Parish Councils are the most local tier of government. 

Responsibility for providing facilities and services for our Parish is divided between Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority, Cambridgeshire County Council (CCC) , Huntingdonshire District Council (HDC) and Houghton and Wyton Parish Council (PC).

 Click Who Does What for a more detailed list.

The Parish Council has 9 members and meets approximately 20 times a year.  The main areas of responsibility are summarised below

Planning Issues.

The Council considers all planning applications in the Parish and more details are on the Planning page.

All other planning issues that affect the Parish are monitored and considered by the Council and appropriate responses to consultations are submitted. These include the Local Plan (being produced by HDC), the local Highways Strategy and developments in neighbouring Parishes.

The Neighbourhood Plan for the Parish was 'made' in March 2018 - see Neighbourhood Plan for more information

Rights of Way and Waterways

The Council maintains the Parish's green spaces and network of footpaths and liaises with Cambridgeshire County Council and Huntingdonshire District Council on rights of way and highway issues.  

It works closely with the Environment Agency and local landowners to ensure waterways and drainage ditches are kept clear in order to minimise the risk of flooding.

Playing Field and Pavilion

The Parish owns the Pavilion and manages its maintenance, letting and cleaning.

The western half of the playing field is owned by the Parish and the eastern half is leased from the local owners.

The PC works closely with the Sports Clubs, who use the Playing Field, and is responsible for the care and maintenance of the playing facilities.

Cemetery

The cemetery is the responsibility of the Council and is managed by the Parish Clerk.

Village Assets

The Parish Council is responsible for various assets in the Parish which include Potto Brown's statue, the Clock Tower and associated street furniture on the Green.

Meetings

Our meetings are open to all 

There is a "Public Comment" item on the agenda of every meeting which allows any member of the public to speak to the meeting.

 Meetings are generally held in the St Mary's Centre, Chapel Lane and smaller working group meetings being in the Clerk's office.

Agendas 

Agendas are published at least 3 days before each meeting and are posted on the Parish Council Notice Boards and on this website under "Meetings and Minutes" . 

You can also subscribe to an automated service that will send you agendas of upcoming meetings by email - click register for this service 

Minutes 

Minutes are published, once agreed at the next meeting, on the Parish Council Board at The Green and on this website under Minutes in the Parish Council section.

Click  minutes to see those for the latest meeting.

The Parish Council Notice Boards 

The Parish Council Noticeboard is at The Green, Houghton. Noticeboards where the public can put notices on, providing the 

notices are not political, are at Manor Close and Loxley Green in Wyton, The Green and Hill Estate in Houghton

Documents

The Standing Orders, Financial Regulations and other documents that the Parish Council operates by are in the Document Library.

Other Parish Council Roles

Although not Parish Councillors, the following roles also provide very valuable assistance to the Parish Council.

Tree Wardens - John and Hank.  Please contaact the Parish Clerk if you see a problem with a tree or want advice.  Trees are the responsibility of the owner of the land on which they are growing, so the Parish Council does not own many trees, but might be able to help identify the owner.