Elections for all of Northumberland’s parish councils take place on 6 May 2021. If you would like to stand as a candidate for Carham Parish Council, please see the official Notice of Election, which explains how nomination papers can be obtained, how they must be returned, and exactly when they must be returned by. You can obtain a nomination pack from the Parish Clerk on 01890 850 336, but if you have a query about the process, please contact Northumberland County Council’s Elections Office on 01670 624 811.
100 Years of Parish Council Records
Carham Parish Council holds records of its meetings from 1921 to the present day, in the form of two minute books. The first of these books, covering the years 1921 to 1984, is now on our website.
The Parish Council Records page explains what the Parish Council was concerned with in each decade and tells something of the history of the parish, as well as giving access to scans of the original pages of the minute book.
The first meeting recorded in the minute book was on 18 March 1921 – one hundred years ago today.
Local Elections Jobs
Northumberland County Council’s Elections Office is recruiting for the elections that take place on 6 May. Available roles, which are paid, include polling station staff and safety marshalls across Northumberland, including in the north of the county. There are also roles for postal vote opening staff and verification and count staff at Blyth.
Job descriptions for most of these roles are on the Northumberland County Council Elections page – click on 2021 Police and Crime Commissioner, County and Parish elections and go to General information to find them. To request further information about the safety marshall role, please email the Elections Office. To apply for a post, or posts, complete the online application form which is underneath the job descriptions.
The Elections Office advises that Public Health for England guidance on Covid-19 will be adhered to at this election and you may be required to use appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) which will be provided where it is deemed necessary.
Census 2021
The census is carried out by the Office for National Statistics and takes place every ten years. Census day is Sunday 21 March, and census forms need to be completed on that day or as soon as possible afterwards. You must complete the census by law. If you do not, or if you supply false information, you could be fined up to £1,000.
You can complete the census online or you can complete a paper census questionnaire.
To complete the census online, you need a unique access code. This will be sent to you by post. If it does not arrive, or if you mislay it, you can request a new access code by going to https://census.gov.uk and scrolling down the page to If you don’t have an access code. There is other useful information about the census on that page.
You do not have to complete the census online. You can request a paper census questionnaire by phoning the free helpline 0800 141 2021 or by going to https://census.gov.uk and scrolling down to If you want to fill out a paper census. Alternatively, you can ask someone you trust to order a paper questionnaire for you.
It is all right for someone you trust, like a family member or friend, to help you to complete the census, either online or on paper.
Parish Council Meeting
The next meeting of the Parish Council will be on Tuesday 9 March 2021 at 6.30 pm. You can find the agenda on our Meetings page.
This meeting is being held online, via Zoom. If you would like to attend, please contact the Parish Clerk for log-in details.
Waste Not, Want Not
Northumberland County Council’s garden waste kerbside collection service for 2021 will resume in March. For a single annual payment of £43, the service offers the opportunity to receive 20 garden waste collections over the main growing season, running from early March through to late November. For details, visit Northumberland’s garden waste page. The green waste that is collected is composted and the compost is available to buy. If you want to make your own compost, Northumberland County Council offers a range of bins with getcomposting.com. As well as standard compost bins for garden waste, the range includes wormeries and Hot Bins which you can use to make compost out of waste food.
Census 2021
The Office for National Statistics is hiring field staff across England and Wales for the 2021 Census. It is looking for individuals who have a good knowledge of their communities, with time to spare in March and April this year, for temporary Census Officer roles. We have not been able to establish whether jobs are available in this particular part of the county, but we have been told that it can be difficult to find suitable candidates to cover the more rural areas, so there may be opportunities that are within reach of those who live in Carham parish. To apply or to register your interest in this or another Census 2021 job, visit the census recruitment website.
Road Works
We have been advised of a Temporary Traffic Regulation Order as follows: 120401471 C20 Mindrum Mill Jnct to Cornhill Jnct.
Details of the disruption can be viewed here
Parish Council Meeting
The Parish Council will be meeting on Tuesday 12 January 2021 at 6.30 pm. You can find the agenda on our Meetings page.
This meeting is being held online, via Zoom. If you would like to attend, please contact the Parish Clerk for log-in details.
Christmas Church Services
The churches of St Cuthbert, St Helen and St Paul have published details of their Christmas church services including information about how Covid-19 restrictions will be met. In Carham there will be a carol service at St Cuthbert’s at 11.00 am on Sunday 20 December, and a Communion service at 9.30 am on Christmas day. Both services are open to all people, of any faith or none. For further information, contact the Church Warden, Peter Straker-Smith, on 01890 830 316.
