BACK

1. MEETINGS

a. Meetings of the Council shall be held in each year on such dates and times and at such place as the Council may direct.

b. Smoking is not permitted at any meeting of the Council.

2. THE STATUTORY ANNUAL MEETING

a. In an election year the Annual Parish Council Meeting shall be held on or within 14 days following the day on which the councillors are elected to take office, and

b. In a year which is not an election year, the Annual Parish Council Meeting shall be held on such day in May as the Council may direct.

3. In addition to the Statutory Annual Parish Council Meeting at least three other statutory meetings shall be held in each year on such dates and times and at such place as the Council may direct.

4. CHAIRMAN OF THE MEETING

The person presiding at a meeting may exercise all the powers and duties of the Chairman in relation to the conduct of the meeting.

5. PROPER OFFICER

Where a statute, regulation or order confers functions or duties on the proper officer of the Council in the following cases, he shall be the Clerk or nominated officer:

a. To receive declarations of acceptance of office.

b. To receive and record notices disclosing interests at meetings.

c. To receive and retain plans and documents.

d. To sign notices or other documents on behalf of the Council.

e. To receive copies of bylaws made by another local authority.

f. To certify copies of bylaws made by the Council.

g. To sign and issue the summons to attend meetings of the Council.

h. To keep proper records for all Council meetings.

6. QUORUM OF THE COUNCIL

Three members or one-third of the total membership, whichever is the greater, shall constitute a quorum at meetings of the Council.

7. If a quorum is not present, or if during a meeting the number of councillors present (not counting those debarred by reason of a declared interest) falls below the required quorum, the meeting shall be adjourned and business not transacted shall be transacted at the next meeting or on such other day as the Chairman may fix. For a quorum relating to a committee or sub committee, please refer to Standing Order 33.c.

8. A system of substitution for all Committees and Sub Committees is in force whereby the onus is on individual councillors to find substitutes if unable to attend these meetings.

9. VOTING

Members shall vote by show of hands with the number of votes for, against, and abstentions being recorded in the Minutes. If at least two members so request the vote shall be by signed ballot.

10. If a member so requires, the Clerk shall record the names of the members who voted on any question so as to show whether they voted for or against it. Such a request must be made before moving on to the next business.

11. a. Subject to b. and c. below the Town Mayor /Chairman may give an original vote on any matter put to the vote, and in any case of an equality of votes may give a casting vote whether or not he/she gave an original vote.

b. If the person presiding at the annual meeting would have ceased to be a member of the council but for the statutory provisions which preserve the membership of the Town Mayor and Deputy Town Mayor until the end of their term of office, he/she may not give an original vote in an election for Town Mayor.

c. The person presiding must give a casting vote whenever there is an equality of votes in an election for Town Mayor/Chairman.

12. ORDER OF BUSINESS

At each Annual Parish Council Meeting the first business shall be:

a. To elect a Town Mayor.

b. To receive the Town Mayor's declaration of acceptance of office or, if not then received, to decide when it shall be received.

c. In the ordinary year of election of the Council to fill any vacancies left unfilled at the election by reason of insufficient nominations.

d. To decide when any declarations of acceptance of office and written undertakings to observe the code of conduct adopted by the council which have not been received as provided by law, shall be received.

e. To elect a Deputy Town Mayor.

f. To appoint representatives to outside bodies.

g. To appoint committees and sub-committees.

h. To consider the payment of any subscriptions falling to be paid annually.

i. To inspect any deeds and trust investments in the custody of the Council as required;
and shall thereafter follow the order set out in the Standing Order 15

13. At every meeting, other than the Annual Parish Council Meeting, the first business shall be to appoint a Chairman if the Town Mayor and Deputy Town Mayor be absent and to receive such declarations of acceptance of office (if any) and undertaking to observe the Council's code of conduct as are required by law to be made or, if not then received, to decide when they shall be received.

14. In every year, not later than the meeting at which the estimates for next year are settled, the Council shall review the pay and conditions of service of existing employees. Standing Order 27 must be read in conjunction with this requirement.

15. After the first business has been completed, the order of business, unless the Council otherwise decides on the ground of urgency, shall be as follows:

a. To read and consider the Minutes; provided that if a copy has been circulated to each member not later than the day of issue of the summons to attend the meeting, the Minutes may be taken as read.

b. After consideration to approve the signature of the Minutes by the person presiding as a correct record.

c. To deal with business expressly required by statue to be done.

d. To dispose of business, if any, remaining from the last meeting.

e. To receive such communications as the person presiding may wish to lay before the Council.

f. To answer questions from Councillors.

g. To receive and consider reports and minutes of committees.

h. To receive and consider resolutions or recommendations in the order in which they have been notified.

i. To authorise the sealing of documents.

j. If necessary, to authorise the signing of orders for payment.

16. URGENT BUSINESS

A motion to vary the order of business on the ground of urgency:

a. May be proposed by the Town Mayor/Chairman or by any member and, if proposed by the Chairman, may be put to the vote without being seconded, and

b. Shall be put to the vote without discussion.

17. RESOLUTIONS MOVED ON NOTICE

a. Except as provided by these Standing Orders, no resolution may be moved unless the business to which it relates has been put on the Agenda by the Clerk or the mover has given notice in writing of its terms and has delivered the notice to the Clerk at least 7 clear days before the next meeting of the Council.

b. The Clerk shall date every notice of resolution or recommendation when received by him, shall number each notice in the order in which it was received and shall enter it in a book which shall be open to the inspection of every member of the Council.

c. The Clerk shall insert in the summons for every meeting all notices of motion or recommendation properly given in the order in which they have been received unless the member giving a notice of motion has stated in writing of the intention to move at some later meeting or withdraws it.

d. If a resolution or recommendation specified in the summons is not moved either by the member who gave notice of it or by any other member, it shall, unless postponed by the Council, be treated as withdrawn and shall not be moved without fresh notice.

e. If the subject matter of a resolution comes within the province of a committee of the Council, it shall, upon being moved and seconded, stand referred without discussion to such committee or to such other committee as the Council may determine for report; provided that the Town Mayor, if he considers it to be a matter of urgency, may allow it to be dealt with at the meeting at which it was moved.

f. Every resolution or recommendation shall be relevant to some subject over which the Council has power or duty which affects its area.

18. RESOLUTIONS MOVED WITHOUT NOTICE

Resolutions dealing with the following matters may be moved without notice:

a. To appoint a Chairman of the meeting.

b. To correct the Minutes.

c. To approve the Minutes.

d. To alter the order of business.

e. To proceed to the next business.

f. To close or adjourn the debate.

g. To refer a matter to a committee.

h. To appoint a committee or any members thereof.

i. To adopt a report.

j. To authorise the sealing of documents.

k. To amend a motion.

l. To give leave to withdraw a resolution or amendment.

m. To extend the time limit for speeches.

n. To exclude the press and public. (see Standing Order 43.a.)

o. To silence or eject from the meeting a member named for misconduct. (see Standing Order 22)

p. To give the consent of the Council where such consent is required by these Standing Orders.

q. To suspend any Standing Order. (see Standing Order 49.a.)

r. To adjourn the meeting.

19. QUESTIONS

a. A member may ask the Town Mayor or the Clerk any question concerning the business of the Council, provided 7 clear days notice of the question has been given to the person whom it is addressed.

b. No questions not connected with business under discussion shall be asked except during the part of the meeting set aside for questions.

c. Every question shall be put and answered without discussion.

d. A person to whom a question has been put may decline to answer.

20. RULES OF DEBATE

a. No discussion shall take place upon the Minutes except upon their accuracy. Corrections to the Minutes shall be made by resolution and must be initialled by the Town Mayor.

b. A resolution or amendment shall not be discussed unless it has been proposed and seconded, and, unless proper notice has already been given, it shall, if required by the Town Mayor, be reduced to writing and handed to him before it is further discussed or put to the meeting.

c. A member when seconding a resolution or amendment may, if he then declares his intention to do so, reserve his speech until a later period of the debate.

d. A member shall direct his speech to the question under discussion or to a personal explanation or to a question of order.

e. No speech by a mover of a resolution shall exceed 6 minutes and no other speech shall exceed 3 minutes except by consent of the Council.

f. An amendment shall be either:

(1) To leave out words.

(2) To leave out words and insert others.

(3) To insert or add words.

g. An amendment shall not have the effect of negating the resolution before the Council.

h. If an amendment be carried, the resolution, as amended, shall take the place of the original resolution and shall become the resolution upon which any further amendment may be moved.

i. A further amendment shall not be moved until the Council has disposed of every amendment previously moved.

j. The mover of a resolution or of an amendment shall have right of reply, not exceeding 3 minutes.

k. A member, other than the mover of a resolution, shall not, without leave of the Council, speak more than once on any resolution except to move an amendment or further amendment, or on an amendment, or on a point of order, or in personal explanation or to move a closure.

l. A member may speak on a point of order or a personal explanation. A member speaking for these purposes shall be heard forthwith. A personal explanation shall be confined to some material part of a former speech by him which may have been misunderstood.

m. A motion or amendment may be withdrawn by the proposer with the consent of the Council, which shall be signified without discussion, and no member may speak upon it after permission has been asked for its withdrawal unless such permission has been refused.

n. When a resolution is under debate no other resolution shall be moved except the following:

(1) To amend the resolution.

(2) To proceed to the next business.

(3) To adjourn the debate.

(4) That the question be now put.

(5) That a member named be not further heard.

(6) That a member named do leave the meeting.

(7) That the resolution be referred to a committee.

(8) To exclude the public and press.

(9) To adjourn the meeting.

o. A member shall stand when speaking unless permitted by the Town SMayor to sit on
account of infirmity.

p. The ruling of the Town Mayor on a point of order or on the admissibility of a personal explanation shall not be discussed.

q. Members shall address the Town Mayor. If two or more members wish to speak, the Town Mayor shall decide who to call upon.

r. Whenever the Town Mayor speaks during a debate all other members shall be silent.

21. CLOSURE

At the end of any speech a member may, without comment, move "that the question be now put", "That the debate be now adjourned" or "that the Council do now adjourn". If such motion is seconded, the Town Mayor shall put the motion but, in the case of a motion "that the question be now put", only if he is of the opinion that the question before the Council has been sufficiently debated. If the motion "that the question be now put" is carried, he shall call upon the mover to exercise or waive his right of reply and shall put the question immediately after that right has been exercised or waived. The adjournment of a debate or of the Council shall not prejudice the mover's right of reply at the resumption.