Parish Council Home Page

Parish, Town and Community Councils are the most direct form of democracy in England and Wales, being the first tier of local government. The very first Parish Councils were created in 1894 but we regretably don't know how long Palgrave Parish has been in existence.

This tier of local government is set to have more responsibilities placed upon it due to changes within the law relating to the Localism Act of 2011, the Audit and Accountability Act of 2014 and a number of other legislation currently being laid before parliament. This will result in a busier Council - from a resident's perspective a more local place to access information and raise concerns.

The Council is an elected body with eleven seats filled by Palgrave residents whose primary function is to ensure that the Parish is efficiently and economically run using a proportion of the annual Council Tax income.

The Parish Council have requested a Community Governance Review to reduce the statutory number of Councillors from 11 to 10. This will help to ensure the Parish Council can fulfil its tasks, moving forward, and hopefully always have a full compliment of members. If you would like to take part in the consultation, please sumit your comments by 23 January 2026. The Parish Council is encouraged to make our own representation on this initial consultation, which will end on Friday 23 January 2026. Further details can be found on Mid Suffolk District Counicil's community governance review webpage. District Councillors, County Councillors, Members of Parliament, the Local Boundary Commission for England, and SALC have all been notified of the consultation to make their own representations.

The Parish Council has a broad range of responsibilities some of which can be summarised below:

The Green (purchased in 2022)
Churchyard and Cemetery
Street lighting (note not all of the street lights in Palgrave)
Statutory consultations on planning issues, working to influence Planning Authority decisions, based on Councillors local knowledge
Ensuring that the Diss and District Neighbourhood Plan reflects the shared vision for its neighbourhood

We have 3 Speed Indicator Devices fully operational in Palgrave with a fantastic team of volunteers who keep them operational.

Note the Parish Council does not approve of the siting of posters on The Green, or other public land in Palgrave, that could be viewed as contentious. Posters for charity fund raising events are acceptable if permission has first been sought and approved by the Parish Council, on the strict proviso that they are removed as soon as possible after the event has passed.

Note there are currently 2 vacancies on the Parish Council, suitable candidates can be co-opted on. We would welcome applications to join us! A vacancy notice is on the main notice board.

Please note that we moved the website to www.palgrave-pc.gov.uk with effect 5 August 2025. All email addresses for both Clerk and Councillors have moved to the new format. The clerk's new email address is: clerk@palgrave-pc.gov.uk. All emails to the clerk's former gmail account are being forwarded to the new email in the interim until this account is closed. .

If you require further information with regard to Parish Council matters please contact the clerk:

Ms Caroline Emeny
2 Old School, Laxfield, Suffolk IP13 8DL
phone: 01986 798422
mobile: 07899 857351
e-mail: clerk@palgrave-pc.gov.uk

County Councillor: Jessica Fleming
E-mail: jessica.fleming@suffolk.gov.uk

District Councillor: Tim Weller
E-mail: tim.weller@midsuffolk.gov.uk

PARISH COUNCIL MEETINGS

The next monthly meeting of the Parish Council is on Thursday 14 May 2026 at 7.30 pm, in the Community Centre. Note the following: The Annual Meeting of the Parish (APM) will take place in the lounge this year at 7pm on 14 May. Additional seating has been arranged for members of the public wishing to attend. The Annual Meeting of the Parish Council (AGM) will follow at 7.30pm or asap thereafter.

You may still attend remotely as a member of the public, but Councillors are required to attend in person. If you wish to attend remotely, please advise the clerk as a matter of urgency so the necessary Zoho link can be set up and sent to you in advance of the meeting. The agenda is available 3 full days in advance, as required by law, and is displayed in the left hand column on this page, and on the notice board.

All meetings are held at the Community Centre starting at 7.30pm. The Parish Council meetings are usually held on the second Thursday of the month.

Plans relating to planning applications under consideration are available to view via the link on the agenda. Information about all planning applications is available on the Mid Suffolk website.

These meetings and other detail / information is displayed on the Parish Council notice board near Forge Close.

For further information about the Parish Council and its responsibilities, please refer to the following guides:

Roles and Responsibilities of the Parish Council

Powers Specifically Delegated to the Clerk / RFO

Dispensation Policy

To view full details of planning applications in Palgrave, please visit