Village revolt over 'invisible' Congham parish councillors

Villagers in Congham have formed an action group, the Congham Residents' Action Partnership (CRAP), which is calling for the resignation of the four-strong authority to make way for fresh blood.

It has complained to West Norfolk Council's monitoring officer, asking for "advice and guidance" on how the councillors could be removed.

The unrest - which has led to some fiery meetings - follows a number of gripes and underlying tensions between villagers.

However, it has flared up now as part of the fall-out from a long-running saga after a nearby former railway bridge was 'infilled' with concrete by National Highways.

Many in the village were up in arms after their parish council supported moves to have the material removed.

They have complained they were not consulted before the council supported West Norfolk Council at a five-day public inquiry over the issue, which later concluded the concrete should remain in place.The former railway bridge which has been filled in at Congham, near King's Lynn (Image: Chris Bishop)

BRIDGE AND TROUBLED PLOTTERS

CRAP chair Alistair Macdonald said the parish council did not canvass villagers for their opinions before supporting the borough in calling for material to be removed from the bridge.

Mr Macdonald said this had caused "simmering discontent" because removing the infill would have meant St Andrews Lane, the road it carries over the former King's Lynn to Fakenham  rail line, being closed for weeks.

He said that at an earlier meeting at his home he told parish council chair Michael de Whalley the council had lost the support of the village and he should stand down along with fellow councillors.

Alistair Macdonald on the railway bridge at Congham (Image: Chris Bishop)

"He refused, accused me of ambushing him, thumped the kitchen table as he further accused me of bullying the village into signing and shouted at me for 10 minutes before storming out," he said.

"The village's biggest gripe is that our councillors are invisible. Mr de Whalley and another councillor don't even live in the village, the two that do are very rarely seen."

CHAIRMAN FIGHTS BACK

But Mr de Whalley said: "His opening gambit when I asked how I could help him was 'you should resign.

"Is saying to someone as your opening gambit 'you should resign' a polite opening statement?"

While he did not elaborate further on the meeting with Mr Macdonald, he said he would not be resigning.

Congham Parish Council chairman Michael de Whalley (Image: Chris Bishop)

STORMY MEETING

Matters came to a head at a heated parish council meeting attended by more than 20 residents shortly afterwards.

It was suspended by Mr de Whalley after he was repeatedly interrupted when he tried to read out a statement about the bridge infill.

Mr de Whalley, who had allowed objectors 15 minutes to speak beforehand, said: "There were five interruptions.

"At each point, I reminded them I would have to ask them to leave if they continued to interrupt.

From left Mike Russell, Jim Lawrence and Alistair Macdonald beside the village's new display board - which was paid for by a grant (Image: Chris Bishop)

"I suspended the meeting because we were unable to conduct parish council business."

PLENTY OF VISIBILITY... AND PROJECTOR HELP

Mr de Whalley denied councillors were "invisible". He said he had turned out to a number of events, including laying a wreath on behalf of the parish on Remembrance Sunday, a village litter pick and a talk by Mr Macdonald on an expedition to Mount Everest, at which he showed him how to use the projector.

He added villagers did not normally attend council meetings, but two were in the process of being co-opted to bolster numbers on the council.

"We want a friendly parish council," he said. "I want public engagement, I want people to come, I want to listen to people, but you mustn't disrupt meetings and must respect other people's opinions."

An aerial picture of the bridge at Congham after it was filled in (Image: HRE Group)

Current parish members include chair Mr de Whalley, who lives in neighbouring Roydon, vice-chair Norman Grief, who lives in Congham, Tom Tilbrook, who lives in Roydon and Linda Grange, who lives in Congham.

Mr de Whalley also sits on Roydon and Leziate parish councils and is also a portfolio holder on West Norfolk Council.

OTHER GRIEVANCES

Other grievances from CRAP include plans to put a bike stand near village pub The Anvil, which some regard as a waste of money as the village is off the tourist trail and a new £4,000 village display board.

Mr de Whalley said neither were being paid for by the parish council, with the cost of both being covered by grants.

The bridge before it was filled in (Image: Richard Humphrey)

Mr Macdonald and other villagers met recently to discuss their next move.

"We need to bring back democracy to this village - it definitely doesn't have it at the moment," he said. "We want our parish council back."

Fellow villager Mike Russell said: "They must be parishioners, as I understand two of them are not of this village."

Neighbour Jim Lawrence said: "A village deserves to have a parish council that works for them, acting on consensus."

There has been no parish council election in Congham for more than a decade. 

Not enough people stood at the 2011, 2015, 2019 or 2023 local elections to require a vote.