PERUSING the minutes of the most recent Annual Parish Meeting in Sparkford, you would be forgiven for concluding all was well in that corner of Somerset.

An apparent error in the dating of the accounts meant discussion of them was deferred; a report from the Somerset Councillor for the area once again flagged the financial struggles of the larger authority; while updates were received from various parish council committees and other groups.

The meeting, at Sparkford Parish Hall, ran for just 30 minutes.

However, the minutes don’t mention that the May 7 gathering – at 7.30pm – was followed by a regular Full Council meeting at 8pm which was dramatic. Very dramatic (in so far as parish councils in Somerset go).

For that meeting started a chain of events that saw five councillors resign – out of seven – including the chair, Ken Flood. So, at the meeting and in the following days, Sparkford lost 70% of its council – including the ‘leader’. The council’s website looks a tad sad, with just two names remaining on the ‘Councillors’ page – those of Trevor Tuck and Duke Westwood.

The resignations were; Councillors Ken Flood (chair), Larry Piper, Richard Squires and David Hazel, who resigned at the meeting, with Cllr Andrew Quick standing down in the following days.

As you might expect, the minutes from *that* meeting tell a different story to the seemingly sedate events of the annual gathering that preceded it.

Here, we have one account of what seems to have been a heated confrontation…

The notes tell of how, after getting underway, the first agenda point of the Full Council meeting was to “nominate and elect a chair”.

Things quickly unravelled, with the serving chair – Cllr Flood – informing those present that another member – Cllr Squires – had “wished to talk before the appointment of (a) chair and that he (Cllr Flood) had decided to resign”.

The account went on: “Mr (Cllr) Squires said due to one member of the council who had undermined the chair, council members were not prepared to stay on the council if that councillor was staying. (Cllr) Flood was standing down and leaving the meeting.”

A third member, Cllr Piper according to the minutes, had also tendered his resignation that morning and was leaving, with Cllr Squires “resigning in support of Cllr Flood”, while a fourth – Cllr Hazel – “also got up to walk out”.

The rather sparse page on the Sparkford Parish Council website listing councillors… Picture: sparkford-pc.gov.uk

As if that wasn’t dramatic enough, this is where things got really spicey, with the minutes recalling how Cllr Flood, on his way out, “felt the need to point his finger and shout at one of the two remaining councillors, making numerous accusations in front of eight members of the public”.

It was some list of allegations, none of which are contemplated here, but are included in the minutes – a public record, of a public meeting, and of undoubted public interest.

Further, in a claim truly befitting a parish council confrontation such as this, Cllr Flood “complained that (the accused) shouldn’t be a councillor as he didn’t live in the village”. (The minutes did point out the councillor concerned lives “within a three-mile radius of the village”.)

At that point, with so many councillors walking out, the council was “not quorate” (remember, there were only a couple left at this point), which means there were not enough representatives to make any decisions, so the meeting was closed at 8.30pm.

In summary then, during and in the days following that eventful meeting, five members of Sparkford Parish Council – out of total of seven – had gone – and nothing could be done.

As a result of all this, new councillors need to be found, obviously.

Often, in Sparkford and other places, this is done through a practice known as ‘co-option’. In short, if the number of folks standing for a seat on a council matches, or is below, the number of vacancies, they are installed as councillors. After all, there’s no need for an election, as they would all get on anyway.

It makes sense, because elections cost money – money many councils don’t really want to spend. In the case of the Sparkford poll, the costs have been estimated at around £6,000. For reference, the entire Sparkford Parish Council budgeted income for 2025/26, is £25,835. So if the authority pays for the whole thing, the election could absorb almost a quarter (23%) of the council’s entire income for the year.

So, for better or worse, co-option had been the ‘norm’ in Sparkford for years.

However, after nominations closed for the five vacancies, Somerset Council issued a public notice that there *would* be an election in Sparkford – on July 24.

Why? Because more than five people had been nominated. So now, the public has to choose.

A quick look at the list of people standing is interesting, because *all* of those who resigned in such dramatic fashion in May are among them.

Yes, those who chose to walk away, seemingly in protest, actually want to be elected (again).

The quintet feature in a list of eight candidates for the five spots.

Simple maths means at least two of them will be re-elected, whatever happens.

It begs the question: What was the point of resigning, if they fully intended to stand again, at an estimated cost to the taxpayer of £6,000?

These folks were already on the council. They didn’t need to resign. There didn’t need to be an election. But they chose to stand down, only to stand again. The reason cited for the resignation of at least one of them remains. So why do it?

We don’t know. We have asked those concerned, but as yet, have received no responses. We don’t know why Cllr Flood was upset with one particular person, or why those grievances could not be overcome.

We have no insight into what has gone on, and why, or how it bears on the upcoming election. We publish this merely to inform Sparkford residents – who are being asked to cast a vote – and make no judgement on what it all means. This is a matter of public interest, and all details here are in the public record.

At the time of writing, ahead of the July 24 election, three candidates have posted leaflets online or on the Sparkford parish noticeboard about their candidacy. None are from the councillors who resigned.

Jane Cattermull, Paul Harcourt and Richard Sealey are the candidates who did not resign in May…

One is from Paul Harcourt, who spoke of the decision of the five in a leaflet distributed around the village, saying: “For reasons only known to themselves, the same resignees have now forced a full, formal election – at significant cost to the parish/council tax payers – and nominated themselves to stand as candidates.”

Jane Cattermull, a military officer with experience in logistics planning, said she had a number of reasons for standing, including her experience in “planning to mitigate emergency situations” such as flooding, which she said could become “increasingly important”.

Another leaflet, issued by candidate Richard Sealey, said: “The five who resigned and walked out of the meeting on May 7 have since nominated themselves for re-election, causing an election at a cost of £6,000 to Sparkford Parish Council.

The three standing – who weren’t those who resigned in May – had “the aim to represent the people of Sparkford village and build a village community that we can all be proud of”, he added.

As we say, we have contacted the five councillors who stood down for their take on matters – but have not yet received a response. We’ll keep you updated.

The Sparkford Parish Council election takes place on Thursday, July 24, with voting open between 7am and 10pm.

We think there may be a bit more interest in the result than usual…

Five Sparkford Parish Councillors are to be elected from the following nominations:
Jane Cattermull
Ken Flood
Paul Vernon Harcourt
Dave Hazell
Larry Piper
Andrew Quick
Richard Sealey
Richard Squires

Please note, should you wish to vote, you will be required to bring photo ID to the polling station, along with a polling card. If you have not received a polling card – but are on the electoral register – you can still vote if you bring your ID to the polling station.

READ MORE: Politics news from your Somerset Leveller