Local Council Award Scheme
Royal Wootton Bassett Town Council has been recognised as an exemplar for best practice having achieved the Quality Gold Award in the Local Council Award Scheme. Of the 10,000 Town and Parish Councils representing millions of people throughout England, your Town Council has become only the 47th to achieve this level of award.
The Local Council Award Scheme was established in 2014 by Her Majesty’s Government in partnership with the National Association of Local Councils and the Society of Local Council Clerks. The scheme was designed to provide a model framework in which local councils are benchmarked for their work using standardised criteria set by the Improvement and Development Board. The awards recognise those who meet and surpass these expectations after rigorous and thorough peer review. All councils are expected to reach the minimum requirements of the Foundation award.
The Accreditation Panel, an external group of Councillors, Clerks and independent co-ordinators assess each application against the criteria, and if met, will award the following:
- Foundation Award – A council that meets the minimum standards set by HM Government to deliver effectively to their communities. A benchmark for continued development and improvement. It is the Government’s aspiration that all Local Councils reach this award as a minimum standard.
- Quality Award – A council that achieves good practice in governance, community engagement and improvement. A council performing above and beyond legal obligations, while meeting all requirements of the Foundation Award.
- Quality Gold Award – A council at the forefront of best practice and achieves excellence in governance, community leadership and performance management, while constantly seeking opportunities to improve at the cutting edge of their sector. The council must also meet the full criteria for both the Foundation and Quality Awards.
The Accreditation Panel cited with special commendation our Community Engagement, Neighbourhood Planning, Corporate Governance and Financial Management. We’re here to serve you, our community, and work hard to maintain our social media, quarterly Bulletins, Annual Reports and Safe Spaces for all to access. We also find great pleasure in running the weekly market on behalf of the Town Hall Trust and organising the Christmas Lights Event, South West in Bloom and the Civic Awards among many more local events. We strive for best practice in everything we do, and all details of how we operate can be found on our new website launched this September.
The full criteria of what Royal Wootton Bassett Town Council has achieved can be found in the Local Council Award Scheme Guidance on the NALC website.