The full political designation for Shimpling is:

 The Parish of Shimpling, in the Chadacre ward of Babergh District Council, within in the county of Suffolk and lies within the parliamentary constituency of South Suffolk.

Parish, Town and Community Councils are the most direct form of democracy in England and Wales, being the first tier of local government. .

This tier of local government is set to have more responsibilities placed upon it due to changes within the law relating to the Localism Act of 2011, the Audit and Accountability Act of 2014 and other legislation currently being laid before parliament. This will result in a busier Council - from a resident's perspective a more local place to access information and raise concerns.

The Council is an elected body with seven seats. We currently have 6 members. A list of Parish Councillors and their contact emails can be found here or using an option on the sidebar. Regular meetings are held 6 times a year but other meetings are sometimes arranged for specific purposes, as the need arises. Details of meetings can be found further down the page.

The Parish Council has a broad range of responsibilities, some of which are:

• Ensuring that the Parish is efficiently and economically run, using a proportion of the annual Council Tax income
• Providing statutory consultations on planning issues
• Maintaining footpaths
• Providing outdoor furniture - such as the benches around the parish
• Providing and maintaining litter and dog bins

An very important role for the Council is the Parish Clerk, who supports the workings of the Council and is also a further contact point for the public.  Shimpling's Clerk is Natasha Byford and can be contacted as follows:

• By email: Click here
• Post and by prior personal appointment: 4 Park Farm Cottages, Brettenham, Ipswich, IP7 7QP
• Telephone: 07940 223200

Please note that the Clerk works for the equivalent of one morning per week. As a consequence there may be a short delay in responding to any enquiries.

The Parish Council has important links to both the District and County Councils.  These are provided by Councillors Stephen Plumb and Michael Holt from Babergh District Council and Richard Kemp from Suffolk County Council.  All three regularly attend meetings of Shimpling Parish Council.

Currently our local parliamentary representative at Westminster is James Cartlidge MP.

Parish Council Meetings

Meetings take place on the second Monday of every alternate month. A list of the meeting dates for 2025/2026 can be found here.

They are held in the Village Hall on The Street, Shimpling (postcode IP29 4HS) and start at 7:00pm. Meetings tend to finish at around 9pm.

Members of the public are welcome to attend meetings and to address the Parish Council on matters relevant to the Parish or the remit of the Parish Council.  Details of Public Participation sessions at Parish Council Meetings can be found with the meeting dates document mentioned above.

The records from previous meetings, primarily minutes and agendas, can be found here or using an option on the sidebar.