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Vote for Romsley Together
on May 7th for a new Parish Council
www.romsley-together.co.uk
On May 7th the Romsley Parish Council elections will be taking place. These elections
are of real importance to the future of our community and we would ask you to take
just a few minutes to read this leaflet as well as to participate in the vote on May 7th.
With all the coverage of the General Election it is easy to overlook the importance of the Parish Council elections, but
the Parish Council is the only tier of Government that exclusively represents the 1290 residents of Romsley. It truly is
our community’s collective voice, there to defend and fight for the very best interests of our parish and our community.
Romsley Together has been formed by a group of parish residents who are passionate about Romsley and its future.
None of us has been involved in the Parish Council or wider politics before and we have no hidden agendas or axes to
grind. We are united in our desire to protect our parish, to develop a vibrant community and to improve our public
services and amenities. We want to create a transparent, effective and representative Parish Council that is visible
and accountable to you.
This leaflet contains a brief outline of our election pledges and introduces our candidates to you. In addition you can
Google Romsley Together or visit www.romsley-together.co.uk where there is more comprehensive detail about
our election pledges and candidates as well as information on the many important responsibilities of your Parish Council.
Yes to a transparent and consultative Parish Council - We will be clear and open about the decisions we make
and actively seek to understand and reflect the views of everyone in the Parish through the use of on-line referendum on a new
Parish website. We will also develop a comprehensive Parish plan that details the services and improvements in the next 5 years.
Yes to a strong and unified voice for Romsley - We will stand up to the County and District councils to defend our
amenities and public services from further austerity cuts. We will strive to achieve the very best deal we can get for Romsley.
Yes to a Parish Council that is accountable for its spend - We will maximise the value we obtain from every
pound of your money and publish open and detailed accounts every 6 months for each line of income and item of spend.
Yes to improving our roads -
We will work with the Worcestershire Safer Roads
Partnership, the Local Authorities and the Police to improve road safety across the Parish. We
will introduce appropriate traffic calming measures; we will lobby for a proper crossing by the
school and work collaboratively to resolve the parking issues at the shops.
Yes to a safe community - We will work with West Mercia Police to get visible and
effective Policing across the Parish; we will also look to restart our neighbourhood watch .
Yes to a Parish Council that treats planning and development seriously We will approach all planning matters in a fair and transparent way. We will talk to all parties
who are affected by planning proposals and we will represent the contents of this
consultation to the relevant planning authorities with a strong and unified voice.
Yes to a diverse and appropriate range of community events - We will
Voting in the Parish
Council elections Voting for the Parish Council
will be taking place at the same
time and location as polling for
the General Election.
You will be asked to vote for
7 different candidates from a
list of 11. The 7 candidates
receiving the most votes will
form the Parish Council.
hold an open dialogue with everyone in the Parish about the types of public events you want to Romsley Together need at
see held. All proceeds from these events will be distributed to community causes in our Parish. least 4 candidates to be elected
to achieve a majority on the
Yes to supporting young people, families and older citizens - We will do Parish Council and allow us to
all we can to support our school, our nurseries, our child minders, our carers as well as those deliver our election pledges.
clubs and societies dedicated to our young people and our older citizens. We will establish a
Future Generations Fund and a Community Support Fund from which these organisations To help identify them, all the
Romsley Together candidates
can apply for small grants to help fund special projects and activities.
have our name and logo next to
their name on the ballot paper.
To help you identify them, all our candidates
will have the Romsley Together party name and
logo next to their names on the ballot paper:
Richard Arrowsmith -
I love Romsley and I'm very proud to live here, after a difficult day at work I feel really
privileged to live in such a beautiful place and despite making the journey many times I can always feel the stresses of
the day disappear as I drive up Romsley hill.
I am a senior member of the Civil Service with responsibility for many aspects of managing our motorways. I am a
Political Economist by profession and believe very strongly in efficient and high quality public services. To me every
pound of taxpayers money matters and everybody in public or elected office must be transparent and accountable for
the money they spend and the decisions they make. I live in Dark Lane with my wife Jane and our two children. My wife
is a primary school teacher and my daughter has just started at St Kenelm's School, so I am very interested in education
and ensuring every child gets the best start they can.
Louise Bestwick - I have been a Romsley resident for 8 years. I love living here and am
passionate about making a great parish even greater. I live here with my husband, my 5 year
old son, my 4 year old daughter and our 6 year old Border Collie. I have been a Primary School
Teacher in Birmingham for the last 10 years.
Shaun Bolar - I was born, raised and educated in the Halesowen area – and consider myself lucky enough to have
lived in the Village for the past 20 years.
I work as a Cost Consultant and Project Manager within the construction industry and have done so for over 26 years,
holding the position of Company Director, for the past 18 years.
I have a love of rural affairs that is enjoyed through walking and mountaineering. In particular the many walks from the
Village itself, through the surrounding countryside and the neighbouring Clent Hills – all of which have been enjoyed
since childhood. I have a keen interest in the history and heritage of our Country, supporting the National Trust. I support
both access and conservation of our countryside through membership of the British Mountaineering Council. I would
welcome the opportunity to apply these skills, loves and interests, for the betterment of the place I live.
Lesley Gray - I have lived in Romsley for twenty-seven years. I am a retired teacher and spent
the majority of my career in a school for children with special educational needs.
I am keen to get Neighbourhood Watch up and running again and would like the opportunity to
work, as a member of the Council, on maintaining our Parish as a place we are proud to call home.
David Powell - I am 43 and have lived in Romsley since May 2012, I am married and have a 12 month old
son. I work for Office Depot as "Senior Continuous Improvement Manager" working to review and improve
business processes across Europe.
I feel immensely proud and lucky to live in our beautiful parish and I am looking forward to getting to know our
parishioners and consulting with them about the way our funds are spent. I want to bring transparency in parish
dealings and to keep parishioners informed of what we have done and what we intend to do. I am keen to help to
build a vibrant community for everyone – young and old, and have some fun along the way...
www.romsley-together.co.uk
Printed by Leaflet-frog, 38/39 Britannia Way, Bolton - Promoted by R Arrowsmith, 84A Dark Lane, Romsley
on behalf of Romsley Together, 84A Dark Lane, Romsley.