COUNCIL CONSTITUTION
2003
Revised April 2014
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COUNCIL CONSTITUTION
C O N T E N T S
Page NoPart 1 /
Summary and Explanation
/ 1Part 2 /
Articles of the Constitution
Article 1 /The Constitution
/ 7Article 2 /
Members of the Council
/ 9Article 3 /
Citizens and the Council
/ 11Article 4 /
The Full Council
/ 12Article 5 /
Chairing the Council
/ 16Article 6 /
Policy Development and Scrutiny
/ 17Article 7 /
The Executive Committee
/ 22Article 8 /
Regulatory and Other Committees
/ 24Article 9 /
The Standards Regime
/ 25Article 10 /
Area Arrangements
/ 26Article 11 /
Joint Arrangements
/ 28Article 12 /
Officers
/ 30Article 13 /
Decision Making
/ 35Article 14 /
Finance, Contracts and Legal Matters
/ 37Article 15 /
Review and Revision of the Constitution
/ 38Article 16 /
Suspension, Interpretation & Publication of the Constitution
/ 39Schedule 1 /
Description of Executive Arrangements
/ 40Part 3 /
Responsibility for Functions
Responsibility for Executive Functions
/ 43Executive Committee's Terms of Reference
/ 45Appointments Committee
/ 49Revised August 2013
Page NoAudit Committee
/ 50Council Tax Setting Committee
/ 51Planning Committee
/ 52Licensing Committee
/ 57Regulatory Services Committee
/ 60Policy and Scrutiny Committees
/ 65Joint Arrangements
/ 66Scheme of Delegation to Officers
/ 67Register of Executive Members
/ 90Part 4 /
Rules of Procedure
Council Procedure Rules
/ 92Access to Information Procedure Rules
/ 118Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rules
/ 128Executive Committee Procedure Rules
/ 132Policy and Scrutiny Committee Procedure Rules
/ 136Financial Procedure Rules
/ 148Contracts Procedure Rules
/ 215Officer Employment Procedure Rules
/ 237Part 5 /
Codes & Protocols
Members' Code of Conduct
/ 242Officers’ Code of Conduct
/ 243Planning Matters Guidance Note
/ 244Protocol on Member/Officer Relations
/ 246Local Code of Corporate Governance
/ 254Part 6 /
Members' Allowances Scheme
/ 263Part 7 /
Management Structure
/ 274Revised April 2014
APPENDICES TO THREE RIVERS DISTRICT COUNCIL CONSTITUTIONpage
APPENDIX
Part 2 /
Articles of the Constitution
Election of Chairman of the Council
/ 284Part 3 /
Responsibility for Functions
West Herts Crematorium Joint Committee – terms of reference, membership etc / 285Three Rivers Community Safety Partnership – Terms of Reference / 301
Joint Staff Employer Forum
/ 304Part 4 /
Rules of Procedure
Recruitment and Selection Policy and Procedure
/ 307Disciplinary Policy and Procedure
/ 318Grievance Policy and Procedure
/ 333Bullying and Harassment Policy
/ 346Managing Employee Performance and Capability
/ 353Anti-Fraud and Corruption Strategy
/ 362Whistleblowing Policy
/ 368Housing Benefit / Council Tax Benefit Fraud Policy
/ 372Sanctions Policy
/ 377Non–Benefit Fraud
/ 381Part 5 /
Codes and Protocols
Three Rivers District Council Members’ Code of Conduct
/ 395Officers’ Code of Conduct
/ 400Revised April 2014
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Summary and Explanation
The Council’s Constitution
The Three Rivers District Council has agreed a new constitution which sets out how the Council operates, how decisions are made and the procedures which are followed to ensure that these are efficient, transparent and accountable to local people. Some of these processes are required by the law, while others are a matter for the Council to choose.
The Constitution is divided into 16 articles which set out the basic rules governing the Council’s business. More detailed procedures and codes of practice are provided in separate rules and protocols at the end of the document.
What’s in the Constitution?
Article 1 of the Constitution commits the Council to provide informed community leadership in pursuit of the needs and aspirations of the wide diversity of individuals and communities it serves. Articles 2 - 16 explain the rights of citizens and how the key parts of the Council operate. These are:
•Members of the Council (Article 2).
•Citizens and the Council (Article 3).
•The Council meeting (Article 4).
•Chairing the Council (Article5).
•Overview and scrutiny of decisions (Article 6).
•The executive (Article 7)
•Regulatory and other committees (Article 8).
•The Standards Regime (Article 9).
•Area Forums (Article 10).
•Joint arrangements (Article 11).
•Officers (Article 12).
•Decision making (Article 13).
•Finance, contracts and legal matters (Article 14).
•Review and revision of the Constitution (Article 15)
•Suspension, interpretation and publication of the Constitution (Article 16)
How the Council Operates
The Council is composed of 48 Councillors with one third elected three years in four. Councillors are democratically accountable to residents of their ward. The overriding duty of Councillors is to the whole community, but they have a special duty to all their Ward.
Councillors have to agree to follow a code of conduct to ensure high standards in the way they undertake their duties.
All Councillors meet together as the Council. Meetings of the Council are normally open to the public. Here Councillors decide the Council's overall policies and set the budget each year. Every four years the Council appoints the Leader, who then appoints a Deputy Leader and may appoint an Executive Committee of between 2 and 9 councillors and allocate to them specific areas of responsibility (Portfolios). The Council also appoints committees each year to handle non-executive business. The Council holds the Leader, the Executive Committee and the other committees to account. It will also hold debates on issues which affect the District generally. The Leader can make an oral report on relevant District matters. Members of the public may, on notice, put written questions to Council.
How Decisions are Made
The Leader is responsible for most day-to-day policy decisions. The Leader has delegated his/her executive functions to an Executive Committee appointed by the Leader, which is made up of the Leader and up to 9 councillors representing the Political Groups existing at the time, who nominate their own representatives, to individual Portfolio Holders and to officers. In this Constitution the phrase Leader/Executive Committee is used with this meaning. When major decisions are to be discussed or made, these are published in the Council’s forward plan in so far as they can be anticipated. If these major decisions are to be discussed with council officers at a meeting of the Executive Committee, this will generally be open for the public to attend except where personal or confidential matters are being discussed. The Leader/Executive Committee has to make decisions which are in line with the Council’s overall policies and budget. If they wish to make a decision which is outside the budget or policy framework, this must be referred to the Council as a whole to decide.
Policy and Scrutiny Committees
There are four Policy and Scrutiny Committees which support the work of the Leader/Executive Committee and the Council as a whole. They allow citizens to have access in Council matters by holding inquiries in public into matters of local concern. These lead to reports and recommendations which advise the Leader/Executive Committee and the Council as a whole on its policies, budget and service delivery. Policy and Scrutiny Committees may also be consulted by the Leader/Executive Committee or the Council on forthcoming decisions and the development of policy. The Policy and Scrutiny Committees monitor the decisions of the Leader/Executive Committee and can ‘call-in’ a decision which has been made by the Leader/Executive Committee but not yet implemented. This enables them to consider whether the decision is appropriate. They may recommend that the Leader/Executive Committee reconsider the decision.
Revised August 2013
The Council’s Staff
The Council has people working for it (called ‘officers’) to give advice, implement decisions and manage the day-to-day delivery of its services. Some officers have a specific duty to ensure that the Council acts within the law and uses its resources wisely. A code of practice governs the relationships between officers and members of the Council.
Citizens’ Rights
Citizens have a number of rights in their dealings with the Council. These are set out in more detail in Article 3. Some of these are legal rights, whilst others depend on the Council’s own procedures. The Council or local Citizens’ Advice Bureau can advise on individuals’ legal rights. Where members of the public use specific council services, for example as a council tenant, they have additional rights. These are not covered in this Constitution.
Citizens have the right to:
•vote at local elections if they are registered;
•contact their local councillor about any matters of concern to them;
•obtain a copy of the Constitution;
•attend meetings of the Council, its committees and Panels except where, for example, personal or confidential matters are being discussed;
•petition either electronically or in print to request a referendum on a mayoral form of executive;
•participate in any public question time sessions introduced by the Council or committees and contribute to investigations by the committees;
•find out, from the Council’s forward plan, what major decisions are to be discussed by the Leader/Executive Committee or decided by the Leader/Executive Committee or officers, and when;
•see reports and background papers, and any record of decisions made by the Council and Leader/Executive Committee;
•make a compliment, a comment or complaint to the Council about the way we provide our services;
•complain to the Ombudsman if they think the Council has not followed its procedures properly. However, they should only do this after using the Council’s own complaints process;
•complain to the Standards Board for England if they have evidence which they think shows that a councillor has not followed the Council’s Code of Conduct; and
•inspect the Council’s accounts and make their views known to the external auditor.
The Council welcomes participation by its citizens in its work. For further information on your rights as a citizen, please contact the Democratic Services Manager. Citizens’ rights to inspect agendas and reports and to attend meetings are set out in the Council’s Access to Information Procedure Rules in Part 4 of this Constitution.
Revised April 2011
Part 2
Articles of the Constitution
Article 1 – The Constitution
1.01Powers of the Council
The Council will exercise all its powers and duties in accordance with the law and this Constitution.
1.02The Constitution
This Constitution, and all its appendices, is the Constitution of the Three Rivers District Council.
1.03Purpose of the Constitution
The Council exists to serve the people who live and work in the District of Three Rivers. The Council has set itself a guiding vision that “Three Rivers should be a prosperous, safe and healthy place where people want and are able to live and work.”
The Council’s long-held vision is that the District should remain a prosperous, safe and healthy place where people want and are able to live and work.
The purpose of the authority is therefore well expressed in the seven core aims, which the Council has adopted in pursuit of that vision and which underpin corporate planning in the authority. They are: -
1.Protect and enhance the environment
2.Give the vulnerable a better deal
3.Develop safe, secure communities
4.Achieve open, accessible and effective government
5.Support the sustainable development of the local economy and promote prosperity for all
6.Provide quality services that meet local needs and provide value for money
7.Be a good employer
Revised April 2011
Three Rivers is however an area of contrasts. Located on the edge of London, with urban, suburban and rural areas including some green belt, it includes some of the wealthiest wards in Hertfordshire and also some of the most deprived.
In response to the inevitable diversity of needs and aspirations that are to be found in such circumstances, the Council works with a wide range of partners on both District wide and locality specific initiatives, providing informed community leadership.
Elected Members have therefore long felt it important to adopt an inclusive approach to local government for Three Rivers, an ethos that guides the Constitution and is seen reflected in the membership of the Executive Committee.
The purpose of the Constitution for Three Rivers District Council then is to:
1.enable the Council to provide clear leadership to all its communities in partnership with citizens, businesses and other organisations able to contribute;
2.facilitate and encourage the active involvement of all citizens in the process of local authority decision making;
3.help councillors represent all their constituents more effectively;
4.enable decisions to be taken efficiently and effectively;
5.create a powerful and effective means of holding decision-makers to public account;
6.ensure that no one will review or scrutinise a decision in which they were directly involved;
7.ensure that those responsible for decision making are clearly identifiable to local people and that they explain the reasons for decisions; and
8.provide a means of improving the delivery of services to all parts of the community.
1.04Interpretation and Review of the Constitution
Where the Constitution permits the Council to choose between different courses of action, the Council will always choose that option which it thinks is closest to the greatest number of the purposes stated above, provided it is within its resources.
The Council will monitor and evaluate the operation of the Constitution as set out in Article 15.
Article 2 – Members of The Council
2.01Composition and Eligibility
(a)Composition. The Council will comprise 48 members, otherwise called councillors. One or more councillors will be elected by the Local Government voters of each ward in accordance with The Local Government England and Wales The District of Three Rivers (Parishes and Electoral Changes) Order 1998 S11998 No 2556.
(b)Eligibility. Only registered voters of the district or those living or working there will be eligible to hold the office of councillor.
2.02Election and Terms of Councillors
Election and Terms: The ordinary election of a third of all Councillors will be held on the first Thursday in May in each year beginning in 2002, except that in 2005 and every fourth year after there will be no regular election. The terms of office of Councillors will be four years starting on the fourth day after being elected and finishing on the fourth day after the date of the regular election four years later.
2.03Roles and Functions of all Councillors
(a)Key roles. All councillors will:
(i)collectively be the ultimate policy-makers and carry out a number of strategic and corporate management functions;
(ii)contribute to the good governance of the area and actively encourage community participation and citizen involvement in decision making;
(iii)effectively represent the interests of their ward and its constituents;
(iv)respond to constituents’ enquiries and representations, fairly and impartially;
(v)participate in the governance and management of the Council; and
(vi)maintain the highest standards of conduct and ethics.
(b)Rights and duties
(i)Councillors will have such rights of access to such documents, information, land and buildings of the Council as are necessary for the proper discharge of their functions and in accordance with the law.
(ii)Councillors will not make public information which is confidential or exempt without the consent of the Council or divulge information given in confidence to anyone other than a councillor or officer entitled to know it.
(iii)For these purposes, “confidential” and “exempt” information are defined in the Access to Information Procedure Rules in Part 4 of this Constitution.
2.04Conduct
Councillors will at all times observe the Members’ Code of Conduct and the Protocol on Member/Officer Relations set out in Part 5 of this Constitution.
2.05Allowances
Councillors will be entitled to receive allowances in accordance with the Members’ Allowances Scheme set out in Part 6 of this Constitution.
Article 3 – Citizens and The Council
3.01Citizens’ rights
Citizens have the following rights. Their rights to information and to participate are explained in more detail in the Access to Information Procedure Rules in Part 4 of this Constitution:
(a)Voting and Petitions. An individual over 18 who lives in the District and is qualified to be on the Register of Electors as a Local Government elector is entitled to vote for a Candidate at a Local Election. To register you have to contact the Electoral Registration Officer and ask to be placed on the register at the property in which you reside. An annual audit of voters is carried out by all Councils. You can apply for a postal vote at any time.
Citizens on the Register of Electors for the area have the right to vote and sign a Petition either electronically or in print to request a referendum for an elected Mayor form of Constitution.
(b)Information. Citizens have the right to:
(i)attend meetings of the Council and its committees except where confidential or exempt information is likely to be disclosed, and the meeting is therefore held in private;
(ii)find out from the forward plan what key decisions will be taken by the Leader/Executive Committee and when;
(iii)see reports and background papers, and any records of decisions made by the Council and its committees; and
(iv)inspect the Council’s accounts and make their views known to the external auditor.
(c)Participation. Citizens have the right to participate at Council and Committee meetings and contribute by invitation to investigations by Committees. Council Procedure Rules 16 and 36(B) set out the procedure.
(d)Compliments, Comments and Complaints. Citizens have the right to comment, compliment or complain to the Council under its adopted scheme. Citizens also have the right to complain to:
(i)the Ombudsman after using the Council’s own complaints scheme;
(ii)the Standards Board for England about a breach of the Councillor’s Code of Conduct.
3.02Citizens’ Responsibilities
Citizens must not be violent, abusing or threatening to councillors or officers and must not wilfully harm things owned by the council, councillors or officers.
Revised April 2011
Article 4 – The Full Council
4.01Meanings
(a)Policy Framework