The Town Council has signed a new agreement with Newtown Twinning Association to formalise the deal on town twinning.

Newtown & Llanllwchaiarn Town Council has signed a new Memorandum of Understanding with Newtown Twimming Association to carry out the town's twinning functions on their behalf.

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Newtown is currently twinned with Les Herbiers in France, following a proclamation signed on the 16th October 1999 by the Mayor of Newtown & Llanllwchaiarn, the Mayor of Les Herbies and President of Le Pay Des Herbiers.

Since then the town and the town council has collaborated on many fronts with most of the work being done by the Newtown Twinning Association, an enthuastic and active body which has a good relationship with the equivalant body in Les Herbies.

In March 2020, prior to the Covid pandemic the Resources Committee of the Council recommended “that Council moves to an ’enabling role’ for its contribution to town twinning, and enters a formal ‘enabling arrangement’ with Newtown Twinning Association (though not at the exclusion of any other body capable of entering such an agreement) which is conducive to financial clarity and good financial governance of both organisations".

The council says, by moving to a MoU between the two parties the intention is rather than seeing twinning as a council service, to see the council as enabler, to allow Newtown Twinning Association to work with the council to achieve the aims and objectives of twinning. The new agreement will go live in April 2023.

Town Clerk, Ed Humphreys said:

"Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn is fortunate to have such an active Newtown Twinning Association which has fostered strong links with Les Herbier which help promote the town abroad.  I expect visitors to the annual food festival will recall the French Village marquee as part of the exchange.  The town committed to twinning and the town council has committed through this MoU to support it".

The original proclamation is on display in the Town Council chamber in at it's offices in Broad Street.