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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
August 2026
It's going to be a busy summer ...
Local Government Reorganisation
In an earlier article in the June edition of the Focus, I set out what would happen when the decision was announced relating to the new structures for the Kent area. That article is still available online at www.lenhamparish.org.uk .
We now have that information: Kent will be divided into four new Unitary Authorities and the existing arrangements (Kent County Council and the 12 boroughs and districts + Medway Unitary Authority) will cease to exist on 1 May 2028. Lenham will be in a new Unitary Authority which includes the current areas of Tonbridge and Malling, Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks. The elections for this new administrative area along with parish council elections will take place in May 2027.
What still remains unclear is the role which parish and town councils will play under the new arrangements. We will keep everyone updated as new information becomes available.
New Capital Projects
The parish council agreed to scope out three new projects this year and all three are now moving forward and preparations will start this month.
Resurfacing of the Maidstone Road carpark. The parish council will begin the public process of gaining bids for the resurfacing of the car park which will include the reconfiguration of the drainage. The technical specification for this is available on the public contracts portal and the parish council will be reviewing the sealed bids from contractors in due course. Once this has been agreed more information about the timeframe will be publicised, as the car park will need to close for the work to be undertaken.
Resurfacing and adjusting the cemetery road. The parish council is aware the road surface at the Lenham cemetery needs attention. It also needs to be adapted to accommodate the larger funeral vehicles which are now in use. The technical specification for this is available on the public contracts portal and the parish council will be reviewing the sealed bids from contractors in due course. Once this has been agreed more information about the timeframe will be publicised, as access to the cemetery may need to be restricted for the work to be undertaken.
New Lenham Nursery. The parish council was successful in obtaining a grant from the borough council’s strategic Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) allocation. The £450,000 grant will be match-funded by the parish council to create a new two-form entry nursery on the site of the former St John’s building in the allotments off Ham Lane. This delivers a major element of the Lenham Neighbourhood Plan, to provide new, updated nursery facilities, and by doing so release space in the primary school. The parish council is working closely with all the parties concerned to ensure a smooth delivery.
The technical specification will be available on the public contracts portal, and the parish council will be reviewing the sealed bids from contractors in due course. Once this has been agreed more information about the timeframe will be publicised.
Adoption of General Powers of Competence
At its full council meeting in July, Lenham Parish Council adopted the General Powers of Competence (GPC). This is a significant move forward for the parish council and is now available to us because our Parish Clerk, Lisa, has completed her CiLCA training (Certificate in Local Government Administration) which she has been studying over the last twelve months.
At this point I would like to publicly congratulate Lisa, completing the CiLCA is no mean feat. It has involved many hours of study and successfully completing several detailed modules on top of the normal and often complex daily duties of the parish clerk.
If you would like to read up on the GPC, details of it are available on the Gov.uk website: https://www.local.gov.uk/sites/default/files/documents/general-power-competence--0ac.pdf
These additional powers open a range of new options for the parish council. In addition, the recognised standard of compliance they represent, we believe, will be important as the details of the proposed plans for Local Government Reorganisation move forward.
Parish Council meetings
I would like to remind everyone that all our meetings are held in public and there are always opportunities for parishioners to ask questions or raise issues at all the public meetings.
They all take place in the Lenham Community Centre, and they all start at 7:30pm.
Each month (except August) 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
A huge thank-you and shout-out to everyone who made the first Lenham Fest such a resounding sucess!
Thanks to all the volunteers who helped out on the day plus a huge "well done!" the parish council team (Lisa, Steph and Sarah, whose mad idea the whole thing was!) and, not wishing to single anyone out but, extra "brownie points" go to our resident "Pantomime Dame" (David Penny) for enduring the scorching heat of the whole day in full costume - respect!
Lots of money (£1900) was raised and shared with local charities and a good time was had by all.
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
Registered office: 1A High Street, Lenham, Kent ME17 2QD Open: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 10:00h - 13:00