Lincolnshire County Council provides a simple website platform that parish and town councils can use to publish local information online.
This service is offered voluntarily by the council to support parishes that may not have the resources to create or manage their own website. The platform enables parish councils to share key information with residents, such as meeting dates, agendas, minutes and local news.
Support and responsibilities
The parish website platform is provided free of charge, but it comes with limited support.
Parish and town councils using the service are responsible for:
- managing and updating their own website content
- ensuring information published is accurate and up to date
- meeting any legal requirements that apply to parish council websites
Lincolnshire County Council provides the hosting platform and basic website structure but does not manage day to day content on behalf of parishes.
Governance and standards
All parish and town council websites hosted within the Lincolnshire County Council platform must follow the council’s governance requirements. This includes compliance with relevant legislation and guidance, such as:
- accessibility standards for public sector websites
- data protection requirements
- appropriate and lawful content
Parish councils remain responsible for the information published on their website. Content must be accurate, lawful and suitable for public access.
Lincolnshire County Council reserves the right to request changes or remove content where governance standards are not met, or where content may create legal or reputational risks.
Using another website provider
Parish and town councils are not required to use this service and are free to use any website provider or supplier they choose.
However, Lincolnshire County Council cannot provide support, advice or technical assistance for websites that are not hosted on the council’s parish website platform.
Domain names
The parish website platform provides the website structure and hosting on Lincolnshire County Council servers, but we do not provide or manage custom domain names (for example, www.yourparish.gov.uk).
We do not support DNS setups or any configuration where a parish’s domain acts as the primary website. All websites on the council platform are hosted on the council’s domain, and parishes must use the platform as provided.
Lincolnshire County Council cannot set up, manage, or provide support for custom domains.
Contact
If your parish or town council would like to request a website on this platform, or if you have questions about the service, please contact:
Digital Communications Team
Email: digital@lincolnshire.gov.uk
Please note that support is limited to websites hosted within the Lincolnshire County Council parish website platform.
Request a parish website
If your parish or town council would like to request a website using the Lincolnshire County Council platform, please contact the Digital Communications Team.
When making a request, please include:
- the name of the parish or town council
- a contact name and role within the council
- an email address for the person who will manage the website
- confirmation that the parish council agrees to follow the platform’s governance and content standards
Once approved, the Digital Communications Team will create the website structure and provide access for parish representatives to manage their own content.
Please note that setup times may vary depending on demand.
Expected content on parish websites
Parish councils are responsible for ensuring their website contains the information required by law and relevant guidance. This may include, but is not limited to:
- meeting agendas
- meeting minutes
- contact details for the parish council
- councillor information
- financial information and transparency documents
- policies and governance documents
Parish councils should ensure that information is kept up to date and published in line with relevant transparency requirements for parish and town councils.