress in establishing the value of towns and parishes and the contribution they make to their communities. This gives me confidence that DALC will be able to contribute to the discussions on reorganisation and that the views of our sector will be taken seriously. We will keep members informed about the devolution process and the issues around it as it becomes available. We will use our resources as best we can to enable wide discussion within our sector and will represent the views of members as often and as robustly as opportunities allow.
We have a particular chance right now to advocate for the interests of our communities and DALC is here to support you in doing it. I look forward to working with you all in 2025.
Best wishes,
Liz Brookes-Hocking, Chair of DALC’s Board of Directors