Public Notice: Parish Basic Allowance

PUBLIC NOTICE: PARISH BASIC ALLOWANCE

Issued under Regulation 25(6) of the Local Authorities (Members’ Allowance)(England) Regulation 2003 (“the act”)

At a Ramsgate Town Council meeting on the 2nd February 2022 the Council resolved to pay its members the Basic Parish Allowance of £600 per member and £1200 to the Chair of the Council.

The Parish Basic Allowance is not a salary. It is a figure, which is calculated to cover the expenses that are normally associated with the basic duties of being a local councillor. The purpose is also not to reimburse individual councillors for specific expenses (which are treated separately).

In making this decision the Council gave regard to the recommendations made by the East Kent Joint Parish Independent Remuneration Panel (EKJPIR) in the “Quadrennial Review of Town and Parish Council Members’ Allowances 2021-2025” and the National Association of Local Council’s Legal Topic Note 33 “Councillors’ Allowance”.

A copy of EKJPIR Quadrennial Review is available on the Town Council’s website for inspection by the public (as per Regulation 30 of “the act”). A printed copy may be requested at 10p per sheet.


At the end of the 2022/2023 financial year, the Council will publish in a conspicuous place (the notice board outside The Custom House and on the Council’s website) a notice stating the amount that it has paid in the year to each councillor in respect of the Parish Basic Allowance, and for any parish travelling and subsistence allowances. Regulation 32 of the act enables a member to elect in writing to forgo all or any part of their entitlement.

It was hoped by the Council that by offering the Parish Basic Allowance to elected members, it will help alleviate some of the difficulties that some members experience undertaking the required duties of the Council, and will set a precedent in Ramsgate (that has already been set elsewhere in Thanet) so that prospective councillors are not put off standing for election, because of concerns about the financial implications.

Written by:
Miss Laura Fidler,
Town Clerk & RFO