Bethersden Parish lies within Ashford Borough, one of the largest boroughs in east Kent. Ashford Borough Council is the local authority responsible for the provision of a wide range of services to the local population, in conjunction with Kent County Council which looks after the major county wide services such as education and highways etc.
Bethersden Parish Council looks after services specific to the parish and liaises with Ashford BC on behalf of the parishioners on major matters such as planning decisions for housing and developments.
The Parish Council meets on the second Wednesday of each month, the meeting in May each year also covering the chairman’s Annual Report. All these meetings are open to the public, including the Planning Committee, which comments to Ashford BC on local planning applications, while providing an opportunity for additional comments from local applicants.
Agendas and minutes are published on this website and also on the Notice Board outside the Post Office/Shop. In addition, the website has minutes of the meetings of the previous three years.
The Parish Council works closely with Bethersden Village Society on a wide range of subjects and projects, such as those in the Parish Plan action plan. It is currently managing the development of the Bethersden Neighbourhood Plan, although much of the project work is carried out by local volunteers in the three Working Groups.