Wotton Town Council Meeting

18th May 2026

My informal notes and personal commentary from Monday's Town Council meeting.

I forgot to mention the splendid new railings at School Road in the meeting. A councillor observed that the fencing here needed replacement timbers at the January meeting. This was reported using the Fix My Street app—and bingo! This is the result.

Welcome & Elections

Cllr Lesley Hewish was back in the chair, recovering well and thanking Cllr Rich Halpin for holding fort during her absence. Cllr Hewish was re-elected as Mayor, and Cllr Tucker stood aside to allow Cllr Rich Halpin to stand unopposed as Deputy. Cllr Tucker thought it would be unfair to stand against Rich as he's done such a good job over the last few months.

Community Organisation Presentations

Under the Edge Arts (UTEA)

Mark Lovell, a trustee and finance/governance lead at Under the Edge Arts (in post for one year), gave an overview. UTEA is a charity benefiting Wotton, running approximately 467 events annually (about 10 per week), including live music, blues and jazz jams, and three theatrical productions per year. Workshops are also successful—sewing, knitting, art classes, dance, poetry, and more.

Key figures:

• Footfall: 11,100 annually
• 40% from outside Wotton
• 7,000 daytime visitors who may also eat, drink, and shop locally

The organisation is run primarily by volunteers with some paid staff, and they also offer banking and administrative support for other small organisations.

Challenges include marketing and advertising to attract visitors, tight budgets, ongoing maintenance work, and re-energising volunteers. They're seeking a secure long-term lease to access larger funding opportunities, with several assessments due this year. There's also a push to secure more individual giving through small donations.

(I didn't receive a handout, so apologies if I've missed anything.)

Wotton Pool

Steve Vaslet, Chair of Trustees at Wotton Pool, presented. He's taken over from Alan George, who had been the public face of the pool for many years. Steve doesn't intend to change the winning formula.

The pool manages numerous risks, including buried infrastructure and a roof with fragile sections that's been in place for 25 years (£125k to replace if the worst happens). They've recently been supporting Stroud Town Council regarding the Lido, which may follow a similar community ownership path.

Opening Hours: Lifeguards are salaried, with Saturday opening at 9am and Sunday at 10am. They avoid running too late due to nearby residents.

Public Forum

Sue Hunt from Wotton-in-Bloom announced that flower baskets go up on the 21st (sold out). The Wotton Lions are helping with installation starting at 8:30am. Sue also thanked the Lions for organising last Sunday's litter pick, which collected 30 bags of weeds and moss.

Correspondence & Staff Updates

Correspondence received from our MP regarding ongoing Westridge Wood Forestry Works and complaints from members of the public. I've previously reported on this here, with formal complaints lodged since that last update.

Resignation Note: Andy, a long standing member of staff, is leaving on 31st May. Over his 7 years at the Council, he's made a great contribution to improving the town, Council, and Town Trust's facilities and buildings.

No questions were raised regarding the SDC Councillors' Report, and I had nothing to add. Cllr Cohen would field questions later (she has other parishes to visit).

Charter Adoption

The Council agreed to adopt the Stroud District Council & Town & Parish Councils Charter. Co-produced with a working group of Parish and Town Councils in 2022, circulated for adoption in 2023, and reviewed in 2024, Wotton becomes the 44th of 52 Parish Councils to adopt the charter.

It was noted that the Town Council has over 100 policies/procedures requiring review. Recommendations, amendments, and comments will be necessary.

Committees & Working Groups

The Terms of Reference for Committees and Working Groups were discussed. The clerk explained that a consultant is analysing councillor and staff responses to a recent survey (including public and school responses). Workshops with consultants will follow, feeding into budget setting and the five-year plan. This work will inform which committees and working groups to prioritise, providing a solid evidence base for future planning. Approved.

Committee allocations followed:

• Planning Committee
• Remembrance Parade Working Group
• Allotments Working Group
• Public Rights of Way (PROW) Working Group
• Town Regeneration and Events Working Group
• Commemoration Working Group
• Finance and Special Purposes Committee

This caused an extended debate following a disagreement at last month's meeting. It had been suggested that the situation could be resolved by amending the Finance and Special Purposes Committee's terms of reference—but this wasn't mentioned in the previous business item. One long-standing councillor laughed out loud at the predicament (presumably wondering why the business items were in this order). Cllr Tucker forfeited his position to allow others to stand on this committee.

Additional committees:

• Youth Services Committee
• Strategic Planning Working Group
• Car Park Working Group
• Climate Change Working Group
• Solar Panel Working Group
• Old Town Toilets Working Group
• Local Government Reorganisation Working Group
• Workshop Working Group

Appointments were made to: Wotton & District Recreation Trust, Beaumont-le-Roger Society, Wotton-under-Edge General Charities, Wotton-under-Edge Combined Charities, Wotton Community Sports Foundation, Snow Warden, Water Course Warden, Wotton Area Climate Action Network, Rural Services Network, Gloucestershire Market Towns Forum, Synwell Playing Fields Committee, Wotton-under-Edge Swimming Pool, Wotton in Bloom, Under The Edge Arts, Greenway Group, and Wotton Walking Festival.

Financial Items

Various other items of business were covered, including bank transfers. £300k of free reserves were mentioned, and a new risk management template was approved.

Funding Grants

Wotton Rovers Football Club

A representative from Wotton Rovers Football Club sought £1k. In 1884, Wotton Rovers played a team called the Black Arabs—it was a 6-0 win. The Black Arabs went on to become Bristol Rovers FC. The representative doesn't believe they've ever applied to the Town Council for funding before.

Senior teams want to cut the pitch properly rather than the current mowing arrangement. They need to buy a 'new' second-hand mower costing £2k. Limited income comes from a weekly lottery (approximately £3k per annum), barely covering running costs. Sponsorship covers kits, leaving little for operations. This year shows a £1.5k loss, though some years show a surplus.

Councillors discussed and agreed to grant £2k, taken from contingency or free reserves. The representative seemed very pleased and thanked the council.

Wotton Silver Band

The Wotton Silver Band also sought support. Following their success in the Regional Brass Band Finals in March, the band is seeking help to fund their trip to York, where they'll represent the West of England and Wotton-under-Edge in the National Championships.

They're aiming to raise £5k but would be grateful for anything. This is outside the normal grant schedule, but £3,500 was suggested and approved. They also have a crowdfunding campaign on Just Giving—donate if you're able.

GCC Councillor Report

(Out of order)
GCC Cllr Linda Cohen arrived and fielded questions on her report:

• How GCC employees get nominated for awards mentioned in the report: Talk to Linda, and she can nominate
• How 20mph limits are scrutinised: Linda puts forward suggestions based on constituent concerns, then GCC applies criteria.

(back to agenda)

Various contracts were approved. The budget for 2026/27 was noted, and various May accounts were approved for payment.

Projects Update

Solar Panel Working Group

Reported receiving a quote from surveyors for charges covering surveys of flat and pitched roofs and plans. They'll obtain two more quotes (three total) to consider at a future meeting. There's a push for solar to reduce emissions and dependency on the volatility of fossil fuel prices amid global uncertainty.

Town Hall & Chipping Hall Repairs

Verification certificate approved. Two councillors toured the Town Hall—the rear of the building looks amazing with paint removed from the pillars. Work is progressing well.

Symn Lane Car Park

Verbal update from Cllr Tucker. A document was circulated among councillors, with things constantly being added. Three main issues outstanding:

1. Drainage (developer to provide drawings)
2. Proof of CBR tests to confirm build quality
3. Various miscellaneous items (noticeboards already purchased, lighting fuse box designed by ex-Cllr Claydon for electrical contractors to build, CCTV connection)

Developer must rearrange kerbstones for maximum bay capacity. Landscape and ecology need revisiting. Some work for highways (double yellow lines, etc.). Several items needed from the developer to ensure acceptable standards. Part of the car park has been tarmacked but should be paved for the surface water/oil drainage to work. Proof of drainage from the retaining walls (photos taken). Coping stones on top of walls need addressing, plus health & safety walls/barriers. Communication with the developer goes through Planning; Stripe can speak to the project manager.

Play Gloucestershire

Quarterly report presented. General feeling is that it's really well received—kids enjoy it. One child quoted: "Best day ever."

Closing

The meeting closed soon after for Town Trust business.

As always, if you have any questions or just want a chat, I'm easily contactable—phone numbers and email on my home page. Use my contact info if you spot errors or if I've got something completely wrong!

I'm not using Facebook much anymore, but feel free to link and share these reports using whatever social media you fancy.

You can also find me on the Fediverse (social media without adverts, algorithms, or outrage) here: https://stroud.social/eco-g. I've created another BlueSky account as my previous one was suspended on 'authenticity' grounds.

PS. I'm no fan of US Big Tech and would like them taxed out of existence.