Introduction to the Council

Formed in 2003, Bury St Edmunds Town Council comprises 17 Councillors to represent the nine wards of the town. Within this website you will read of the specific areas of service undertaken by the Town Council but undoubtedly its greatest strength is its commitment to meeting community needs and expectations. This commitment comes from the Council's desire to provide its townspeople with relevant services in a manner that is fair, equal, allows community enjoyment and gives value for money. In support of this vision, the Council seeks to fulfill its statutory and community requirements, working with the community and in partnership.

Bury St Edmunds Town Council deals with the town of Bury St Edmunds only and as a Parish/Town council is sometimes referred to as the ‘3rd tier of Local Government' after Suffolk County Council and West Suffolk Council (see below for more details).

The town itself is split into 9 Wards; Abbeygate, Eastgate, Minden, Moreton Hall, Out  Westgate, Southgate, St Olaves, Tollgate and Westgate and each ward has one or more Councillors.

Some changes to the Town's electoral Wards came into effect following the elections in May 2019 which means that the Town's wards at District (West Suffolk Council) and Town Council level are currently not the same, although it is anticipated that they will be realigned in 2023 following a 'Community Governance Review'.  At present, the Town Council has a very small Out Westgate Ward which does not exist at District level and half of Moreton Hall Ward is in the parish of Bury St Edmunds and the other half in the parish of ‘Rushbrooke with Rougham’, whereas at District level, Moreton Hall is a single ward.

The Town Council's offices are located at 79 Whiting Street, Bury St Edmunds and are normally staffed between 9am and 4pm Monday to Friday but commitments may mean that the office is unattended during these periods. For this reason it is suggested that before making a special trip, please contact one of the staff team.

For more information about how this Council and the other types of Council (district, borough and unitary) work visit:

Gov.uk website - Understand how your council works

National Association of Local Councils (NALC)

Suffolk Association of Local Councils (SALC)

Other people who can assist you

The townspeople of Bury St Edmunds also benefit from services provided by other organisations, for example:

• West Suffolk Council provides services in its local areas such as:
  • electoral registers;
  • environmental health;
  • housing;
  • housing benefit;
  • parks sport and leisure centres;
  • licensing;
  • planning and building control;
  • waste collection and recycling
• Suffolk County Council is responsible for major services which are provided countywide. These include:
  • Trading Standards;
  • Education and learning (including schools);
  • Environment including household waste recycling centres;
  • Suffolk Records Office;
  • Registration of births, marriages and deaths;
  • Adult Social care;
  • Roads and Transport;
  • Concessionary bus pass scheme
  • 'Blue badge' scheme
• Suffolk Constabulary
  • Lost & found property
• Local health services are delivered by West Suffolk Hospital NHS Trust and West Suffolk Clinical Commissioning Group
• Department for Work & Pensions
• Citizens' Advice Bureau