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A calendar of all meetings and the latest published agendas are available here.
Public meetings are held at Lenham Community Centre, Groom Way, Lenham, ME17 2QT
February 2026
Budget setting
The parish council discussed the budget for 2026/27 at the full council meeting on 7th January and agreed to submit both the budget and the precept proposals to Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) by the end of January (the required timeframe).
Details of the budget will be published once MBC has “approved” it.
It will come as little surprise to learn all our revenue costs are increasing; no-one is immune from that. However, we will continue to ensure that we get best value for money for the regular services we oversee and that, where possible, the work is awarded to local companies. These costs are mostly related to maintenance of green space and dealing with the trees for which the parish is responsible, ensuring the play areas are safe for little ones to use, that the village remains tidy and there are planted flower beds, the picnic area is kept clean and tidy and the Lenham Cross is maintained.
We are also responsible for looking after the Lenham Cemetery and this year, as part of our capital budget, we plan to tackle the footpath around the boundary to make sure that this is safe for people to walk over as well as the funeral vehicles to use to transport relatives to the graves.
Another capital project we will carry over from the current year’s budget is the upgrade of the CCTV coverage. This is already underway, we have been working with the Police to identify new locations for camera coverage, and this will be rolled out during 2026.
Our final capital project will be to start the development of the new nursery, this however depends on a successful match-funding bid for strategic funding from Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) on new builds, held by Maidstone Borough Council. Hopefully we will hear more about that soon.
Heathlands - Public consultation on the Supplementary Planning Document (SPD)
The parish council has worked hard to provide a comprehensive and detailed response to the public consultation on the SPD relating to the so-called "Heathlands Garden Development".
The documents provided by MBC were complex and convoluted, especially the 500+pages lifted from the original Transport Assessment of 2017.
The parish council's response can be seen here. The technical appendix can be seen here.
Community Grants
There is still time to apply for a grant, if this would help your group expand the services it delivers to our communities. Details of how to apply can be found on the parish website and the application form can either be downloaded, or you can pop into the parish office if you would prefer to discuss it with the Parish clerk first.
The details about the grant application process can be found here: Microsoft Word - Grants Policy
and the application form is here: LPC Policies / Procedures - Lenham Parish Council - Lenham Parish Council, Lenham, Maidstone
Parish Council meetings
I would like to remind everyone that all our meetings are held in public. They all take place in the Lenham Community Centre, and they all start at 7:30pm.
Each month we hold a full council meeting (always the first Wednesday of the month), then there is a dedicated planning meeting, usually on a Wednesday around the middle of the month, and finally a finance meeting on the last Monday of the month (although this gets moved around when a Bank Holiday is due).
Agendas are published on our website, all planning applications in the parish can be seen there as well.
If you want to raise something ahead of a meeting please drop into the Parish Office, at 1A High Street, and speak to the Parish Clerks – they will be happy to speak to you, and the Parish Office is open 10:00 – 13:00 Tuesday - Thursday.
It's your parish council, please come and find out what is going on!
… and finally - we are recruiting
One addition the parish council has agreed to make is to recruit a Caretaker to work on a weekly / regular basis on a series of practical tasks to help keep our parish to the high standard we wish to maintain. Other parishes have introduced similar posts, and we have seen the benefits delivered, so are extending that good practice to Lenham.
Initially, this post will be available for a year, possibly from April 2026, and details are on the parish website here, with more information available from the Parish Clerk.
Cllr John Britt
Chair - Lenham Parish Council
What does Lenham Parish Council do?
Parish Councils are the tier of local government closest to the people. Although the parish council covers the Parish of Lenham it is not linked to the church in any way. All parish councillors are volunteers who dedicate their free time to enhancing their parish as best they can by utilising their individual skills and experience.
Those putting themselves forward to serve as a parish councillor have to submit to the regular election process, or, if filling a vacancy mid-term, can be co-opted for the remainder of that electoral term. Electoral terms are four years. The elections for a parish council will only go to a public vote if there are more nominations than there are spaces on the parish council. Lenham parish is currently represented by 13 parish councillors: four representing South Ward (everything south of the railway) and nine representing North Ward (everything north of the railway). All parish councillors have to agree to abide by the Nolan Principles of Public Office. Parish councillors receive no remuneration for their time.
The responsibilities of Lenham Parish Council include looking after open spaces, such as the William Pitt field and Cemetery, maintaining playgrounds and other amenities, providing Maidstone Borough Council with a view on planning applications within the Parish and undertaking projects to benefit the Parish. Lenham Parish Council also has a Neighbourhood Plan which was adopted as part of the Maidstone Local Plan in July 2021. This Neighbourhood Plan is active until 2031. For more details of the Lenham Neighbourhood Plan please refer to the information tab "Lenham Neighbourhood Plan" on this website.
In addition to holding a full council meeting monthly, Lenham Parish Council has two specific sub committees which also meet monthly: Finance and General Purposes (F&GP) and Planning and (Neighbourhood Plan) Implementation (P&I). Both these sub committees focus on specific issues of work and in some cases do the detail which is then referred back to full council as recommendations to be discussed and agreed.
Both of these sub committees are open to the public and can be attended by all parish councillors, however, while all nominated attendees and visiting parish councillors can participate in the discussions only those parish councillors nominated as attendees to that subcommittee are able to vote on recommendations that will go forward to the full parish council meeting for discussion and agreement.
Finance and General Purposes Committee (F&GP)
The F&GP subcommittee consists of six nominated parish councillors and addresses the financial issues which the parish council is responsible for: dealing with contracts for maintenance of open space; maintaining and upgrading play equipment and other financial matters as and when these arise. The committee oversees the preparation of the annual budget and also discusses all other non-expenditure related matters and makes a recommendation to the full parish council for discussion and agreement. The sub committee is quorate when at least four parish councillors, including the Chair, are present.
Planning and (Neighbourhood Plan) Implementation (P&I)
The P&I subcommittee consists of six nominated parish councillors as well as three members of the public (who are non-voting) and the parish's planning consultant (also non-voting). The subcommittee carries out two important functions: it is a statutory consultee for all planning applications in the parish and it is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Lenham Neighbourhood Plan ensuring that the parameters and policies within the plan are actioned and reflected in the parish responses to planning applications. All recommendations from the subcommittee are referred to the next full meeting of the parish council for ratification. The subcommittee is quorate when at least four parish councillors, including the Chair, are present.
Our Mission Statement
The Lenham Parish Council (LPC) is dedicated to enhancing the lives of all the residents of Lenham and its surrounding hamlets. LPC aims to maintain and protect the Parish environment and amenities. LPC strives to be pro-active in identifying and completing projects, large and small, that will benefit the Parish as a whole, with value for money always being sought. LPC aims to help keep Lenham Parish a unique and special place for residents and visitors alike as the world around us changes.
Council Officers:
Parish Clerk & RFO: Lisa Westcott
Contact details Email: clerk@lenhamparishcouncil.org.uk Telephone: 01622 829034
Deputy Parish Clerk & RFO: Sarah Newell
Contact details Email: deputyclerk@lenhamparishcouncil.org.uk Telephone: 01622 829034
Financial and Administrative Officer: Audrey Ratcliffe
Contact details Email: info@lenhamparishcouncil.org.uk Telephone: 01622 829034
Registered office: 1A High Street, Lenham, Kent ME17 2QD Open: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 10:00h - 13:00