Statutory and non-statutory guidance on democracy within principal councils – Part 4: governance and scrutiny
Explains what county and county borough (principal) councils must do to meet relevant law in Wales.
First published: 7 July 2023
Last updated: 7 August 2023
Sections
I have sent an email to the Democratic Services Department asking if the Council and its officers have received and actioned this guidance.
Hyperlink to Part 4 : Guidance on Governance and Scrutiny
Hyperlink to all Parts
Contents
- Part 1: about this guidance
- Part 2: members’ support, training and development
- Part 3: public participation; strategies and petitions
- Part 4: governance and scrutiny
Purpose of this Guidance
This guidance is to support councils in the preparation and maintenance of their constitutions.
Status of this Guidance
This statutory guidance is issued under section 38 of the Local Government Act 2000. A local authority (a county or county borough council in Wales), elected mayor or an executive leader must have regard to it.
Extracts from the Guidance
Some really good advice, especially for the Senior Officers and Councillors at Merthyr Council.
Innovation in how agendas and paperwork are produced and presented.
Innovation and Creativity
The removal of the general requirement to provide information in hard copy by default invites the possibility for more innovation and creativity.
Better engagement with the public and other authorities.
This is not innovation for its own sake, but innovation designed to better engage the public in the work of relevant authorities.
Follow and track Council Decisions
Local people will be able to follow and track the way that discussions are had, and decisions made, entirely online.
Experiment with new technology to make it easier to navigate the decision making process.
The removal of hard copy notices will allow relevant authorities to experiment with the use of technology to make navigating the decision-making process, in particular, easier.
Make information more accessible for councillors, other committee participants, and members of the public to engage in formal business.
Relevant authorities may wish to consider how information might be made more accessible through creative use of committee content management systems to present information differently for example, by moving away from the production of “agenda report packs” as a single PDF and towards the use of more accessible files, and file formats, which help both councillors, other meeting participants and members of the public to engage in formal business.
Think about the way minutes are drafted and presented.
This may include thinking about the way that minutes are drafted and presented, providing links to the substantive reports discussed, and also with the relevant section of the recording or broadcast of the meeting.
Merthyr Council Cover-up 