Northants CALC

Welcome to the Northants CALC eUpdate for March/April 2010.

This spring edition includes a warm welcome to Northants CALC’s latest recruit, Chrisitne Dryden, some top tips on end of year procedures and managing local council IT, notification of the date for the Local Councils’ Conference (16 June 2010), and details of a top offer on LCR Magazine from the National Association of Local Councils.

Download the March/April eUpdate here.

The Parish Councillor’s Guide, written by Paul Clayden and published by Shaw’s has been the foremost source of information on the law and practice of parish, town and community councils. This book has now been updated to a twentieth edition, compiled once again by renowned local government expert Paul Clayden, and incorporates a plethora of important changes implemented in the law since the previous edition was published.

In addition to its comprehensive coverage of all traditional aspects of local council administration, this edition includes explanations of such developments as the new provisions relating to reviews of parishes, with the power to create parishes in Greater London; the extension to some parish councils of the power to promote well-being; the removal of local councils from the ambit of the best value legislation; new codes of conduct for councillors in both England and Wales; new regulations on allowances for community councillors in Wales; new election rules; revised accounting guidance and practice; and the coming into force of much of the Commons Act 2006.

Topics are listed alphabetically, with extensive cross-referencing. The reader is assisted through the complications of the law while avoiding over-technical language and providing practical comments where possible.  The book costs £15.95.

For further details and to order a copy please click here to download a booking form.

Section 76 of the Local Government & Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 has the potential to create different classes of local councillor.  The section makes provision to amend the Local Government Act 1972 and once in force these amendments will require that local councils’ chairman and vice-chairman are drawn from the elected members and that local councils have a minimum of 5 elected members.  This means that a co-opted councillor, even one that has been on the council several years, cannot be elected chairman.

At the moment the only difference in the way “elected” and “co-opted” councillors are treated is when a council pays members’ allowances, which by law are only payable to elected members.  I cannot see a sensible reason for this and it is a concern that the view that co-opted councillors are somehow different to elected councillors may now arise in other areas of law.

What is your view?  Do you think co-opted members should be treated differently from elected members?  Have your say by clicking on this post’s title and leaving a reply.

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