The first meeting of the Taunton Shadow Town Council will take place on Thursday, 3 November.

The shadow council has been set up to lead and oversee the work to establish the new Taunton Town Council which will come into being on 1 April 2023 – the same day as the new unitary Somerset Council.

Both Somerset West and Taunton Council (SWT) and Somerset County Council (SCC) approved the creation of a new town council for Taunton following recommendations made by SWT’s cross-party Community Governance Review Working Group.

The new town council covers the previously unparished area of Taunton (the only part of Somerset not to be parished as a result of local government reorganisation in 1974) and parts of neighbouring parishes which were considered under the review.

It takes in the entirety of Comeytrowe Parish, the urban area within the Maidenbrook Ward of Cheddon Fitzpaine Parish, and the majority of Staplegrove Parish with the remaining part of that parish included in the boundary of Kingston St. Mary Parish.

The shadow council consists of 24 members including existing Somerset County Council members for each division which falls in total or any part of the new Taunton Town Council, the Charter Trustees for Taunton serving until 31 March 2023, and representatives from Comeytrowe, Cheddon Fitzpaine and Staplegrove Parish Councils.

Elections for the 20 councillors to Taunton Town Council will be held on the first Thursday in May in 2023.

The shadow council is an advisory body and will monitor the delivery of the Implementation Plan drawn up to make sure that a legal, safe and functioning authority comes into being in April 2023. 

The agenda of the Taunton Shadow Town Council first meeting will cover:

• The Adoption of a chair and vice-chair
• The adoption of Procedure Rules
• An introduction to the Implementation Plan
• The Taunton Shadow Town Council Forward Plan

The meeting will start at 6pm in The John Meikle Room, Deane House, Taunton, and can be viewed on the webcast.