Nowadays voluntary bodies like the Civic Society, funded by subscription, are needed as watchdogs over business on the one hand and local government on the other. We can alert the public when the distinctive qualities of the town look like being sacrificed to short-term ends. We offer a forum for discussion between opposing interests.

When necessary, we organise campaigns of pressure and protest, opposing unsightly development proposals at public inquiry. To undertake this role, the Civic Society has professional backing: our working party of qualified architects and planners from the membership meets monthly to scrutinise every new planning application, sending comments and suggestions where necessary to the local authority. As an amenity society we are consulted by the District Council over major planning applications, such as those concerning proposed out-of-town retail shopping centres and supermarkets.

We are active in town-wide bodies such as Action Cirencester and in various Millennium projects; we look in careful detail at the effect on the environment of new proposals such as traffic schemes or industrial development. Our monthly meetings feature speakers on architectural, archaeological and conservation topics.