A Parish Assembly in

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

is the decision-making body of local government, comprising ratepayers (including ''mandataires'') and electors of the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

. The Parish Assembly: *sets the annual domestic rate according to the budget proposed by the Connétable; *elects members of the municipality, including the Roads Committee, Roads Inspectors, Vingteniers, Constable's Officers; *recommends liquor licences to the licensing bench; *adopts road names; *authorises the Procureurs du Bien Public to enter into contracts in the name of the parish; *may discuss other matters as proposed by the Connétable, or at the written request of a number of members of the Assembly

Municipal structure

Each

is headed by a

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...

( French: ''Connétable'';

Jèrriais ( ; also known as the Jersey language, Jersey French and Jersey Norman French in English) is a Romance languages, Romance language and the traditional language of the Jersey people. It is a form of the Norman language spoken in Jersey, an isla ...

: ''Connêtabl'ye'') who is elected for a three-year period by the residents of the Parish. The Constable is assisted in all matters by a Parish

Municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

which consists of two Procureurs du Bien Public.

Vingtaines

The Parish is further divided into

Vingtaine A vingtaine (, literally "group of twenty" in French) is a political subdivision of Jersey. They are subdivisions of the various parishes of Jersey, and one, La Vingtaine de la Ville (The Vingtaine of the town), in Saint Helier is further divid ...

s (or in Saint Ouen cueillettes). Each vingtaine is represented by two

Vingtenier There is an Honorary Police ( French: ''Police Honorifique'') force in each of the twelve parishes of Jersey. Members of the Honorary Police are elected by the voters of the parish in which they serve, and are unpaid. Honorary Police officers h ...

s, two

Roads Inspector A ''Roads Inspector'' (Jèrriais: ''L's Înspecteurs des C'mîns''; French: ''Inspecteur des chemins'') is a statutory office in Jersey responsible for the maintenance of public highways. The Parish Assembly elects two roads inspectors for each ...

s and three Constable's Officers. All are elected and sworn officers of the

Royal Court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...

Roads Committee

Roads Committee In Jersey, the Roads Committee (French: ''Comité des Chemins'') is the highway authority for Parish roads in each Parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a dioces ...

of five elected principals is also available to offer advice on a range of issues; chiefly related to the roads.

Centenier There is an Honorary Police ( French: ''Police Honorifique'') force in each of the twelve parishes of Jersey. Members of the Honorary Police are elected by the voters of the parish in which they serve, and are unpaid. Honorary Police officers h ...

s are the highest ranking

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

officers in Jersey and are elected. In

, the Roads Committee (French: ''Comité des Chemins'') is the highway authority for Parish roads in each

Parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

. In accordance with the ''Loi (1914) sur la Voirie'' it superintends the repair and maintenance of by-roads in the Parish, establishes boundary stones, issues ''Choses Publiques'' licenses, examines planning applications that fall within its responsibilities, supervises refuse collection, adjudicates fines during the Visite du Branchage, and proposes new road names, as may be necessary, for approval by the Parish Assembly. The Connétable presides over the Roads Committee which also includes the Rector and three Principals of the Parish ive Principals for St Helierelected for a term of three years by the Parish Assembly. Instructions are passed to

s whose duty it is to ensure that the repairs are carried out. In St. Helier, the larger Roads Committee also undertakes additional non-statutory responsibilities with regard to parks and other matters, and acts, in the absence of a municipal council, as an advisory body to the Connétable. By convention, the two Procureur du Bien Public of St. Helier attend meetings of the Roads Committee, but cannot vote.

Roads Inspectors

The Parish Assembly elects two Roads Inspectors for each

r Cueillette in St Ouenfor a three-year term of office in accordance with the Loi (1914) sur la Voirie. Roads Inspectors are responsible for the repair of by-roads of the Parish and have to ensure the instructions of the

are carried out. In the

St Helier St Helier (; Jèrriais: ; ) is the Capital city, capital of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. It is the most populous of the twelve parishes of Jersey, with a population of 35,822, over one-third of the island' ...

, the Roads Inspectors also undertake additional non-statutory responsibilities with regard to the policing of infractions of the Road Traffic Act (Jersey) and other areas of the law within the parochial remit such as dog licensing and fly posting. They also serve as conduits of information to the Honorary Police. Their chief role is the annual

Visite du Branchage A Visite du Branchage is an inspection of roads in Jersey and Guernsey to ensure property owners have complied with the laws against vegetation encroaching onto the road. Jersey The Visite du Branchage takes place in each Parishes of Jersey, ...

and the triennial

Visite Royale The Courts of Jersey are responsible for the administration of justice in the Bailiwick of Jersey, one of the Channel Islands. They apply the Law of Jersey, law of the Island, which is a mixture of customary law and Law of Jersey#Sources of law, ...

. Supplementary bodies are also elected to serve specific needs; in the largest parish

these include; the Accounts Committee, the Welfare Board, and the

Youth Council Youth councils, also known as youth cabinets, youth assemblies or youth parliaments, are a form of youth voice engaged in community decision-making. They are appointed or elected bodies that exist on local, state, provincial, regional, national, ...

. Matters of import are brought before a gathering of the municipality and members of the public for consideration and vote.

Honorary Police Officers

There is an Honorary Police ( French: Police Honorifique) force in each

. Honorary Police officers have, for centuries, been elected by parishioners to assist the Connétable of the Parish to maintain law and order. Officers are elected as

s or Constable's Officers each with various duties and responsibilities.

s are the highest ranking

officers in Jersey and are elected. The Honorary Police provided the only law enforcement prior to the appointment of paid Police officers for the Parish of

Saint Helier St Helier (; Jèrriais: ; ) is the Capital city, capital of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. It is the most populous of the twelve parishes of Jersey, with a population of 35,822, over one-third of the island' ...

in 1853 and later to serve the whole Island. The Honorary Police still provide an essential and very valuable service to the Parish and community. Each Parish Assembly elects a number of

s and Constable's Officers who act in the name of the Connétable of the Parish in maintaining law and order. These officers are elected for a period of three years and take an oath in the Royal Court. All Honorary Police officers must live in the Parish at the time of their first election or, in the case of St Helier, be a ratepayer or mandataire of that Parish. If an officer moves out of the Parish during her/his term of office, s/he may continue her/his term of office with the approval of Her Majesty's Attorney General and the Connétable of the Parish and may stand for re-election provided there is no break in service. A person may be nominated for election as a member of the Honorary Police if, on the day of nomination, s/he is at least 20 years of age and less than 70 years of age. Honorary Police officers are on duty for one week at a time, usually every 3 or 4 weeks depending upon the roster within the Parish, and are on call 24 hours a day during that period. Honorary Police officers are elected to serve the Parish but in certain circumstances may assist or operate outside the Parish. Anyone standing for election as a member of the Honorary Police will have to undergo a criminal record check.

Ecclesiastical Assembly

In order to maintain the historic ties to the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

a Rectorate comprising the Connétable and Procureurs, and the Rector and Churchwardens oversees the operation of the largest church within the Parochial boundary. Decisions regarding the operation of the Church are made by an Ecclesiastical Assembly which is composed of the same persons as the Parish Assembly.

References

External links

*Loi (1804) au sujet des assemblées paroissiale

*Loi (1905) au sujet des assemblées paroissiale

{{Jersey topics Parochial politics of Jersey Parishes of Jersey Government of Jersey Political organisations based in Jersey Law of Jersey Youth councils