Following the resignations of Cllr David Spicer and Cllr Alyson Lister there are two additional casual vacancies on the Parish Council. Including the existing vacancy (following the resignation of Cllr Bob Edwards) that means there are now 3 vacant seats to be filled.
The Council would like to express their utmost gratitude to Cllr Spicer and Cllr Lister for all their hard work and dedication to the Parish Council and wider community over the time they have been councillors.
In their respective roles as Chairman and Vice Chairman, both Cllr Spicer and Cllr Lister have been closely involved in a broad range of matters and projects, including War Memorial name plaques, tree planting, declaring the Cliffe a Local Nature Reserve, organising a maintenance agreement for the Arboretum, preparing and delivering surveys during the cost of living crisis, the Safer Roads Group, Ukraine war donation drives and supporting refugees living in Ruyton, policing matters, checking the community defibrillator, moving the Council emails to a new provider, and much, much more. They leave very big shoes to fill and will be sadly missed. We wish them both the very best for the future.
14-day statutory period to request by-election – ends 26th Sept
For these two most recent vacancies, Ruyton electors have a 14-day period during which they can request a by-election to fill one or both of the vacant seats. This 14-day period ends on 26th September 2023. If no by-election is requested during that time, then the Parish Council will be able to co-opt someone to fill the vacant seat(s).
More information is available on the Casual vacancy notices below:
Cllr D Spicer casual vacancy notice
Cllr A Lister casual vacancy notice
Council extends deadline for applications for existing casual vacancy
No by-election was called for the existing casual vacancy (following the resignation of Cllr Bob Edwards) so the Council must fill this seat by co-option. This seat has not yet been filled, and as the guidance states that the seat should be filled as soon as reasonably practicable, the Council has decided to extend the application deadline until Sun 24th Sept and re-open this vacancy to new applications.
Please send completed applications to the Parish Council Clerk before the deadline of 9pm on Sun 24th Sept.
You can download the application form below and may wish to check out the Good Councillors Guide as an introduction to what being a Councillor involves. You are also very welcome to have an informal chat with any of your existing councillors. If you have any questions about the eligibility criteria please contact the Clerk.
