Officers | bishopstokepc

The Clerk of a Parish Council is known as the "Proper Officer". This is a legal position which every Parish Council is required to fill. The Clerk is responsible for the day-to-day running of the Parish, for carrying out the lawful decisions of the Parish Council, and for providing advice, both legal and other, to the Council.

Bishopstoke's Clerk is David Wheal. He was appointed by the Council in late 2015 and began working for the Council on 1st January 2016. David is responsible for the overall running of Council business, managing the other officers and overseeing major projects, as well as writing Council policies and running the agenda for the Council and Committees. David has gained the Certificate in Local Council Administration, a qualification which enables the Parish Council to grant itself the General Power of Competence. This power allows the Council a much broader range of actions, effectively allowing it to do "whatever the man on the street would do".

David's other main role is to be the Responsible Finance Officer, or RFO, for Bishopstoke Parish Council which means he is responsible for the day-to-day running of the Council's finances and for ensuring that the financial regulations are followed, with the appropriate checks in place at all times.

David can be reached on 07368 487464, or by emailing clerk@bishopstokepc.org.

ALLOTMENTS & CEMETERIES OFFICER - Mr Tim Mellor

Tim joined the Council in July 2024 as the new Allotments and Cemeteries Officer. He quickly made an impact on the allotments, ensuring that unused plots are dealt with more quickly, and regularly visiting each site to make sure things are OK and to be available if an allotment holder needs to get hold of the Council. He has been working hard on bringing the new site at Sewall Drive to a point of readiness and that site officially opened on 1st October 2025.

To contact Tim with a question about allotments please email allotments@bishopstokepc.org, or alternatively see the Allotments pages on our website. Alternatively Tim can be phoned on 07444 798083.

Tim's other main responsibility is the cemeteries. He manages all the bookings for Bishopstoke Cemetery and is currently working on our plans for Stoke Common Cemetery which we expect to open in 2026. As part of the cemeteries role he also looks after the maintenance of the churchyards at St Mary's and Old St Mary's.

For enquiries about burials or anything relating to Bishopstoke Cemetery or the churchyards please contact cemeteries@bishopstokepc.org, see the Burial Board pages on the website, of phone him on 07949 068556.

Tim currently works from Monday to Thursday so please bear that in mind when contacting him.

ADMIN & EVENTS OFFICER - Mrs Emma Earl

Emma joined the Council in August 2024 as the new Committees, Communications and Events Officer. When this proved too much of a mouthful for anyone to both with it was shortened to Admin Officer for a while before we settled on Admin & Events! Emma has taken over the minuting of Council meetings and is responsible for their accuracy. She also looks after the Council's newsletter, socials and noticeboards.

As Events Officer, Emma helps the Carnival group with all of the admin involved in putting on Carnival She has also been busy putting together a string of events throughout the year ranging from free summer messy play sessions at our play areas, to commemorations of D Day, VE Day and VJ Day, as well as times when residents can come and meet the Councillors and Officers and here more about the projects we are working on.

If you have an idea for an event or would like the Parish Council to support your event, then please get in touch with Emma by emailing events@bishopstokepc.org, and if you would like to be involved with Carnival you can email admin@bishopstokecarnival.org.

For anything not related to events, Emma can be contacted by calling 07949 068532, or by emailing admin@bishopstokepc.org. This is also the address to use if you would like a poster put up on the noticeboards.

Emma currently works from Tuesday to Thursday so please bear this in mind when contacting her.

ASSETS OFFICER - Mrs Alex Duthie

Alex also joined the Council in August 2024 and is the new Assets Officer. She can often be seen around Bishopstoke inspecting our various play areas, or checking the various bins, benches, boards and bus stops to see if any maintenance is required.

Alex has overseen the replacement of a number of bins and benches around Bishopstoke, as well as organising all the necessary repairs when there are problems at the play areas. Major projects she is working on at the moment include the new Wheels Park at Glebe Meadow and planning for the new community building to replace the Memorial Hall, and there are further exciting projects to come.

To report a problem at one of our play areas please either email Alex at assets@bishopstokepc.org, call 07947 972954, or you can visit this page to use our online report form.

Alex currently only works on Tuesdays and Wednesday so please bear that in mind when contacting her.