Agenda and minutes

Consider report by Service Director Customer and Communities.  (Copy attached.)

There had been circulated copies of a report by the Service Director Customer and Communities seeking authority to undertake a review of the current Community Council Scheme, the governing document for Community Councils in the Scottish Borders.  At its meeting on 26 June 2014, Scottish Borders Council adopted a revised Scheme for the Establishment of Community Councils in the Scottish Borders.  In order to remain current and reflect good practice, it was important that the Scheme was reviewed every few years.  It was proposed that a Working Group be formed to undertake the review of the current Scheme for Community Councils, and report back to Council in due course on its findings.  The Working Group would lead, facilitate and monitor the review, and its composition, objective and proposed remit form were appended to the report.  In order to ensure all Community Councils, as well as any other interested parties, were kept informed and able to feed into the Review, it was suggested that copies of all papers for meetings of the Working Group were sent out electronically to Community Councils and made available on the Council website.  It was further suggested that meetings of the Working Group would be open for interested parties to attend to observe proceedings.  Councillor Thornton-Nicol, seconded by Councillor Chapman, moved that recommendation (b) be amended to read “that membership of the Working Group comprises an elected member (or substitute) from each of the area Partnerships, a Community Council representative from each of the Area Partnership localities, and the Executive Member for Neighbourhoods and Locality Services”.  This amendment was unanimously approved.

DECISION

AGREED:-

(a)     to the establishment of a Working Group to undertake a review of the current Community Council Scheme;

(b)     that membership of the Working Group comprises an elected member (or substitute) from each of the area Partnerships, a Community Council representative from each of the Area Partnership localities, and the Executive Member for Neighbourhoods and Locality Services;

(c)     to appoint the Executive Member for Neighbourhoods & Locality Services as Chairman of the Working Group;

(d)     to approve the Terms of Reference for the Working Group as detailed in the Appendix to the report;

(e)     to delegate authority to the Service Director Customer & Communities to arrange for appropriate officers to support the Working Group; and

(f)      that the papers for the Working Group would be sent to all Community Councils to allow them to provide input either to their representative on the Working Group or directly to the Chairman of the Working Group, and also that the papers for the Working Group were made publicly available, with meetings of the Working Group open for interested parties to observe proceedings.