Agenda item

Report of Head of Legal and Democratic Services

Summary

To consider the outcomes of the scrutiny review of the Council’s partnership with Oxfordshire Rural Community Council and to agree the recommendations to Executive. 

The draft report will be circulated separately to Members.

Recommendations

The Resources and Performance Scrutiny Board is recommended to:

(1)               Note the briefing on the review of representation on Outside Bodies.

(2)               Consider the draft report (circulated separately to Members of the Board) and agree the draft report be circulated to Officers for comments.

(3)               Agree that the Democratic, Scrutiny and Elections Manager in consultation with the Chairman of the Resources and Performance Scrutiny Board be delegated to agree any amendments to the report prior to submitting to the Executive.

The Board reflected on the outcomes of its scrutiny review of the Council’s partnership with Oxfordshire Rural Community Council and discussed the draft recommendations to the Executive.   The Portfolio Holder for Community Safety, Street Scene and Rural was present at the meeting and participated in the discussion.

The Board confirmed that the Oxfordshire Rural Community Council was a valuable and important partnership for Cherwell District Council without which it would be difficult to deliver the Council’s rural agenda.

The Board discussed the role of elected Members in the Council’s partnership with Oxfordshire Rural Community Council and agreed that the current arrangement should continue but that it should be strengthened and the respective role and responsibilities of the Portfolio Holder and the elected ward member should be clarified.  The Board felt that it was important to distinguish between the role of the Portfolio Holder in shaping the strategic direction of the partnership and determining funding and service level agreements and that of the elected member providing knowledge and experience of rural issues within the district.  The Board agreed that the elected member should represent a rural ward.

Throughout the course of the Review the Board had raised some general issues about the role and responsibilities of elected Members who represent the Council on partnerships and outside bodies. The Board noted that in spring 2009 the Executive had requested further information setting out how the Council would effectively support member representatives on partnerships and outside bodies. The Chairman reported that a project group had been established to review representation on outside bodies. The Board agreed that that the review addressed the issues that they had raised and commented that it was important for there to be a defined role for elected Members representing the Council on outside bodies and partnerships and that the responsibilities for this role should be defined and strengthened.

Resolved

1)                 That the briefing on the review of representation on Outside Bodies be noted.

2)                 That the following recommendations to the Executive be included in the report on the Oxfordshire Rural Communities Council:

a)     That an annual programme of aims/objectives (aligned to the Rural Strategy Action Plan and the Council’s corporate priorities) be agreed with Oxfordshire Rural Community Council and regularly reviewed and monitored by officers, the elected Member representative from a rural ward and reported to the Portfolio Holder.

b)     That the role and involvement of elected Members (the representative from a rural ward and the Portfolio Holder) in the Council’s partnership with Oxfordshire Rural Community Council be clarified and strengthened.

c)      That the elected Member representative from a rural ward should work closely with rural community development officers and safer communities and community development officers to provide overall steer and direction for the partnership.  

3)                 That the draft report Oxfordshire Rural Communities Council be circulated to Officers for comment.

4)                 That the Democratic, Scrutiny and Elections Manager in consultation with the Chairman of the Resources and Performance Scrutiny Board be delegated to agree any amendments to the draft report on the Oxfordshire Rural Communities Council prior to it’s submission to the Executive.