Agenda item

To note the observations and accept the report on the support available for Councillors.

To note the observations and accept the information.

RESOLVED:

To note the observations and accept the information.

The report was presented reporting on the results of the questionnaire that was sent to all the Members in October 2022.

It was noted that the first part of the questionnaire queried Members about the timing of Council meetings. The results were reported, noting that 42 members had answered the questionnaire in full. It was noted that the results showed a willingness to adjust some of the timings of Council meetings, such as moving the start time of the Full council from 1:00pm to 1:30pm. The results showed that members were keen to continue with the current timings of the Scrutiny Committees but some had expressed a desire to change the time of the Planning Committee to begin at 10:00am. It was added that this change could cause difficulties in conducting sites visits.

It was reported that the results would be used as the basis for the 2023/24 meetings calendar. It was confirmed that further discussions and work was required in considering the start time of the Planning Committee before reaching a conclusion. It was reported that the questionnaire had highlighted the need for a timely break during Committees; it was noted that this would be addressed and discussed with the Chairs of different Committees.

It was noted that the second part of the report referred to the Members' satisfaction with the Democracy Services team and the comments noted in the report were referred to. It was reported that the third part of the report dealt with communication matters and the unit's aim of conveying messages in a timely and convenient manner to Members. It was noted that the results were satisfactory overall.

To close, it was noted that comments had been presented such as praising the informal Women who are Councillors sessions, noting that these sessions encouraged collaboration amongst female Councillors and raised their confidence. Positive comments had been received on the training programme as well as comments on Councillors' safety.

During the discussion the following observations were made:

-        A member expressed their wish to continue with the current time of the Planning Committee. It was believed that holding the Committees in the afternoon worked well and enabled site visits to easily take place on the morning of the Committee. It was noted that it would be more costly to the Council should site visits have to be conducted on another day.

-        A member commented on Councillors' safety following an extraordinary meeting of the Full Council in August, and they wondered whether the Council's security arrangements needed to be reconsidered? It was reported that two Councillors had received serious threats in the aftermath of the meeting in question – it was questioned whether the Police should be present when controversial matters were discussed.

-        It was believed that the political landscape had changed and there was concern that further such events would be seen in future. It was also noted that Councillors had a responsibility to be mindful of what they were conveying, and the language used. 

-        Members expressed appreciation that risk assessments were now being undertaken.

-        It was noted that it was part of a Councillor's role to challenge, for example, members of the Scrutiny Committees and that there was responsibility to speak on behalf of the people they represented. It was added that it was important to consider the code of conduct when challenging.

-        The service was thanked for its assistance.

In response to the observations:

-        It was added that further considerations would be made in producing the 2023/24 meetings calendar and that reporting on the questionnaire's results was only the initial step. It was noted that consideration would be given to the suggestion of sending a further questionnaire to the Planning Committee members.

-        The officer thanked members for their comments on staff and Councillors' safety and reported that specific steps had been taken since the meeting in August. It was reported that risk assessments were now undertaken before every hybrid Committee in order to avoid disruption of meetings and to reduce the risk to Members, the public and the Council's officers. It was added that the risk assessments were only one step, and that much work took place jointly with the Health and Safety Unit.

-        It was reported that it would be reasonable to report on the progress with implementing risk assessments and to include it as an item for this Committee in future, so that the Members could see the progress made.