Questions about town and parish councils
Follow Councillor Q&A on X/Twitter

Follow us on X/Twitter

0 votes
I have been advised that the chairman has to attend the PCAM “in order to sign certain documents.”

Is this the case, or could the document (not specified) be signed later, after re-election in absentia?
by (120 points)

1 Answer

0 votes
At the annual meeting, the person elected as chair does have to be present. They should normally sign a declaration of acceptance of office at the meeting. An exception can be made if the council, at that meeting, passes a clear resolution stating that the person elected may sign at another specific time. If the signature is not made either at the meeting or at the specified alternative time, the election is not valid and the post of chair becomes vacant again. See https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1972/70/section/83. [Edited to take account of comments from RoundAgainCoxn and John1706].
by (33.6k points)
edited by
Must be present at the meeting in order to be elected - yes.
Must deliver acceptance of office declaration at that meeting - that is not actually what the reference states....

The definitive answer is in the reference.
Yes, the legislation does state what I said. "(4)A person elected to the office of chairman of a parish or community council or parish or community councillor shall—
(a)in the case of the chairman, at the meeting at which he is elected; ....make in the presence of a member of the council or of the proper officer of the council and deliver to the council a declaration of acceptance of office in a form prescribed by [an order made by the Secretary of State], and if he fails to do so his office shall thereupon become vacant."
Well, if you read on to sub para (c) it actually says “...at that meeting so permit, before or at a later meeting fixed by the council...”

What this means therefore is, yes, the person elected to be the chair must be present at the meeting where the election takes place, but no, the declaration of acceptance of office does NOT have to occur at the same time. It ‘can’ perhaps one might even say ‘should’ (where practicable) but it doesn’t HAVE to.
It is simply NOT the case that the election is voided if acceptance of office is not affirmed at the same time / place as the election itself.
The context of the whole of the reference, rather than an small part of it in isolation is the key here.
Its worth re-inforcing the point made by roundagaincoxn (with which I agree) that it is crucial the council passes a clear resolution allowing the chairman to sign o a future occasion.
Sorry, you are right. I will amend my answer.
Emoji - thumb up!

Welcome to Town & Parish Councillor Q&A, where you can ask questions and receive answers from other members of the community. All genuine questions and answers are welcome. Follow us on Twitter to see the latest questions as they are asked - click on the image button above or follow @TownCouncilQA. Posts from new members may be delayed as we are unfortunately obliged to check each one for spam. Spammers will be blacklisted.

You may find the following links useful:

We have a privacy policy and a cookie policy.

Clares Cushions logo Peacock cushion

Clare's Cushions creates beautiful hand made cushions and home accessories from gorgeous comtemporary fabrics. We have a fantastic selection of prints including Sophie Allport and Orla Kiely designs and most covers can be ordered either alone or with a cushion inner. Buying new cushions is an affordable and effective way to update your home interior, they're also a great gift idea. Visit our site now

3,079 questions
6,067 answers
8,462 comments
10,618 users
Google Analytics Alternative