Somerset Parishes Conference 2025

We are delighted to announce that bookings are open for the Somerset Parishes Conference 2025

Book Your Place

This year’s conference will take place from 9am to 4pm on Friday 3rd October at The Canalside conference centre, near Bridgwater. The day will include:

• • • SALC’s 2025 AGM
    • Speakers from Somerset and beyond
    • A selection of workshops featuring city, town, and parish councils improving lives in their communities
    • A marketplace exhibition featuring sixteen leading suppliers who can increase the impact of your councils

The Somerset Parishes Conference provides a valuable opportunity for councillors and council officers to meet and learn from each other. It’s a chance to engage face-to-face with our Somerset partner organisations alongside a marketplace of expert service suppliers.

Speakers:

• • • We are privileged to welcome an opening address from our honoured guest, Janet Montgomery, High Sheriff for Somerset 2025/26, whose experience includes many years as member of her local parish council.
    • Loretta Whetlor, SALC’s Chair, and Ewan Jones, SALC’s Chief Executive, will speak about the Somerset Association’s progress over the past year, and your opportunity to shape its plans for 2026.
    • Justin Griggs, NALC’s Head of Policy and Communications, will share with us how other counties are learning from Somerset’s experience of local council transformation, plus NALC’s engagement with the Westminster Government.
    • Duncan Sharkey, Somerset Council’s Chief Executive, will tell us where our unitary council has reached on its transformation journey, and what parishes can expect over the next couple of years.
    • Councillor Theo Butt Philip, Somerset Council’s Lead Member for Transformation, Human Resources and Localities, and Chris Hall, Executive Director for Community, Place and Economy, will speak about how our unitary council is working to improve how it engages with communities across Somerset.
    • Steve Lake and Jonathan Doyle of Somerset Council’s Electoral Services team will update us on where the Local Government Boundary Commission review of Somerset has reached, and plans for a potential community governance review for the whole of Somerset following the 6 May 2027 local elections.

Workshops: 

Learn from subject expert advisors and fellow councils with practical experience in:

• • 1. Community Health & Wellbeing: celebrating and building upon parish-led youth outreach programmes.
    2. Community Health & Wellbeing: new community hubs opening across Somerset.
    3. Somerset Local Nature Recovery Strategy: parishes improving spaces for people and nature.
    4. Developing and delivering a community plan for your town or village. 
    5. Beyond the Precept: how to fund and manage your project.
    6. Thriving Parishes: clerk and councillors working together for better meetings and more effective councils.
    7. Parish Online: the power of maps, drawing tools, and analysis and planning tools for managing your council effectively.
    8. Cloudy IT: the potential of AI to enhance how your council operates.

Following your booking, we will send you an email in early September asking you to prioritise which workshops you would like to attend in each of the morning and afternoon slots.

Sponsors:

SALC is grateful to our event sponsors: Somerset Council, Parish Online, and CloudyIT, as well as all our exhibitors for enabling us to put the Somerset Parishes Conference 2025 at zero cost to city, town and parish council delegates.

Marketplace Exhibition: 

Aubergine: Aubergine are a leading provider of accessible and compliant .gov.uk websites for parish and town councils, offering website building, content inputting and ongoing training and support to help keep your council’s website accessible and compliant. They offer lots of modules available to add enhanced tools – such as planning portals, event tickets, online forms, consultations and polls, and online payment systems. 

Breakthrough Communications: Breakthrough Communications combine deep expertise in communications – helping councils connect, build trust, and involve more people – alongside specialist knowledge of UK GDPR, data protection and FOI. Through practical tools, expert training, professional advice and support packages, they help councils communicate clearly and manage information and personal data with confidence. 

CCLA Investment Management: CCLA is one of the leading investment managers for local authorities in the UK, as well as the largest fund manager for charities in the UK based on the number of charities invested with them (Charity Finance, November 2024). CCLA was Money Marketing’s Best ESG Provider for 2024. 

Civic.ly: Civic.ly is an AI-powered asset management platform and mobile app that consolidates asset data, automates inspections, streamlines maintenance scheduling, ensures compliance, and provides real-time dashboards for efficient infrastructure management. Say goodbye to spreadsheets, goodbye to paper inspection forms, and hello to Civic.ly. The purpose-built asset manager for parish, town and community councils. 

Clear Councils Insurance: Clear Councils is part of Clear Insurance Management, one of the UK’s largest Independent Insurance Brokers. They are insurance specialists for councils, charities and not-for-profits, working with Aviva to provide competitive insurance solutions while providing advice and training to clerks/ councillors in all aspects of managing risk.

CloudyIT: CloudyIT is a leading provider of cutting-edge digital solutions designed specifically for local councils across the UK. They understand the unique challenges councils face, and are dedicated to helping them enhance their productivity, improve communication and strengthen their cybersecurity. Through innovative technologies, hands-on support, and tailored IT services, CloudyIT is at the forefront of digital transformation within local government.

Eden Project: Local councils have supported the Eden Project’s flagship campaign, The Big Lunch, bringing millions of people together annually in June for some friendship, food and fun, fostering friendlier, safer neighbourhoods and encouraging people  to share skills and resources. The Eden Project team provides communication toolkits, digital packs, and advice to help you participate, as well as supporting community action all year round through their events and courses. 

eibe play LTD: eibe have been creating high-quality playground equipment for over 50 years, specialising in designing durable, sustainable, and safety-focused playgrounds that inspire creativity, movement, and social interaction. eibe are a full-service provider, offering: advice, planning, manufacture, delivery, and installation, with fee consultations and 3D designs for custom play areas. 

Gallagher: Gallagher provides specialist council insurance and expertise and knowledge of the sector, enabling them to create bespoke insurance solutions designed to meet the specific needs of each local council. Gallagher’s service offering is also designed to support any organisation funded by the public purse, encompassing the entire public sector, from the largest public entities to smallest organisations. 

Insignis: Insignis helps town and parish councils optimise their savings by providing access to multiple deposit products using a single secure platform. There is only one application form that gives you access to their platform and once you are onboard that’s all the paperwork done for life. Insignis supports town and parish councils to diversify risk, access market-leading interest rates, and save time by reducing admin. 

ONH: Planning for Good: A planning consultancy and social enterprise comprising planners, architects and urban designers. With experience of working with over 200 English town and parish councils, they deliver community-supported planning projects, including planning applications and responses, spatial and neighbourhood planning, brownfield and grey belt studies, and character and conservation area assessments. With former Town Clerks on their team, they also advise on council property and asset management, and facilitate constructive engagement with developers, landowners and communities.

Parish Online: Parish Online provides mapping software, websites, GOV.UK email and cloud office tools to help a local council be more efficient, resilient and professional. Their services are designed for the precise needs of local councils and constantly evolve to meet requirements. Clerks and councillors love their services as they are easy-to-use, cost-effective and supported by their team of IT and council experts. Parish Online operates as a not-for-profit social enterprise. All subscription revenue is reinvested to help local councils serve their residents better, allowing Parish Online to give £100 to councils switching to GOV.UK domain and free mailboxes for clerks.

Tozers LLP: Tozers LLP is a specialist law firm advising local authorities in the South West on planning, housing, employment, property, governance, contracts, disputes, standards, equality, and data protection. With an experienced team, Tozers LLP offer fast, clear, practical, and cost-transparent advice to withstand statutory and financial scrutiny on affordable housing delivery, site acquisition/ disposal, leases, easements, contracts, employment matters (including TUPE, redundancy and tribunal claims), and dispute resolution. 

Unity Trust Bank: Unity Trust Bank has a wealth of experience supporting local council customers. Through a deep understanding of councils’ structures and the challenges they face, they can provide a range of banking solutions tailored to meet councils’ needs. Unity’s Public & Third Sectors team has recently been established to offer dedicated support to local councils and other specialist sectors. 

Wicksteed Leisure: Wicksteed, the UK’s premier outdoor playground equipment manufacturers, with more than 100 years of experience, offer off-the-shelf solutions and bespoke play equipment in the most appropriate size, configurations, materials, and colours to suit every requirement. Wicksteed provide a range of sensory and inclusive solutions to make every playground as accessible as possible. 

Zen Computers LTD: Zen Computers offers a fully equipped repair workshop and partnerships with suppliers for competitive procurement of computers, both Apple and Windows, Cloud services, Software licenses and office networking. Zen Computers provide a responsive helpdesk, online visits, phone, email, and remote desktop support to provide complete peace of mind for all the IT issues clients may face. Zen Computers’ Web Development Team can also provide tailored websites at a very reasonable price

Event Details:

The Conference will commence with registration, coffee and networking, followed by a keynote speech from Janet Montgomery, High Sheriff for Somerset 2025/26, then SALC’s AGM, followed by plenary sessions, workshops, and the marketplace exhibition throughout the day.

Lunch and refreshments will be provided, with dietary needs catered for via your booking.

Owing to venue capacity, and that Somerset boasts more than 270 city, town, and parish councils and parish meetings, tickets are restricted to two representatives of each local council. Councillor delegates will be prioritised. In order for councils to benefit fully from the conference, we encourage a clerk or officer to accompany the councillor delegate.

Parking at the venue is limited. We encourage car sharing where possible and will aim to organise priority parking for Blue Badge holders who notify info@somerset-alc.org.uk

SALC Annual General Meeting

All papers for the SALC AGM will be added to the SALC website homepage, and issued by email during September. 

Could you help shape SALC’s services by joining our board of directors?

The Somerset Association of Local Councils Ltd (SALC) is seeking expressions of interest from councillors serving on councils in membership of the association.

If you are keen to help shape SALC’s service and forge partnerships across Somerset, we are keen to hear from you.

Four director vacancies will be up for election at the AGM, covering each of the four Somerset areas. Each directorship is for a period of 3 years, falling vacant in 2028.

To find out more about what it means to become a SALC company director, including the role description and time commitments, email Ewan at ceo@somerset-alc.org.uk