A Community Engagement Manager (CEM) is available in every community area and we work closely with members of our respective area board. This includes facilitating the area board's meetings to make sure they are relevant to local priorities and to work with partners and members of the community between meetings to tackle these local priorities. CEMs work closely with their communities and really get to know them. They are experienced in developing projects, building relationships and putting together funding to to help build stronger communities. 

The area boards are a way of working to bring local decision making back into the heart of the community, with lots of opportunities for local people to get involved.  Meetings take place in each community area and between these meetings different task groups consisting of local people, Wiltshire Council staff and councillors tackle local issues and find solutions to take forward at the next area board. 

Area boards exist to work alongside other organisations to make things happen in the community. These groups can include town and parish councils, voluntary and community groups, youth organisations, sports clubs and local charities.  Area boards support these groups' work to meet local priorities.  Area boards wouldn't be able to achieve what they do without these partners working on the ground with them.

Area boards host events within the community approximately every three years where it listens to the views of a wide range of local residents.  This process culminates in a large public meeting which selects the priorities for the area board and community area, based on evidence provided by teams right across Wiltshire Council.  The area board adopts these and works hard with partners to develop projects that will address these priorities. You can find out more about this here.

An important role of the area boards is to provide grants to community groups via three separate funding schemes. Youth funding, which helps to provide positive activities for young people aged 13-19, or up to 25 with SEND.  Health and Wellbeing groups in each area help to award funding for services that support older or vulnerable people from our communities.  Finally, area boards hold capital funding that can support all types of local group to help purchase equipment, assets, refurbish existing buildings or build new ones. You can apply for an area board grant here.