Question

Are Terms of Reference required for a Working Group.......

Answer 1

Yes. When the Council establishes a working group, it has a particular purpose in mind and that purpose must be clearly set out in a document that defines the role and, more importantly, sets boundaries for the remit.

Answer 2

Morally yes - but probably not, unless the Council's Standing orders state that  they must.  - working groups are sadly often used as a means of working outside the normal regulations that apply to council meetings.

Comments

I understood that it is only Council or its standing committees that can make formal decisions and that working groups or sub-committees can only recommend a course of action to those bodies.

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Indeed that is correct but a working party can work outside the remit of terms of reference, agenda and minutes.  Who picks the members of the working party.  Are they a good balance of knowlege and experience or just favourites of the chair?  In whose interest is their recomendation or findings truly given? Are they doing things that the Clerk should be doing?

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It shouldn't really matter as working parties have no real powers.  The committee it reports to should expect any advice it gives to be underpinned by a sound argument before acting.  It is not the working party that is the problem if that is not happening but the committee.