Villagers in the Forest of Dean are set to vote next month on whether to remove the remaining councillors from a parish council that has been beset by controversy and internal conflict.

The move concerns Longhope Parish Council, where a public poll will be held on May 11 following a recent village meeting at which residents voted to initiate a formal process aimed at removing the council’s three remaining members. Of the 40 people who attended that meeting, 11 voted in favour of triggering the procedure, which allows parishioners to demand a wider vote on the issue.

Forest of Dean District Council will organise and administer the parish poll. Confirmation of the vote was provided in a letter that appeared on the village notice board, signed by Longhope parish councillors Jacqueline Barker, Clive Williams and Peter McCoy.

The letter acknowledges the scale of the problems facing the council, stating that there have been numerous complaints about councillors’ conduct over the last year. It also refers to what it describes as “alleged financial irregularities” that have recently been identified within the council’s finances.

According to the letter, the parish council intends to refer these alleged irregularities to the police once formal approval has been secured at the next parish council meeting. The councillors also state that they plan to make a further approach to the police regarding other, unrelated matters.

However, the letter cautions residents against expecting an immediate change even if the poll supports the removal of the councillors. It says that stepping down straight away “would be irresponsible” as essential parish business would still need to be carried out and further disruption should be avoided.

The three councillors say they have agreed to remain in post temporarily in order to cooperate fully with any police investigation. Once those inquiries are concluded, they say they will then decide whether they wish to continue serving on the council.

The letter also highlights practical difficulties that have hampered the council’s work in recent months. At the time it was written, the parish council had yet to regain possession of its laptop, records and other equipment, significantly restricting its ability to function. It is now understood that this equipment has since been retrieved.

Longhope Parish Council has also struggled with staffing issues, with several seats left vacant. There were four vacancies on the council at the time the letter was published, compounding the challenges faced by the remaining members.

Concerns about the council’s conduct were previously acknowledged by Forest of Dean District Council. In a letter published in January and signed by the district council’s monitoring officer, she confirmed that multiple conduct complaints had been made. In two cases, she concluded that the behaviour complained of would have been serious enough to warrant further action.

However, she decided it was not in the public interest to pursue those cases, citing concerns that a formal investigation could worsen divisions in the village when stability was needed.

Longhope Parish Council has been approached for comment. District councillors representing the area have declined to comment.