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CANTERBURY CITY COUNCIL
GOVERNANCE COMMISSION
MEETING TO BE HELD ON MONDAY, 8 SEPTEMBER 2014
AT 7.30 PM IN THE GUILDHALL, WESTGATE, CANTERBURY
Distribution Independent Chairman: Chris Gay Councillors: Councillor Baker, Councillor S Cook, Councillor Cragg, Councillor Dixey,
Councillor Doyle, Councillor Fitter, Councillor Gilbey, Councillor Howes, Councillor Perkins and Councillor Wratten
Officers: Matthew Archer, Mark Ellender and Charlotte Hammersley
A G E N D A
Page (s)
1 Apologies for absence
2 Public speakers
If any members of the public wish to speak at the meeting please contact Democratic Services on 01227 862 594 before the meeting.
3 Terms of Reference
2 4
TO NOTE
4 Outline Commission methodology
5
TO CONSIDER
5 Committee structures operated by councils that have adopted the committee system since 2012
6 - 20
FOR INFORMATION
6 Previous City Council committee structure and current Executive structure
21 22
FOR INFORMATION
Document Pack
1
Developing a Committee System for Canterbury City Council
Commission Draft Terms of Reference
1. Purpose
At its meeting on 24 July 2014, Full Council passed a resolution committing the city council
to a committee system of governance for a period five years from the date of the
resolution. The committee system of governance will be implemented at the Annual
Council meeting in May 2015.
The purpose of this Commission is to design a committee system for recommendation to
Council that will deliver the business and democratic needs of the city council from the
Annual Council meeting in May 2015.
2. Chairmanship Chris Gay has been appointed the Independent Chair of the Commission.
The objective will be for the Commission to make recommendations to Council on the
new Committee System arrangements, but if necessary, final decisions regarding the
recommendations will be taken by the Chair in order to demonstrate that the
Commissions recommendations is as independent of political bias as possible. Majority
or minority recommendations may also be made by Panel Members in addition to those
made by the Chair, although there would be a presumption against that.
Final decisions regarding other matters relating to the Commission including the
methodology followed and the format and venue of meetings will be taken by the Chair,
having consulted the other members of the Commission.
3. Membership
The Commission will comprise the independent Chair, and the members of the councils
Political Management Member Panel (Councillors: Baker, Simon Cook, Cragg, Dixey, Doyle,
Fitter, Gilbey, Howes, Perkins and Wratten).
In a similar way to scrutiny review, maintaining the same membership throughout is
important. Therefore to ensure consistency, once underway, substitutions may not be
made at meetings of the Commission. Therefore if there are any potential issues on
attendance for any Member, it would be prudent to make a substitution at the outset.
4. Project Team
The Commission will be supported by a project team comprising the Chief Executive,
Monitoring Officer and Senior Strategy and Improvement Officer.
Agenda Item 3 Page 2
2
5. Commission Tasks
- To identify the number and names of individual committees and how will they relate
to the other committees of the council.
- To identify the broad roles, responsibilities of those committees.
- To identify whether, and to what extent, each committee will have power to take
decisions on matters within their area of responsibility.
- To identify whether there will be an overview and scrutiny committee, and if not, how
the councils limited statutory scrutiny duties will be met.
- To identify whether there will be a mechanism for matters decided by a committee to
be referred to the Full Council or any other committee for reconsideration.
- To consider where there are perceived difficulties with public consultation and
engagement, how, if at all, this can be addressed within the new committee system
arrangements.
- To consider the schemes of delegations both from council to committees and from
committees to officers.
- To consider how the committee system will demonstrate accountability of decisions
taken.
- To review the potential costs associated with the committee system arrangements.
6. Output sought
A report to Council which sets out the arrangements for a committee system which this
Council can recommend to the next Council elected in May 2015. The next Council may
then, depending upon the circumstances, adopt it or modify it, within the envelope of the
adopted system of governance.
7. Outcome sought
A Committee system that delivers the business and democratic needs of the city council.
8. Proposed Commission timetable
Task Timetable
Full Council Resolution to change to a Committee
System of Governance
24 July 2014
Commission develop the Committee System
arrangements
August October
Commission recommend proposals for new
Committee System arrangements to Full Council.
27 November 2014 (or earlier dates if it
can be managed)
Proposed new arrangements published From 27 November onwards
Constitutional changes made by officers to reflect
new arrangements
December to February
Constitutional changes submitted to Political February/March
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3
Management Member Panel
Annual Council meeting 2015 Implementation of new arrangements
Page 4
Monday 8 September 2015
Governance Commission: Outline methodology
Now the decision to move to a Committee system has been taken, this Commission
will need to develop a model for how it will operate and pass it to the new Council in
2015. The Commissions mode of operation will broadly follow that of a scrutiny
review with contributing witnesses, research and analysis and the production of a
final report. The work of the Commission will need to be completed this calendar
year in order to allow time for constitutional changes to be made and for the new
model to be advertised in advance of the Annual Council meeting.
In order to complete the tasks set out in the Terms of Reference for the review it is
suggested that the Commission hold approximately five meetings as follows:
Meeting Task
1 - Note Terms of Reference
- Desktop research of committee systems operated by other
local authorities.
- Previous Canterbury Committee System and current
Executive system.
2 Meeting with organisations, groups or individuals wishing to
give a view to inform the development of the Committee
System model. How the session will operate will be dependent
on the number of people that indicate they would like to
participate. Representatives from the Local Government
Association or Centre for Public Scrutiny could also be invited to
attend the session. Organisations and groups would be asked to
send a representative to speak on their behalf. A press release
inviting members of the public to contribute to the work of the
Commission has been made.
3/4 Develop the Committee model with consideration given to
specific subject areas including financial controls, how the
committees will interact, overview and scrutiny, schemes of
delegation, the committee structure and any anticipated cost
implications.
5 Consideration of report for recommendation to Full Council.
There above is not an exhaustive list of tasks and additional considerations may
come up during the course of the Commission which will need to be incorporated as
appropriate.
Agenda Item 4Page 5
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Governance models operated by local authorities that have adopted the Committee System since May 2012
This paper provides a summary of local authorities that have adopted a committee system of governance. Based on the information provided
by officers in other councils, it is apparent that most councils have a combination of policy/service area committees, regulatory committees
and external partnership boards. Public engagement or area forums have been retained by some unitary councils but are not evident at a
district level. The majority of councils have retained limited or no scrutiny functions with the exception of their statutory duties, whereas some
councils have incorporated scrutiny work within the individual committees.
District and County councils
Council Type
Main Committees
(( ) = number of meetings per
year)
Overview and Scrutiny Committee Financial implications
Cambridgeshire County
Audit and Accounts (6)
Children and Young People (11)
Constitution and Ethics (6)
Economy and Environment (11)
General Purposes (12)
Health (12)
Highways and Community
Infrastructure (11)
Planning (10)
No. Only the statutory scrutiny
functions are exercised by individual
committees:
- Health scrutiny by the Health
Committee
- Crime and disorder by
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
Police And Crime Panel
- Flood risk management by the
Economy and Environment
Committee
Newark and
Sherwood District
Audit and Accounts (5)
Economic Development (5)
General Purposes (4)
Homes and Communities (5)
Joint Economic Prosperity (3)
Leisure and Environment (5)
Licensing (4)
Planning (12)
Policy (7)
The Council does not have dedicated
Overview and Scrutiny Committees
but applies overview and scrutiny
principles in the work of the
Economic Development, Leisure &
Environment and Homes &
Communities Committees.
No additional cost other than
officer time implementing the new
system which has not been
recorded. There was a slight
reduction in terms of Members
Special Responsibility Allowances.
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Standards (2)
Norfolk
County
Adult Social Care (8)
Audit (4)
Children's Services (8)
Communities (8)
Environment, Development and
Transport (8)
Economic Development Sub-
Committee (7)
Planning (9)
Policy and Resources (9)
Standards (2)
No. Only the statutory scrutiny
functions are exercised by individual
committees:
- Health scrutiny by the Health
Overview and Scrutiny Committee
- Crime and disorder by Police and
Crime Panel
- Flood risk management by the
Environment, Transport and
Development Committee
No significant increase in cost.
Member Allowances were changed
to reflect the new structure.
Nottinghamshire
County Council County
Adult Social Care and Health (11)
Audit (5)
Children and Young People (8)
Community Safety (7)
Culture (8)
Economic Development (10)
Environment and Sustainability
(8)
Finance and Property (11)
Planning and Licensing (11)
Policy (10)
Public Health (8)
Transport and Highways (11)
The Policy Committee and each of
the 'policy area' committees
undertake scrutiny roles with regard
to policy development and ensuring
that new and existing council
policies are implemented, operated
and reviewed appropriately.
There is a Joint City/County Health
Scrutiny Committee and the Health
Scrutiny Committee.
Stroud District
Audit and Standards (10)
Community Services and
Licensing (6)
Development Control (13)
Environment (5)
Housing (5)
Strategy and Resources (5)
Housing Forum (5)
Community Services and Licensing
has a broad portfolio including
health and well-being and crime and
disorder scrutiny.
Since the adoption of the
committee system there has been a
reduction in Democratic Services
resources.
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Page 3 of 15
Unitary and London boroughs
Council Type Main Committees Overview and Scrutiny Committee Financial implications
Brighton and
Hove Unitary
Audit & Standards
Children & Young People
Economic Development & Culture
Environment, Transport &
Sustainability
Housing
Licensing
Planning
Policy & Resources
1) Overview and Scrutiny, and
2) The Health and Wellbeing
Overview and Scrutiny
An initial budget increase of 45k
was set to implement the
committee system with the
intention that would be reduced as
the system settled in. The change
to a committee system has
increased democratic services
workload and budgetary pressures,
officer workload (increased
briefings and cross-party working in
a minority administration) and
public participation.
Hartlepool Unitary
Adult Services
Audit and Governance
Childrens Services
Neighbourhood Services
Regeneration Services
Planning
Finance and Policy
Licensing
The Audit and Governance
Committee is responsible for
conducting reviews that fall under
the remit of its scrutiny
responsibilities.
Reading Unitary
Adult Social Care, Childrens Services
& Education
Audit and Governance
Health & Wellbeing Board
Housing, Neighbourhoods & Leisure
The overview and scrutiny
functions are exercised by the
individual committees.
Initially there was concern that it
would require more officer time
generally to support the committee
system but it hasnt in reality. The
Councillors were keen to ensure
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Licensing Applications
Personnel
Planning Applications
Policy
Standards
Strategic Environment, Planning &
Transport
that there were no more meetings
as a result of the change to the
committee system and by and large
this has been achieved.
South
Gloucestershire Unitary
Adults and Housing
Appointments & Employment Panel
Audit and Accounts
Children & Young People
Communities
Planning, Transportation and
Strategic Environment
Health & Wellbeing Board
Licensing
Regulatory
Policy and Resources
Standards Committee Membership
Panel
No. Only the statutory scrutiny
functions are exercised by
individual committees:
- Health scrutiny by the Public
Health and Health Scrutiny
Committee
- Crime and disorder by
Communities Committee
- Flood risk management by the
Communities Committee.
London
Borough of
Sutton
London
borough
Adult Social Services and Health
Appeals
Children, Family and Education
Environment and Neighbourhood
Health and Wellbeing Board
Housing, Economy and Business
Pension
Planning and Licensing
Scrutiny and Audit
Standards
Strategy and Resources
1) Scrutiny Committee, and
2) Audit Committee
The transition in this respect was
relatively seamless. There was no
added cost in the new structure. In
fact there was a saving on member
allowances due to a reduction in
SRA payments
London
Borough of
Barnet
London
borough
Appeals
Audit
Constitution, Ethics & Probity
Only a Health Overview and
Scrutiny Committee along with
statutory requirements.
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General Functions
Group Leaders
Health Overview and Scrutiny
Housing
Licensing
Pension Fun
Planning
Policy and Resources Committee
Remuneration
Kingston upon
Thames
London
borough
Audit Committee
Health Overview
Neighbourhood
Standards
Strategic
Licensing Committee
Scrutiny Panel
Policy and Finance Committee
1) Health Overview and Scrutiny
Panel, and
2) Joint Health Overview and
Scrutiny Committee
The Executive arrangements at RBK
were never deeply embedded, for
example Neighbourhood
Committees continued to exercise
considerable powers and few
Scrutiny Committees were
introduced. The Officer structure
and Scheme of Member Allowances
always reflected this and as a
consequence the cost implications
of the transition were broadly
neutral.
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Structure charts
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3
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4
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5
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Full Council
(50)
City Council committee
system structure 2001
Highways
Partnership
Joint Board
(12)
Housing Appeals
Sub
(6)
Community
Services
Committee
(22)
Housing and
Community Sub
(11)
Leisure, Culture
& Environment
Sub (11)
Licensing Sub
(11)
Executive Sub
(11)
Executive Sub
(8)
Executive Sub
(8)
Review Sub
(8)
Central
Services Sub
(8)
Development
Control Sub
(19)
Economic &
Strategic
Planning Sub
(11)
Property &
Engineering
Sub
(8)
Policy
Committee
(22)
Development &
Planning
Committee
(22)
Working Groups
(commissioned
by each service
committee)
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Agenda3 Terms of Reference4 Outline Commission methodology5 Committee structures operated by councils that have adopted the committee system since 20126 Previous City Council committee structure and current Executive structure