CHANGES to structures in Frome aimed at helping working people take on leadership roles have been put into force – including a £15,000 allowance for the council chair.

Frome Town Council (FTC) has gone away from the norms of administration, which sees the elected chair of the council also act as mayor.

Due to the commitment required to the role of mayor, many councillors who also have full-time jobs, or other responsibilities, often shy away from become chair – effectively leading the authority, and chairing meetings.

However, in Frome, councillors have voted to change the way they do things – including a bid to make it financially viable for people from all walks of life to pursue leadership roles.

At the Annual Council Meeting on May 21, FTC voted to appoint Cllr Fiona Barrows as chair for 2025/26, while Cllr Anita Collier was chosen as deputy chair – and mayor.

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“This dual approach marks a departure from the norm for town councils in the UK and has been proposed to enable Cllr Barrows and future councillors of working age or with other commitments to take on leadership roles within the council,” an FTC spokesperson said.

“Additionally, the move offers a fresh opportunity for Cllr Collier, who previously served as mayor in 2020/21, during the Covid-19 pandemic.”

After being selected for the role once again, Cllr Collier said: “I loved serving as your Mayor in 2020/2021, but the lockdown and some personal health issues meant many missed opportunities that I look forward to putting right.

“I’m excited to serve the town once again, and proud to be part of a town council which is truly ‘made differently’, a champion of equal opportunities, unafraid of a fresh approach.”

Town councillors also discussed allowances, and in particular the chair’s allowance, and judged the size of the chair’s allowance represented a significant barrier to access and could prevent some councillors from putting themselves forward for the role.

As a result, councillors voted to set the chair’s allowance at £15,000 for 2025/26, which a spokesperson said was “in recognition of the significant, consistent time commitment of around 20 hours per week associated with the role”.

The allowance for other councillors was set at £1,291 for 2025/26.

New council chair Fiona Barrows, right, and deputy chair/mayor, Anita Collier, at Frome Town Hall. Picture: FTC

Cllr Barrows said: “Until recently, I never imagined myself in this position – not because I doubted my abilities, but because I knew my financial situation would make it too difficult to fulfil the role.

“You haven’t just voted me in: you’ve also created the conditions that allow me to take on this role, and hopefully to do it justice.

“I believe inclusivity in this space really matters, because I genuinely believe local democracy really matters.

“I’m really excited for what I ambitiously hope will be the start of the next chapter at FTC and want to say thank you again for voting for me.”

Outgoing leader, Cllr Steve Tanner, said: “We want to make sure that anyone – regardless of income or background – can consider standing to be a councillor or chair of the council.

“By properly recognising the scale of the chair’s role and offering support to all councillors, we’re taking an important step towards a more inclusive and representative local democracy.

“The proposed chair’s allowance reflects the scale and complexity of the role in a large and ambitious town council with a £3.5m programme of work, which will only increase with the devolution of Somerset Council services.

“It is not a salary, nor does it make the chair an employee – but it would help defray the considerable costs involved in fulfilling the role effectively.”

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Also discussed at the 2025 Annual Council Meeting were a new committee structure, designed to free discussion space at council meetings, a new meeting calendar required for the new committees, and the announcement of an extraordinary meeting of FTC on June 4 to discuss next steps at Badgers Hill.

People can watch the full Annual Meeting of Frome Town Council back at bit.ly/ftc-annual-council-mtg-2025.