A new Sutton Coldfield town council would gradually increase its power if given resounding support in the up and coming ballot, it has been claimed.
Ballot papers are set to drop on the doormats of the Royal Town from this week asking its 76,000 voters if they want a town council to run local services like parks, community centres and litter collection.
Many want the town to set its own priorities for housing, planning and transport – but these powers are not on offer, although the town council would be consulted on planning applications.
But leading campaigner Ken Rushton said those additional powers could be sought through negotiation with Birmingham City Council if there was a strong show of support.
He said: “If the Sutton Town Council is approved, the lessons from other towns is that it will start off with the standard legalised responsibilities.
“Once we get up to speed, more powers will follow, and the size of the ‘yes’ majority can help with this.
“Sutton Coldfield can join towns like Royal Leamington Spa, Weston Super Mare, and Shrewsbury, with the same legalised independence.
“Its councillors will be independent of Birmingham, with our own funding that Birmingham cannot touch, and the cost? A loaf of bread per week, less than a pound.”
Since 1974 the Royal Town has been part of Birmingham City Council – but a significant number of locals believe that it should have more say over its own future.
The question on the ballot paper will be “Should a town council be established for the parliamentary constituency of Sutton Coldfield, within the city of Birmingham?”
If approved, households in Sutton Coldfield would have a precept added to their council tax bill – the average cost is about £50 per year, although nearby Shrewsbury charges £39 on a Band D property.
It is estimated the town council would raise about £1.8 million a year from this, of which £200,000 would be spent on staffing and administration.
For some this is a step on the road to the town breaking free of Birmingham City Council control, but for others is a costly extra tier of local government for which people will be charged but receive little in return.
The postal referendum, which takes place between June 26 and July 16, was launched after 10,000 people backed a petition, raised by the Referendum Group chaired by Mr Rushton, calling for greater independence for Sutton Coldfield.
Critics point out that many who voted for a town council were motivated by what they saw as the attack by Birmingham City Council on Sutton Coldfield’s green belt or the failure to deal with traffic congestion, both issues which would not be within the town council’s area of responsibility.
But Four Oaks councillor Anne Underwood, who chairs the Sutton Coldfield district committee, is warning residents to be certain about what is on offer and what the may be voting for – including the council tax precept. She said: “Some leaflets have indicated that establishing a town council in Sutton Coldfield would mean a split from Birmingham. This is untrue, Sutton would still be part of Birmingham and would still have its 12 local councillors in addition to any newly appointed town councillors – an additional tier of local government.
“A town council would have certain powers over issues such as street cleaning, stray dog capture and impounding, consultation on local planning applications, and many other issues that make life more comfortable. It would not have control over Sutton Park, waste collection, Wyndley Swimming Pool, golf courses, grounds maintenance, education, social care/health.
“As one of the local city councillors, I will not say which way I think residents should vote because we feel that the decision should be theirs, therefore it is important that people read and understand what is on offer.”
But she stressed that people should not throw their ballot papers away.
“It is important that as many votes are cast as possible so that the ballot is representative of the feelings of the majority of the residents of our Royal Town,” she added.
