Ware Town Council

What Ware Town Council does

Ware Town Council is the first tier of local government for the town of Ware in Hertfordshire, England, serving approximately 19,000 residents across an area of about 1,051 hectares. Established in 1974 as the successor authority to the Ware Urban District Council under the Local Government Act 1972, it operates as a statutory parish-level public body with prescribed powers over planning consultation, allotment provision, community facilities, and civil representation. The council is led by 11 elected councillors representing five wards and is administered by a Town Clerk managing 16 staff. As sole managing trustee of The Priory Charity, the council holds and operates a distinctive heritage asset portfolio including the medieval Ware Priory (founded 1338, donated to the town in 1920), Fletcher's Lea community venue, the Priory Lido (one of few remaining outdoor pools in Hertfordshire, originally built in 1934 and refurbished for £1M in 2023), a concrete skatepark, a children's play park, two allotment sites, and a cemetery.

The council's service portfolio spans recreational facilities (Lido, skatepark, playpark), community venues (Priory and Fletcher's Lea weddings and events licensed since 1995), statutory services (cemetery, allotments), public safety (24/7 CCTV with direct police feed), sustainability infrastructure (EV charging via Fuuse, Ware Shares tool library via Library of Things), and community programmes (grants, neighbourhood planning, town twinning with Wülfrath, Germany and Cormeilles-en-Parisis, France). Its technology stack is standard public-sector infrastructure — the waretowncouncil.gov.uk website using Ninja Forms for submissions, Google services for maps and reCAPTCHA, Lemon Booking for Lido sessions, Fuuse for EV charging, and Zap-Maps for live charger status — with no proprietary technology layer and no AI/ML deployment beyond a recently adopted AI policy.

The council's revenue model is anchored on the council tax precept, a mandatory recurring levy of £2,059,436 for 2025-26 (Band D cost of £271.90 per year, £5.21 per week) collected on its behalf by East Herts District Council. This is supplemented by transactional income from venue hire, Lido admissions, allotment rents (£9.50-£10.50 per pole), burial fees, EV charging (£0.55/kWh), and external grants including Section 106 planning contributions and Public Work Loan Board borrowings for capital projects. The council receives no central government revenue support and retains no business rates. The customer base is geographically captive to Ware residents, with secondary commercial segments comprising event hirers, funeral directors, allotment tenants, and grant-receiving local organisations. The council is currently participating in the Hertfordshire Local Government Reorganisation, with structural changes expected from April 2028.

Name

Ware Town Council

Legal name

Ware Town Council

Website

https://waretowncouncil.gov.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ware Town Council is a statutory UK parish-level local government authority serving approximately 19,000 residents of Ware, Hertfordshire, funded primarily by a £2.06 million council tax precept and operating heritage venues, recreational facilities, allotments, and community services through 16 staff and 11 elected councillors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Government Services

NAICS

Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (71219), Landscaping Services (56173)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings (7340), Sanitary Services (4950), Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services (BPAIACAI)

Keywords

• Local government services
• Community facility management
• Recreational facility operations
• Cemetery and allotment services
• Public space management

Headquarters

HQ city

Ware

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Council Tax Precept: The council precepts on East Herts District Council for the amount of monies estimated to be required for Town Council purposes each financial year. The total precept for 2025-26 was £2,059,436. This is the primary funding source, collected as part of Council Tax from Ware householders.
2. Service Income: Income generated from council services including Priory hospitality operation, Lido income, allotment rents, and burial fees. These service charges supplement the precept funding.
3. Grants and External Funding: The council seeks external funding and grant opportunities where available. This includes Section 106 funding from planning obligations, Public Work Loan Board for major projects, and various community grants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Ware Town Council provides statutory local government services and community facility management to approximately 19,000 residents of Ware, Hertfordshire. Core offerings include venue hire at Ware Priory and Fletcher's Lea, recreational facilities (Priory Lido heated outdoor pool, concrete skatepark, inclusive play park), cemetery and allotment management, town centre CCTV monitoring, EV charging, the Ware Shares tool rental library, and a community grants programme.

Product overview

Ware Town Council provides a portfolio of community services and recreational facilities as a UK local government authority. The core offering includes venue hire (Ware Priory and Fletcher's Lea), recreational facilities (Lido outdoor pool, skatepark, play park), essential services (cemetery, allotments), public safety infrastructure (CCTV), and sustainability initiatives (EV charging, tool sharing). The Priory venue and Lido represent the council's flagship facilities for events and leisure, while community programmes like Ware Shares and grants support local organisations. The council also fulfils statutory planning consultation and local government administrative functions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Priory Lido: Heated open-air swimming pool situated in the grounds of Ware Priory, one of the few remaining lidos in Hertfordshire, built in 1934
• Ware Shares
• Ware Priory
• Fletcher's Lea

Products and services

• Ware Priory and Fletcher's Lea Venue Hire
• Priory Lido
• Priory Skatepark
• Priory Play Park
• Ware Cemetery Services
• Allotments
• Electric Vehicle Charging
• Town Centre CCTV
• Ware Shares Tool Library
• Environment and Sustainability Services
• Community Grants Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• 91% majority vote approving Ware Neighbourhood Plan at September 2023 referendum (2221 YES votes, 225 NO votes, 16.6% turnout)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability1 record

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered supporting, core and minor.

• Library of ThingssupportingTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2025Technology partner providing the rental platform for Ware Shares tool library initiative. Council operates tool rental service from Wodson Park Sports & Leisure Centre lockers.
• Wodson Park Sports & Leisure CentresupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Host venue for Ware Shares tool rental library. Self-service tool lockers located in Wodson Park foyer. Partnership enables community tool sharing initiative.
• BetongparkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Skatepark construction company with deep roots in the skateboarding community. Collaborated with the council, public consultation attendees, user groups including Youth Herts, Active Herts, Ware Street Crew, and East Herts Youth Strategy Group to design and build a concrete skatepark replacing wooden ramps.
• Active East HertssupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Sports and leisure development organisation consulted during skatepark design process. Provided input on features suitable for all ages and abilities.
• Hertfordshire County Council Services for Young PeoplesupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021County council youth services team involved in skatepark consultation and design process, particularly through the Youth Forum for Ware and Hertford and detached youth work team.
• East Herts District CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partnered with Ware Town Council to secure Section 106 funding from planning obligations for the skatepark project. Infrastructure Contributions & Spend Manager Jackie Bruce involved in project oversight.
• Pure Evil (Charles Uzzell Edwards)minorOthers · 1 January 2021Street artist who attended skatepark opening and created custom 'Skate Ware' design gifted to the council. Design reproduced on t-shirts with proceeds going to Ware youth charities and groups.
• Wülfrath, Germany and Cormeilles-en-Parisis, FrancecoreOthers · 1 January 2021Official twin towns of Ware supported by the council through Town Twinning Committee, fostering cross-cultural friendships and community links.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Buntingford Town Council: Small Hertfordshire town council offering a directly comparable portfolio of statutory services, allotments, cemetery, and recreational facilities under the same Local Government Act 1972 framework.
• Sawbridgeworth Town Council: Small Hertfordshire town council with similar statutory remit, service portfolio (allotments, cemetery, recreation, grants), and East Herts District exposure. Direct peer for benchmarking governance and reorganisation exposure.
• Bishop's Stortford Town Council: East Herts District peer town council serving a similar-sized Hertfordshire community. Operates an analogous portfolio of venues, recreation facilities, allotments, and cemetery services, with the same statutory powers and same precept funding model.
• Hertford Town Council: Neighbouring Hertfordshire town council serving Hertford (a similar-sized market town). Operates the same statutory framework under the Local Government Act 1972, comparable service portfolio including venues, parks, allotments, and cemetery, and competes for the same Hertfordshire reorganisation outcome.
• Hoddesdon Town Council: Hertfordshire town council (Borough of Broxbourne) of comparable scale. Operates a parallel service portfolio including venues, parks, allotments, and cemetery services funded through precept.
• Royston Town Council: Adjacent Hertfordshire town council of similar scale. Directly comparable on venue management, allotment operations, precept-funded community grants, and exposure to Hertfordshire local government reorganisation.

Broad incumbents

• East Herts District Council: Higher-tier local authority that collects Ware Town Council's precept on its behalf and is the planning authority for the Ware Neighbourhood Plan. Provides the institutional framework within which Ware Town Council operates and is a key reorganisation counterparty.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/WareTownCouncil
• Instagraminstagram.com/waretowncouncil
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ware-town-council

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ware Town Council