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

Follow us on X/Twitter

0 votes
by (140 points)

2 Answers

+2 votes
Authorisation of payments has to be made by the council or committee (if they have delegated authority) and not by individual councillors, regardless if they are the Chair or not.  If the clerk is on long term sick leave, you need to get a locum to act as the RFO.
by (24.0k points)
0 votes

The chair (or any other Cllr) nominated by resolution can act as the RFO if so approved by the council  

The RFO can make payments approved by delegation or resolution with any falling outside of pre established delegation requiring the approval of the council as would be the case for a permanent incumbent of the RFO role. 

It would be for the council to decide if engagement of a locus clerk / RFO was necessary dependant upon the circumstances but it is not a simple default to locum clerk if there is a suitable and willing candidate from within the council or even the wider community. 

Whilst it might be appropriate to engage a locum clerk, it is not mandatory  

by (19.3k points)

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

2,897 questions
5,620 answers
7,954 comments
10,028 users
Google Analytics Alternative