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

Follow us on X/Twitter

0 votes
My understanding is that Standing Orders in BOLD are Statute Law however those that are not bold are added in as required.

The problem is 7a. Special Motions are not bold in my standing orders but I'm sure they are from statute law.
If a Council were to try and reverse a decision without going through the right process am I to assume this is unlawful? Assuming 7a. is not statute law. Is that a breach of delegated powers however you perceive it?
There's a few decisions that look as though the Council will not do a Special Motion and seem to think a clerk can somehow undo a bad decision made in the last 6 months.
by (4.6k points)

2 Answers

0 votes
Best answer
Parish Councils are now a law unto themselves

Of late mine is ignoring both Standing Orders and Financial Regulations when it suits
Recently the Clerk overrode a clear motion at the subsequent meeting and the Councillors who proposed seconded and voted for it didn’t say a word

Before the Audit Commission was abolished there was some hope that action would be taken now I’m afraid it’s anything goes
by (11.5k points)
selected by
Thank you. It's incredibly frustrating. I assume all I can do is cite standing orders and see whether that may remind Cllrs of this. Beyond this, It seems I can't do a great deal.
I keep arguing for Parish (& Town) councils to come under the remit of the Local Gov Ombudsman. The Tories thus far haven't done it.
I think it should be under the LGO. Completely agree.
0 votes
For  avoidance of doubt, can you confirm that you are quoting from the NALC model standing orders, or if not, which publication?
by (34.9k points)
They're due to be updated soon however the present version is 6 years old which may help

I believe the Council will try to dissolve a previously forged sub committe in full TC (so outside delegated powers) but the decision was made 3 months ago hence looks like it needs a special and then seek to replace it with a lawful committee
Question simply is, does that really remove the sub committee or would it still technically exsist due to way it's being removed?

It places me in a difficult situation as we need a lawful committe but if it's never lawful then we're in the same situation as now. I don't want to be implicated personally in any wrong doings

It's linked to the HR function hence quite important

I may need to do a named vote but I'm confident it will be rejected nor they'll allow me to provide an explanation which means I couldn't even nominate anyone as I'm implicated if I do - I suspect I need to wait and see what comes forward. But I've already requested a Special Motion and noone is interested.
Are these SO' s published on your Council's website?
Yes they are on the website.
Website says last adopted 2014

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

2,895 questions
5,617 answers
7,949 comments
10,028 users
Google Analytics Alternative