A seaside town has taken another step closer to getting its first dedicated council for more than 50 years.

Swale borough councillors have voted to begin the final round of consultations on whether it should rekindle a local authority specifically for Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey.

All of the town’s 8,000 registered electors will receive letters during April and May asking for comments on the recommendations.

Views will be fed back to Swale councillors in June.

If the plans are approved, residents could be voting for their own councillors in May next year.

In a questionnaire, already filled in by nearly 2,000 residents, 1,406 said they wanted their own council.

It is planned to create a separate parish for Sheerness with its own town council comprising nine councillors.

Cllr Mike Henderson (Priory, Ind) said he was “surprised and delighted” a quarter of the town’s 8,000 registered electors had already responded but added: “I sincerely hope councillors will be elected as independents and party politics won’t be allowed to get in the way.”

Cllr Cameron Beart, (Halfway and Queenborough, Con) welcomed the move but warned: “I still have real concerns people don’t understand what powers a town council will have. It will not replace Swale council. That should be made clear otherwise some people could be in for a shock.”

Labour leader Cllr Roger Truelove (Homewood) said he was happy to go to the next stage so residents could have a “proper vote” instead of filling in a “scrap of paper.”

Cllr Angela Harrison (Sheerness, Lab) said: “There is so much misunderstanding about what a town council can and can’t do. The details need to be spelled out in words of one syllable and then go to a full postal vote.”

Swale’s leader Cllr Andrew Bowles (Boughton and Courtenay, Con) said the previous replies from residents were a “ringing endorsement” that Sheerness voters wanted a bigger say in their community.

Cllr Mike Baldock (Borden and Grove Park, Ind) welcomed the move but said: “I am surprised there will only be nine members. My own parish council at Borden has 13.”

Cllr Mike Whiting (Teynham and Lynsted, Con) said: “I have long felt the urban areas of the borough have been under-represented. I was concerned the last attempt was scuppered by Labour who put out the facts as they saw them.”

Only one councillor, Labour’s Ghlin Whelan (Chalkwell), voted against the next stage.

The campaign was started by members of the Sheerness Town Team voluntary group which raised a 635-name petition of support in August.

Chairman Brian Spoor said: "We are delighted this has got this far.

"Sheerness residents and traders deserve a much stronger voice. For too long we have not had a say in how Sheppey's main town has been run or promoted. It was a thriving seaside resort in the 1960s but over the years our attractions have been stripped away, like our Welcome To Sheerness sign to the beach.

The retied businessman added: "Rival retail centres have been allowed to grow while little or no help has been given to our own struggling shopkeepers. We were promised £100,000 to help compete with Neats Courts retail park at Queenborough but that money is still locked away.

"The town needs to compete on a level playing field to attract new businesses and a town council can help do that.

"Of course, nothing is free. It is likely there will be a small extra cost. But all money raised in Sheerness will be spent in Sheerness. That is a promise."

The town, which has 7,870 voters, has not had its own council for 50 years since the Sheerness Urban District Council was swallowed by Queenborough In Sheppey Council.

That disappeared in 1974 when Sheppey merged with Sittingbourne and Faversham to form Swale Borough Council – although Faversham retained its own town council.

There are 36 parish and town councils in Swale. Precepts range from zero in Luddenham to £83 in Queenborough for Band D properties.

Faversham Town Council charges £53 a year. It is likely the town council would have one paid employer – a clerk.

Town councils can organise events and Christmas lights, promote tourism, monitor street lights, verges and cleaning, provide litter bins, run halls, community centres, sports facilities, parks, allotments, car parks and youth projects.

They are consulted on planning and add a voice for community issues. All members are elected by the community but are unpaid.

They have no control over roads or schools, except to comment on, and cannot replace the borough or county councils.

People have until Monday, May 21 to make comments by emailing cgrconsultations@swale.gov.uk or writing to Democratic Services, Swale Borough Council, Swale House, East Street, Sittingbourne, ME10 3HT.

Written comments addressed to Democratic Services can be handed into the Sheppey Gateway in Sheerness High Street.

For more information, visit www.swale.gov.uk/sheerness-cgr