What does the Council do?

It is directly responsible for providing the following services to the village:

• Footway lighting throughout the village. There are 57 lights on either columns or brackets. Each unit is numbered 1-57.
• Cemetery – control and management. The Cemetery is situated on Brackley Road. As well as full plots a Memorial Garden for interment of ashes is located on site. Regulations apply to the size and design of memorial headstones and tablets.
• Allotments – control and management. The Allotments are situated at the western end of High Street. Tenants enter into an Agreement with the Parish Council and pay rent twice a year. There is currently one vacancy for as half size plot. If you would like to put your name down on the Waiting List please contact the Parish Clerk.
• Portway Pocket Park
• Bus Shelter. The Council currently provides one shelter in front of Croughton Reading Room in the High Street. It has a noticeboard for community notices and bus timetable.
• Dog Bins. There are 4 dog waste bins along the main road between the Allotments and Park End. The Parish Council’s Contractor empties these bins every week.
• Grass cutting. The Parish Council’s Contractor cuts the grass and hedge at the Cemetery, the Allotments Pocket Park, Portway Pocket Park and the Playing Field. Highway verges are also cut by our Contractor, subject to an annual agreement with Northamptonshire County Council for which the Parish Council receives a grant to cover part of the cost.
• Communications via the website; Newsletter – ‘Croughton News’ is published monthly and delivered free of charge to all households and businesses in the village; Parish Noticeboards – located outside the Village Hall and outside the Co-Op store.
• Defibrillator – located on the external wall of the Reading Room
• Fixed Vehicle Activated Signs at Park End and Blenheim are maintained by Northants Highways
• Solar Powered VAS is moved between 4 locations. These are in Portway, the High Street, Blenheim and Brackley Road.

It initiates improvements and developments in the village through:

• Improving village facilities: for example, the new cemetery access road, gate and fencing
• Working with other village organisations for example – it is the ‘Custodian Trustee for the Playing Fields and Village Hall Charitable Trust, to promote and improve public facilities
• Promoting village projects: for example, the design and building of Croughton Village Hall in 2002 and the current developments of the Pocket Park and Croughton Web-site
• Supporting village organisations and activities: Croughton Play Park Project

It influences local developments through:

• Commenting on planning applications in its capacity as statutory consultee: Northamptonshire Council is the Local Planning Authority and consults the Parish Council on planning applications, including applications for tree works to protected trees, within the parish. Residents are encouraged to make their individual views known directly to the Planning Department.
• Monitoring Public Rights of Way
• Commenting on and putting forward proposals for highway schemes. these included parking restrictions at Park End, the acquisition and siting of Vehicle Activated Signs at Blenheim and Park End, 20 mph zone. The Highway Authority is part of West Northamptonshire Council.
• Responding to Consultation Documents from WNC and other agencies

Each year, the Parish Council reviews the amount it requires in order to support existing facilities and new projects, and takes into consideration any anticipated receipts. It then sets a budget for the proposed net expenditure. A demand for funding, known as the Precept, is made to the Billing Authority (WNC) in January who collects the money from the Council Tax at the beginning of the financial year (April).

Audited accounts are prepared each year and are made available for inspection by residents.