Issue - meetings

(a)       That the responses to the survey be noted; and

(b)       That Members be contacted in May each year with a template annual report and be advised that any completed annual reports could be placed on the Council’s website by Democratic Services.

The Monitoring Officer introduced a report to provide details of the responses to a survey which was undertaken by Members on Member  communications.  He provided background information and reported on the responses to the survey as detailed in the report. 

The Monitoring Officer explained that there had been little interest by Members in the production of Annual Reports which were to be written by the councillors but published by the Council on its website.  However, from the survey it was clear that Members themselves regularly communicated with their residents through newsletters and the like.   However, the facility to publish annual reports still existed and it was therefore recommended that the Authority contact Members annually during May, with a template annual report, to remind them that annual reports could be placed on the Council’s website for publication if they wished. 

In response to a question from Robert Dewey concerning editorial control the Monitoring Officer explained that Members’ Annual Reports were not allowed to be political or defamatory, but that in all other respects officers would not exercise any editorial control over the content of annual reports. 

Councillor Arnold Woolley expressed disappointment at the low  number of Members who had taken the opportunity to respond to the survey.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the responses to the survey be noted; and

(b)       That Members be contacted in May each year with a template annual report and be advised that any completed annual reports could be placed on the Council’s website by Democratic Services.