How we work at North Dorset District Council

Our shared vision for North Dorset

"Where thriving balanced and environmentally responsible communities in our market towns and surrounding villages build economic prosperity while safeguarding our unique surroundings"

This is underpinned by our core values: Take pride in our community; Value our people; and Take pride in our services, which help to shape the way that we work with our partners and local people.

Shaping our future

As a micro council employing in the region of 140 staff we see the Council's core role in the future will be to enable beneficial change in the district by influencing other agencies. On 19 December 2011 we approved our Shaping Our Future change programme which will take us on our next stage of development.

Mixed economy of services

We describe the way that we provide our services as a "mixed economy" which means that some are provided directly and an increasing proportion through shared service or partnership arrangements. This means that we are able to provide the best and most efficient fit for each of our services depending on local needs.

Community partnerships

We are proud of our award winning community partnerships that provide a strong voice for local communities. They are already at the cutting edge of localism and successfully support local communities to help themselves as well as feeding local concerns to us and partners so that they can influence policies and service delivery. We will continue to look to invest and build capacity in our communities so that they have more confidence to find solutions and help themselves

• Communications

  We recognise the importance of good communication at North Dorset and want to make sure it is at the heart of everything we do.

• Welcome to Customer Services at North Dorset District Council

  Customer Service is important to you and important to us. At North Dorset District Council we are striving to achieve excellence in customer service. We have a dedicated Customer Services Team who are ready to assist customers over the telephone, by email and face to face at our one-stop-shop.

• How North Dorset District Council works

  The council is made up of 33 councillors and all major decisions are made by them.