ONGOING issues at Culcheth and Glazebury Parish Council have resulted in the recently appointed clerk being instructed not to respond to emails from two independent councillors.
Responding to calls from Independent Councillor Neil Johnson calling on the Clerk to Culcheth and Glazebury Parish Council to “work with him, not against him” the parish council issued a statement saying the clerk had been instructed not to respond to any more emails from Cllr Johnson or another independent Cllr Bernie Kingston.
Reasons include the tone and language used in addressing the Clerk.
It follows on from the appointment of a new Parish Clerk, Ms Cheyvonne Bower (who is also a Parish Councillor at Croft), who commenced the post at the beginning of January. Previously a Labour Cllr. she stood down from the party and is now an Independent at Croft.
Since then, Cllr. Johnson, who was also a member of the Labour Party before standing down to become an independent after exposing plans for a traveller/gypsy site on his ward, says he has sent a number of email communications to the Clerk with requests for information relating to Parish Council matters. These include a number of queries raised by residents, as well as requests for details of financial transactions undertaken by the Parish Council.
He is yet to receive a single reply.
Cllr. Johnson said:”The Parish Clerk vowed to work with all councillors in her new role. Sadly, that has not been the case to date.
“I have sent a number of emails to the Clerk since she took up her role at the beginning of January. I have received no response to any of my communications.
“This is not acceptable. When I correspond with the Parish Council, I am doing so in my capacity as an elected representative of residents in Newchurch. A failure to respond is not a sleight against me, it is a sleight against the good people who I am there to represent.
“Any information I have sought from the Clerk is information that I am entitled to as a member of the Parish Council. Even if that were not the case, I have not even had the courtesy of a reply to explain why I am not entitled to it!
“This cannot continue. Paid employees of the Council are there to serve all elected members and support them in carrying out their representative duties. Political disagreements are not a matter for the Clerk, who should engage in a scrupulously neutral manner with my enquiries.
“I consider this continued lack of response to be a deliberate attempt to obstruct my work as a councillor. The Parish Council cannot claim that there is a backlog of emails, as I know that message sent after mine have received replies. I can only conclude, therefore, that they are being deliberately ignored.
“I now call on the Clerk publicly to put her personal bitterness and political outlook to one side and work constructively and collaboratively with me, not against me. I ask her to respond to each of my emails in an impartial manner and provide me with the information that I and local residents are seeking.
“What possible reason could she have to say no to this request?”
After being contacted by Warrington Worldwide/Culcheth Life Culcheth Parish Council issued a statement via the clerk stating: “Cllr Johnson hasn’t had responses to his emails because of his own behaviour and not because of the clerk or her ability to perform in her role.
Within four days of the clerk starting in her role, she had received two emails from Cllr Johnson and six from Cllr Kingston, which were deemed completely unacceptable by the Parish Council.
In particular, concerns were raised regarding:
The tone and language used in addressing the Clerk.
The imposition of deadlines and demands outside agreed governance processes.
Assertations of personal authority over the Clerk.
Allegations of bias or incompetence directed at the Clerk.
References to external enforcement or investigation made directly to the Clerk.
The emails questioned her suitability for the role, asked questions about her home, family and personal life and even advised her to go against advice from the Parish Council.
The clerk was advised on 8th January not to respond to any more emails from either Cllr Johnson or Cllr Kingston.
Following multiple further intimidating emails sent to the clerk on, an official letter was sent to both councillors from the vice chair instructing them to cease all communications with the clerk and to send all future requests to the chair and vice chair, who would deal with them accordingly. This was on the 18th January.
Both councillors have ignored this advice and continued to contact the clerk via email and discuss employment matters on social media and in the local press.
All councillors have a duty of care to employees and officers should be able to carry out their duties without intimidation or undue pressure.
If any councillor has a grievance with a member of staff, they should raise it with the chair using the correct procedures.
Responding to the Council’s statement Cllr. Kingston said: “Firstly, why has the PC chosen to mention me in their response to Cllr Johnson, who hasn’t mentioned me in his statement?
“This is a clear act of targeting the two Independent Councillors who are just that…INDEPENDENT!!
“I question the timing of my involvement in the Council’s response, following my revelation at January’s Parish Council Meeting of a new bank account being opened in Oct 2025, which has never appeared in any Minutes and not on Feb Agenda, and furthermore, a former employee was included as a Signatory!
“Criticism and challenges are perfectly acceptable, sadly, eight Members of the Parish Council, along with the new Clerk and Temporary Admin Assistant, previously seem unable to respond to any and view a legitimate response as railing against me with attempted defamatory character assassinations in the media and socials.
“Since elected, I have been refused entry to the PC Office, have walked in on secret meetings, have been the subject of intimidatory humiliating cartoon posters pinned to Parish Boards displaying the Vice Chair’s Facebook Profile pic, the same Vice Chair who the PC state sent a directive to cease all communications to the Clerk, been targeted in an abhorrent, vile PC Public Statement last week, been stonewalled at Council Meetings by other Cllrs when raising issues, shut down by the Chair at every juncture, challenged as to the validity of my comments even when witnessed etc.
“Now the “Parish Council” (no name attached to their response) admits to instructing the Clerk within four days of starting her role, not to respond to emails from two Cllrs!
“Public engagement and interest with the Council increased dramatically after I was elected on Sept 25th, however, the 8 Members mentioned earlier have agreed to change the rules to the Public Forum section of Meetings so only Agenda items can be brought up, Fire Risk Assessors were employed (never mentioned in Minutes)in a bid to reduce capacities at Meeting venues, have voted to make PC full Meetings every other month rather than monthly and have done their utmost in emailed responses to Residents not to engage!
“This is totally disingenuous to the people who elected me in September with a huge majority…I am being prevented at every opportunity from carrying out my duties as a Parish Councillor, my campaign was won on a ticket of transparency, accountability, visibility and demanded change to the Parish Council following issues I had witnessed during my tenure as Parish Clerk.
“I note the Parish Council has failed to display any evidence to back up their false allegations nor make any reference to Regulations, Policies or Governance!
“This all begs the question, why can’t the eight other Members of the Parish Council be transparent and accountable?! The withholding of information, documentation etc is very concerning behaviour by a Public Body and as such, sometimes needs calling out and addressing in the interests of democracy.
“I still await a lot of requested documentation on various issues the Chair announced at the October meeting that as a Cllr. I was entitled to and so should write in to the Clerk, there was no Clerk at that time and had no idea who I was communicating with.
“The Parish Council has been shrouded in mystery for many years, now they are being challenged by Independents and public to be transparent and DEMOCRATIC, they see fit to hurl personal attacks. Why? What are they hiding??
“This is a deliberate attempt to discredit two Independent Cllrs rather than engage in debate!!
The issues are likely to be aired at a meeting of the parish council this evening (Tuesday) at 7 pm at Culcheth Methodist Church.
