Agenda item
To update the
committee on the latest arrangements for member induction following the
elections on 4th May, 2017
Minutes:
Submitted - a report updating the committee on the
member induction arrangements following the elections on 4 May, 2017.
The Democratic Services Manager gave a short
presentation on the election arrangements, and referred to:-
·
The Current Situation
·
Timescale
·
Induction
In response to questions from members, the Democratic
Services Manager noted:-
·
That members would
sign-up to accept the post when visiting the Code of Conduct stall on the
Welcome Days on the 9 and 10 of May and that this would be legally acceptable.
·
There would be a need
to consider the situations of those members who served on outside bodies, but
who would not be re-elected to the Council after May, on a case-by-case basis.
The latest version of the Members Portal was displayed
and members were asked to contact the Democratic Services Manager, or a member
of the Team, if they wished to present ideas on how the portal could be
developed further.
The Head of Democratic Services provided an update on
the situation of the IT provision to members from May onwards. He noted:-
·
As a result of
differing opinions amongst the members of the Focus Group (three were of the
opinion that we should standardise on the Microsoft Surface Pro 4, one
preferred the Surface Pro 4 personally, but was happy for others to choose and
one favoured the Ipad Air 2 for everyone), that he
had been asked, as the Head of Democratic Service, to make a decision on the
matter.
·
That he had
thoroughly considered the matter, taking into account the views of the majority
and consulting with officers and the Deputy Leader, who was a member of the
Focus Group, but that he had ultimately decided on the Microsoft Surface Pro 4,
on the grounds that it offered much more than what was possible with other
types of devices.
·
The intention over
time would be to move completely to the Surface Pro 4, and although everyone
would be encouraged to use the Surface Pro 4 from the start, the returning
members would be allowed to continue using the Ipad
until the time would come for them to renew their device.
·
Members would also be
entitled to use their own personal devices and the IT Unit was confident that
they could support those devices also.
The Chair expressed her disappointment that this
committee had not been given the opportunity to make a decision on the matter
and she asked those members who had served on the Focus Group to submit their
views.
Every member of the group noted that they supported
the Head of Service's decision. The Democratic Services Manager added that the
timetable for purchasing the equipment meant that it had not possible for the
Focus Group to report back to the committee.
The importance of arranging training for members on
the new equipment early-on was emphasised. The Head of Democratic Services
replied that training had been arranged for June/July and that IT officers
would be available on the day of the Annual Council to assist members to gain
access to their documents. The Democratic Services Manager added that every
member would be asked to fill in a questionnaire at the start of the new
Council regarding their level of confidence when using technology.
A discussion was held on what would happen to the
current equipment. It was noted that the Focus Group had recommended that the
members be asked to return the equipment to the Council and that they be gifted
to schools so that they could continue to be used as a Council resource.
Some members expressed their disappointment that
members would not be offered an opportunity to purchase the devices at a
reasonable price. It was noted that the Ipads were no
longer in a very good condition and that the schools would prefer to receive
more up-to-date equipment.
Since the Head of Democratic Services had been asked
to make a decision regarding the devices, it was suggested that it would also
be sensible for him to make a decision regarding what would happen to the Ipads. The Head of Democratic Services replied that he
would have to check this, but that he would like members to propose their
recommendation before that happened.
RESOLVED
1. To support the decision of
the Head of Democratic Services to select the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 as the
most suitable electronic device for members from May onwards.
2. In relation to the existing
devices, a recommendation to the Head of Democratic Services to give members
the option to:-
·
Purchase the Ipads at a reasonable price.
·
Return them to the Council to be cleaned of all data and gifted to
schools.
·
Continue using them for the time being, and to select one of the
above-mentioned options when the time came for them to be upgraded to the
Surface Pro 4.
Supporting documents: