The charter initiative was conceived in the Rural White Paper 2000. It sets out how County and District Councils will work in partnership with Parish and Town Councils (P&TCs), and some additional benefits and responsibilities that P&TCs can expect from achieving Quality Parish Status.

A model charter, which was produced by the ODPM, is available on the Charter guidance page. It is this model that formed the basis of the negotiations between all parties, resulting in the Councils’ Charter in Worcestershire.

Arrangements with Quality P&TCs over partnership working and devolution of particular functions and services will need local individual discussion and agreement. There may also be scope for joint working between two or more Quality P&TCs.

The over-riding principle when taking decisions on the delegation of services and functions is to secure best value for local communities. It is understandable that Principal Authorities will require certain undertakings from P&TCs before entering into any delegated arrangements. The charter sets out to define a set of basic undertakings, and P&TCs will be required to individually adopt the charter as a sign of commitment. There may be additional local undertakings at district level, to be agreed between the District Council and relevant P&TCs.

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