Rochdale Township Forums and Groups
The Borough of Rochdale is divided into four Townships: Heywood,
Middleton, Pennines and Rochdale.
Rochdale Township serves approximately 92,500 people with 27
councillors.
Township Committee meetings are supported
by sub-committees and groups. Area Forums are an
informal extension to the Township Committee.
Purpose of Area Forums
We established Area Forums so we can listen and
respond to communities across the Township.
Area Forums are an ideal way to get together with people from
the council, community groups and other agencies in your area to
think about activities and how we deliver council services in your
area as well as looking for improvements.
Work together
Area Forums give you the chance to get to know what each council
service does. We will listen to suggestions and promote
opportunities for residents to work together with council services
and so work with them better.
Inform
Area Forums invite your local ward councillors, senior council
officers and other authorities such as the Police to explain the
decisions they take about your area by asking them to regularly
report to Area Forums with updates.
Communicate
Area Forums increase the knowledge and understanding of
residents in your area by sharing and discussing views and ideas
with them and those who offer services, as well as on
occasions sharing good practice with other areas.
Influence
Area Forums let you affect decisions made about your
area. In an 'open forum' you can raise issues of concern on
the night. Township officers record and action these and
provide outcomes at future meetings. We report
minutes back to Township Committee meetings and consider
them in the development of local plans.
Area Forums are an ideal way of making you aware of what is
happening in your area.
How do the meetings work and who runs them?
The Rochdale Township office oversees the running of your Area
Forum. The residents who attend the Area Forum choose the
Chairperson. They are usually a member of your
community.
Local councillors as well as Rochdale Council officers attend
each meeting and see that the recommendations made are properly fed
back into the Township's decision-making process.
Area Forums give you the opportunity to speak to a council
officer about any council service that needs attention.
If we cannot answer you in full during the meeting then we will
provide you with an answer following the meeting. We report
any outcomes to residents via the Area Forum.
The Chairperson sees that every Area Forum follows
a 'Code of Conduct' which governs the behaviour of those
who attend.
Read the Rochdale Township Area Forums' Code of Conduct
Simply turn up on the night and you will be made to feel
welcome. Register your details and we can keep you
updated about future meetings and more importantly, what happens as
a direct result of your input.
What geographical area does each of the Area Forums cover?
Area forums cover the whole of the Rochdale Township:
What are the benefits of attending an Area Forum?
This is your chance to play an important role in your local
area and make a difference to your community by:
- Making sure the needs of your area and key issues affecting
local people are identified.
- Maximising the influence of local people over the way in which
the council delivers services in your area.
Other benefits
Each ward has £12,000 to allocate to local projects and these
decisions are influenced at Area Forums.
Who can join the Area Forum?
You do not have to be a member of the Area Forum to attend, but
you need to either live or work in the ward.
Area Forums are made up of a cross section of your local
community. We are keen to involve:
- Local residents and businesses
- Representatives of local community groups, societies and
residents' associations
- Members of other local community groups, including tenant
management organisations, special interest groups, as well
as voluntary organisations working to benefit the local
area
Other representatives such as transport and health authorities
are also invited to attend where necessary.
We would like our Area Forums to be more inclusive and diverse
and particularly welcome young people and residents from all
backgrounds.
Rochdale Township Planning Sub Committee
Rochdale Township Planning Sub Committee makes
decisions on planning applications in line with our approved
Development Control Scheme.
Rochdale Township Action and Resources Committee
Each Township Committee has its own Township
fund. The Action and Resources Committee decide how we spend
the Rochdale Township's budget. Meetings take
place every two months.