How we make decisions

The Council has temporarily altered aspects of its decision making arrangements during the Covid-19 pandemic to ensure the safety of Councillors, staff and residents and enable it to concentrate its resources on providing essential support to the local community.

All Committee meetings will be held virtually until May 2021 unless an improvement in the public health situation allows for an earlier return to meetings in person at the Guildhall. You can watch these meetings either live or after the event on the Council’s YouTube channel. Further information on the broadcasts. 

A temporary Response and Recovery Committee, established in May 2020, is presently discharging the functions of the Finance and Regeneration and Community and Engagement Committees. It is also responsible for matters related to the Council’s Covid 19 response.

The Culture, Housing, Environment & Planning Committee was established in October 2020 to temporarily discharge the functions of the Environment and Sustainable Transport and Place and Culture Committees, which are currently not meeting. Meetings of the Children’s and Adult’s Care and Education Committee, which were initially suspended, have now resumed. 

All other Committees are operating on a normal schedule. It has been necessary to introduce some minor modifications to the public participation arrangements because of the virtual nature of the meetings.

All temporary arrangements will be reviewed prior to May 2021.