About the Parish Council

Despite being named ​Feock Parish Council, the Parish actually comprises of the villages of Carnon Downs, Devoran, Feock and Point and Penpol and has approximately 3700 residents.  ​The Parish Council was formed by Act of Parliament in 1894. 

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The Parish of Feock is situated between the city of Truro and town of Falmouth in Cornwall. An area of Feock village is designated as part of the Cornwall National Landscape (previously known as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (Cornwall AONB))  together with part of Devoran village which is a Conservation Area. 

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The residents of the parish elect fourteen councillors every four years to serve on the Parish Council, the next elections are due in May 2025. If vacancies arise in between elections then these are usually filled by co-option.

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The parish is divided into three Wards, Devoran, Carnon Downs and Feock. Councillors are volunteers and serve the community in their own time and with no remuneration. At the Annual Meeting each May the Council elects the Chair and Vice Chair for the coming year. The elected members also represent the Council on a number of outside committees such as Point Quay Association and Village Hall Committees.

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The Council's code of conduct that all Councillors are bound by can be downloaded from our Policy page and in August 2023 the Council signed the Civility and Respect Pledge, more details about what this means below. 

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Contact details for our Councillors can be found on the Councillors page. 

We are currently in the process of moving to new Council email addresses and these will be updated soon to replace the c/o info@ email address. 

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The Cornwall Councillor for the Feock and Kea Division is Cllr Martyn Alvey from Kea Parish Council and his contact details can be found here.

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​​​The Council provides help, guidance and support on matters of concern to the residents of the Parish of Feock including:

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• Supports the well being of residents including  signposting to activities 

• Comments on planning applications in line with Feock Neigbourhood Development Plan policies

• Provides and maintains recreation areas, play parks and green spaces 

• Helps maintain footpaths, bridleways and byways

• Works with other parishes, businesses, charities, health and education providers to support local societies and activities

• Provides a Micro Library, Bookswaps, public defibrillators and Repair Cafe

• Works with Cornwall Council on highways issues 

• Communicates local information to residents via websites, social media, noticeboards, newsletters and monthly 'Whats On' event listing                        

The Council Offices are based in Devoran in The Old Market Hall on Market Street, which also houses the Devoran Community Library.

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The Council employs a Parish Clerk & Responsible Financial Officer (Debra Roberts) who is responsible for the financial management of the council budget, manages projects and advises the Councillors on procedural and policy matters at meetings. The Clerk is assisted by an Assistant Parish Clerk (Debbie Searle) who covers for the Clerk in her absence and is responsible for the Council's day to day financial management and co-ordinates the Planning Committee who deal with consultee comments for planning applications in the parish.  In addition the Council employs an Information & Wellbeing Adviser, Cathy Whitmore who co-ordinates the volunteer car lift service and MyFeock wellbeing services. 

The Parish Council meets on the first or second Monday of every month (except August) at 6pm. In addition to Full Council, there are four committees, Planning Committee, Finance & General Purposes Committee, Staffing Committee and Access & Amenities Committee.  

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All meetings of the Council and its committees are open to the public, unless otherwise indicated, and the public have the opportunity to attend and speak at these meetings. 

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Details of Full Parish Council meetings can be found on the Meetings page. 

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The agendas and minutes for Full Council and Committees can be found on the Agendas and Minutes page.

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What is the Civility & Respect Pledge about?

Feock Parish Council signed up to the Civility & Respect Pledge in August 2023.  Throughout the public sector, there are growing concerns about the impact bullying, harassment, and intimidation are having on local (parish and town) councils, councillors, clerks and council staff and the resulting effectiveness of local councils.

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To address this, the National Association of Local Councils (NALC), One Voice Wales, the Society of Local Council Clerks (SLCC) and county associations have set up the Civility and Respect Project.

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The aim of this is to put civility and respect at the top of the agenda and start a culture change for the local council sector.

There is no place for bullying, harassment and intimidation within our sector.  The pledge is intended to demonstrate that Councils are committed to standing up against poor behaviour across our sector and to driving through positive changes which support civil and respectful conduct.

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Councillors and council staff have the right to carry out their civic duties and work without fear of being attacked or abused, and without any encroachment into their personal lives.

 

We treat everyone with courtesy and respect and ask for the same in return. The intimidation, abuse, bullying and harassment of councillors, clerks and council staff, in person or online, is never acceptable, whether by councillors, clerks, council staff, or members of the public.

 

There is a huge difference between scrutinising and holding people to account those in public office and harassing or intimidating them. Any behaviour, whether that be verbal, physical, in writing, over the phone or on social media, which causes either councillors or council staff to feel uncomfortable, embarrassed, or threatened, is totally unacceptable.

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