Recording Meetings either Audio or Video

Question

Hi all, I have been tasked to  gather information with our " Working Group" about audio or video recording of council meetings.  Do any of you have a system that you would recommend to record meetings Both at Sub and full council meetings.
The purpose is  A: to help the  office and staff ensure correct recording of meetings and B: that a record of substance is kept for a period. Due to the the law allowing both audio and video recording by the public and we wish to ensure that the record is both true and  factual, Should either for humour or intent, public recordings are edited and published on social media and other platforms. That do not reflect what happend.

Answer 1

I would recommend this:

https://www.gear4music.com/Recording-and-Computers/Zoom-H1n-Field-Recording-Bundle/30PO?origin=product-ads&gclid=Cj0KCQiAsvTxBRDkARIsAH4W_j8U1tQI2QsWRL0zz_o3A_kc3js7f_7IFA8pDtn4RakDbQfsDJDghNQaAtiqEALw_wcB

The microphones pick everything up really clearly and it is easy to transfer recordings to a PC etc.  Just be advised that the recordings amount to Information held, and the public could submit FOI requests for copies.of the recordings, unless you erase them after a given period of time.

Comments

Just a thought on this subject, as we do record all our meetings is there any legal guidance on how long these recordings should be retained before being destroyed/deleted, especially as the public has the legal right to request copies.

This is something we haven't considered! <Insert screamy shocked confused face>

Asking for a friend loikes ?!

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There is currently no legal requirement to make audio and video recordings of Town or Parish Council meetings, so by default, once the recordings have served their purpose, perhaps to facilitate accuracy of minute taking for example, they can be erased. If they hold sensitive personal data, e.g. if a member of the public introduced themselves by name, and stated that they had a specific disability etc I would suggest erasing them at the earliest opportunity.

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I believe recordings should be retained as long as the minutes are
I think just like at Borough level all meetings should be fully recorded including  when the public / press are excluded as minutes should still be released later unless there are data protection issues
In my experience decisions are often made on the basis of misleading oral information which is then not minuted
I personally record all meetings so when recently two Councillors publicly accused me of lying I offered to burn then a CD to prove I didn’t say what they claimed I said
Without that recording they could have reported me to the Monitoring Officer
The public should be warned they are being recorded so it’s there choice if they don’t want to be recorded