Have a say on future rural services in the Melton borough

Their views are being sought through a Rural Community Connection Consultation, which has been launched by Melton Borough Council this week.

The aim is to allow these communities to share their views and experiences in order to understand where the council can strengthen communication, connection and service delivery in these areas.

An enhanced rural community offer is intended to support equity of access to services and information, to enable the authority to work with communities to ensure they have all that they need to thrive and improve.

Council leader, Councillor Pip Allnatt, said: “We want to support communities across our borough to thrive, and we know that sometimes our rural residents have different experiences and challenges to our town centre residents, and we want to understand how we can strengthen our communications, connection and service offer based on the feedback received.

"Please give us your thoughts by completing the survey - we are listening, and we will take the feedback we receive on board.”

The initiative builds on the work of the Rural Food Hub Network, which launched in February in collaboration with the Leicester South Foodbank.

This service is currently being run from eight rural locations with the help of local volunteers, offering an essential service to rural residents closer to their homes.

The council will utilise feedback from the new consultation to consider how and where it can improve connection, communication and service delivery to support rural communities and will also support future plans for collaboration with external partners.

To ensure it is as accessible as possible, the council has made the survey accessible both online and in paper format.

Paper versions of the survey will be available on request by contacting the Customer Service Team on 01664 502 502.

The consultation closes at midnight on November 22, and can be completed online by visiting haveyoursay.melton.gov.uk or by calling Melton Borough Council on 01664 502502 to find out where you can obtain a paper copy of the consultation.