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2 June 2024
Yes, I am doing a countdown to the elections next year. I think I am entitled to start counting after such an appalling Annual Council Meeting last week.
I just wonder though if Council is going to make it to 2025?
What Council didn’t do at its Annual Council Meeting
I said in my last blog that I would let you know what happened at the Annual Council Meeting on 21 May. But first a recap of what didn't happen; Council:-
- failed to make a decision on a grant application by Widmer End Residents’ Association (because the locum Clerk had failed to obtain the legal advice Council asked him to obtain in March);
- failed to approve the replacement of 3 streetlight columns in Widmer End (because the locum Clerk failed to put the item on the agenda and get quotes);
- failed to consider staffing matters, including what progress was being made by the company contracted to support Council in recruiting a permanent Clerk and deputy Clerk (because the locum Clerk did not put a staffing item on the agenda and then advised Council that it could not therefore discuss staffing, even under the report of the Human Resources Committee);
- failed to authorise payments for the 8th month (because the Responsible Financial Officer - whoever that is - did not present a schedule of payments to be authorised); and
- failed to consider the inspection reports of HPC’s playgrounds (because they weren’t on the agenda despite the fact that the safety of the playgrounds is under investigation by the Health and Safety Executive).
So what, you may ask, did Council do?
Well, Council noted Cllr Chris Janes had not attended a Council meeting for 6 months nor had he provided apologies. No explanation was given but Mr Janes automatically ceased to be a councillor. Council is now down to 8.
Council elected Cllr Jones as Chair and Cllr Thomas as Vice Chair (I abstained).
A member of the public spoke about the wish of some residents of Bryants Bottom to put up a war memorial and asked how they could get HPC financial support.
Council decided not to have a Planning Committee but to consider significant planning applications at Council.
Council noted that I had attended the training required under the sanctions imposed on me by Council on 4 April 2023. I attended the training on 15 May and had let Council know the day before the Council meeting. I had found the training instructive and enjoyable. There is an article about this in the BFP if you are interested Wycombe councillor who ‘bullied’ staff has ban lifted | Bucks Free Press.
The locum Clerk said he had informed the Monitoring Officer and the ban on my going into the Council Offices was now lifted.
No-one commented.
I suppose I should express my joy and jubilation – but it is not going to make a difference to my life.
Council appointed members to the Finance, Environment and Services, and HR Committees. I didn’t note who was on which Committee as the locum Clerk said he would circulate lists of members after the meeting and post on HPC’s website. However, the lists haven’t been circulated yet and when I checked the website, it hasn’t been updated since at least last October as Debra Main is still included as deputy Chair.
I volunteered to be a member of the Finance Committee and was appointed unanimously. Rather worryingly, I was told after the meeting by Cllr Jones, the Chair, that “While you were voted onto a committee you will not be able to take your place on it until the sanctions have been lifted by council.”
I pointed out to Cllr Jones that the sanctions did not bar me from being on HPC committees – I could have been a member of a committee any time over the past year.
I also had to point out that I had been lawfully appointed to the Finance Committee by the Council. It was not for Cllr Jones to decide otherwise. The role of the Chair was limited to chairing meetings, unless delegations were specifically made in HPC’s governance documents.
Council didn’t approve its assets register; this is still a work in progress.
Council didn’t approve a 6- month extension to September 2025 to HPC’s contract with a company called Spruced Up;
Council asked what on earth a forty-page document on a management plan for Downley Common was doing on the agenda. The locum Clerk said Cllr Kearey (who was not at the meeting) had asked for it to go on the agenda. (You might like to glance again at the items not on the agenda and wonder why it was so easy to get this 40- page document on instead).
Council received a budget report and balance sheet but the locum Clerk said it was too early to have reliable figures. We didn’t get reliable figures throughout 2023/4 (and still haven’t) so no change there. But I have to say, this financial information reached a new low of unreliability.
Finally, Council was asked to approve revisions to HPC’s Standing Orders, Financial Regulations and Scheme of Delegation. A director of the Local Government Resource Centre (the locum Clerk’s employer) had been asked to do this work.
I asked who had authorised the expenditure for this work. No-one could answer.
I understand HPC has a contract with LGRC to provide an experienced, qualified locum Clerk when required but not for any additional work. When the same director provided the previous Clerk with support last year, this was specifically and separately approved by Council.
Obviously, if the locum Clerk had authorised this expenditure, he might have a conflict of interest i.e. in commissioning work from the director of the company he works for, particularly, as I understand, he sought no alternative quotes. As I don’t know how much the work has cost, I don't know if the locum Clerk had the authority to authorise the expenditure.
I said I would refer this to the internal auditor. I did this after the meeting, copying to the external auditor.
Council approved the revised Standing Orders but not the other two governance documents; these are works in progress.
And that’s all until the next Council meeting on 25 June. That’s when Council is required by law to report on its finances and governance.
Just a final thought. Over the past years, Council has been generally supported by 1½ staff. And the work, more or less, got done.
Now Council has more staff. It has 5, or possible more, part-time staff (I don’t know for sure because Council isn’t informed). At least 3 of those staff have been in post for more than 7 months. At least 3 are, I am told, experienced and qualified.
In addition, much of the work normally carried out by staff has been contracted out.
And yet, much of the work is not being done.
Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?