They tend to be made up of the good and the great of the village - those who are willing to sacrifice their spare time to volunteer and do their bit on the lowest rung of local democracy.
But it seems that Norfolk's parish councils - which deal with issues like dog poo bins, street lighting and allotments - are increasingly becoming hotbeds of controversy and dispute.
New figures show that in one district - West Norfolk - the number of complaints against parish councillors has doubled in the last year.
And a string of recent high profile rows throughout the county suggests the acrimony is not restricted to just one area.
Among the West Norfolk parish and town councils to have seen recent turmoil are Methwold, Norfolk's 'Chelsea-on-Sea' (Burnham Market), nearby Brancaster and Downham Market.
Accusations of disrespect, bullying and bringing the council into disrepute are among the most common complaints.
According to West Norfolk Council's papers, these have risen from 17 in 2022 to 32 this year.
While last year the majority of complaints were made by councillors against other councillors, this year about two-thirds were made by members of the public.
It is an issue that seems to be replicated across the county with members' fallouts frequently coming to light.
South Norfolk Council has even launched an investigation into what is happening in its villages after mass resignations on Spooner Row and Geldeston parish councils.
But while there may be troublemakers causing problems for local communities, there is very little that can be done to oust them as there are no powers to suspend councillors and conduct investigations can take a number of years to be completed.
THE PROBLEM COUNCILS
Methwold, a rural farming community, is known as the most unruly parish in west Norfolk.
In 2022, six complaints were made against just two councillors, ranging from bullying, bringing the council into dispute, bullying on social media and misuse of position.
The councillors at the centre of the complaints have since resigned but according to Alun Ryves, borough councillor for the ward, these disgruntled villagers now continue to make complaints as members of the public.
The frequent complaints have cost the council thousands of pounds in legal fees, with a small group of villagers blamed for conducting a campaign of disruption.
BRANCASTER AND BURNHAM MARKET
They are both among the most exclusive communities in Norfolk.
But the two coastal second-home hotspots - Brancaster and Burnham Market - have had the second-highest number of complaints each in 2022.
In Brancaster, councillors have been accused of acting disrespectfully on three separate occasions.
While in Burnham Market, two councillors have come under fire for a number of different complaints, including disrespect to other members, breach of confidentiality, conflict of interest and misuse of position.
DOWNHAM MARKET
There have been two years of turmoil at Downham Market's town council, which culminated in eight members quitting amid claims of bullying.
The allegations were aimed at Doug Lawson, the deputy mayor, who blasted them as a "load of tosh" before later standing down in March this year.
The council's members were hit with three reports of disrespectful behaviour in 2022.
NOT JUST WEST NORFOLK
Elsewhere in Norfolk, members of Geldeston’s parish authority quit by leaving an open letter on the village notice board, in an attack on the one solitary remaining member – John Crowfoot.
Mr Crowfoot eventually quit himself and was replaced by many of the councillors who had left the authority in protest against him.
While in Spooner Row near Wymondham, just three members remain of the seven elected in May, following a rift over access to the council's website and arguments about how the council's money was being spent.
There was also a mutiny in Mundesley, which saw four parish councillors quit en masse in protest at the council's management, which had spent thousands of pounds on legal fees.
WHAT CAN BE DONE?
The borough council is now looking at ways it can combat the unruly nature of some authorities, with publically naming and shaming problem councillors as one idea put forward.
It is hoped that by putting details of the complaints into the public domain, it may act as a deterrent for the troublemakers.
A new role could also be created, which would see a crack team of councillors trained in dealing with conflict be parachuted in to help resolve disagreements before they escalate.
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