Our local services, already suffering from cuts, now face a new threat. Within two years the two councils we rely on for many of these services, Adur District Council, Worthing Borough Council and West Sussex County Council, will be abolished. 

As part of national local government reform, they will be replaced by a Sussex mayor and “unitary councils” serving around 500,000 people. Perhaps more. This will be bad for Shoreham and Worthing because: 

• Important decisions will be taken by people unfamiliar with Shoreham and Worthing's special needs
• Shoreham and Worthing's local voice on the new council will be weaker
• The unitary council's priorities won't focus as much on the area.

A town council to protect our services…

In Shoreham and Worthing, we could protect many of our vital services by forming a town council.  

A Town Council would have the same powers as a parish council, such as neighbouring Lancing Parish Council. Other Sussex towns, such as Littlehampton and Horsham, have created town councils or are setting them up. The town council could: 

• Be a strong voice in planning decisions – keeping focus on the need for more services, like health care and schools, to meet  a growing population.
• Run community buses and influence other public transport services.
• Work with the police on crime prevention and controlling anti-social behaviour.
• Protect and enhance the environment by improved litter collection and graffiti removal.
• Deliver many other useful services using a “general power of competence”.

Town councils: what we’ve done so far… 

The changes in local government are being rushed through by the government. That means we don’t have much time to decide to form a town council – and to set it up. 

In the Liberal Democrats, we’ve led the campaign for a town council.  So far, we’ve: 

• Lobbied the leader of Adur District Council and sought to build a constructive dialogue encouraging him to take steps to set up a Shoreham Town Council.
• Set out the case for a Shoreham and Worthing Town Council in The Argus and Worthing Herald.
• Made the case for town councils individually to communities and civic organisations.
• Placed an article explaining the need for a Shoreham Town Council in Inside Shoreham & Southwick magazine.
• Placed an article in Inside Worthing magazines too.
• Distributed thousands of leaflets, seeking to attract more supporters to our Town Council campaign. 

Why we now need your help… 

We can win the campaign for a town council and save our services, but we need to show there’s a public demand for it. We need more people to help put our messages across. Please consider supporting our campaign. You’ll be joining a friendly group of local people. 

If you would like more information about our campaign or would like to offer to help, visit: 

https://digitallibdems.typeform.com/to/dO77TaqZ