Parishes crying out for douzeniers and constables

The search is on for eight parish constables and more than 40 douzeniers, with candidates needing to be put forward by Monday afternoon.

Officials from parishes across the island have said they were concerned over a lack of enquiries for the roles, especially from new faces.

St Martin’s constable David Beausire said that so far no one had put their hat in the ring for one of the three douzaine positions or a constable's position available in his parish.

‘We are not too concerned so far as people do tend to leave it until the last minute,’ he said.

‘However, it would be great to see some new faces and get some new blood.

‘People need to realise that you can be on a douzaine and still have a full-time job.

‘I would really encourage younger people especially to think about becoming a douzenier, as it’s a great chance to pass on some of that local knowledge.’

Mr Beausire said he had learnt a huge amount from the older douzeniers in St Martin’s in his six years as a constable.

‘The constable's job is slightly more involved but for the douzeniers it’s really only an evening a month and a little time for inspections,’ he said.

‘Everyone needs to realise without people coming forward to be constables and the douzaine, the parishes would just not run.’

He added that he was more than happy for people to get in touch with the parish office for a chat about what the job entailed.

Barry Cash, dean of the douzaine at St Peter Port, who has been volunteering for the parish for more than 20 years, said it had actually produced a brochure so potential new recruits could learn about the roles.

The parish is looking for parishioners to stand for six of 20 douzenier positions in the parish, as well as electing a new constable.

‘It’s really about putting in what time you have,’ he said.

‘There are meetings once a month you need to attend and a little reading to go with that, but then it is about being there to serve the parishioners.

‘And then there are the jobs like checking the streams, which in Town are really fascinating. The job will certainly take you to places you have never seen before.’

n Contact the parish for details on eligibility to stand and proposals.

Nominations need to be submitted by Monday 28 October, with election taking place on Wednesday 6 November.