Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules

1. What will be the number and arrangements for Overview and Scrutiny Committees?

The Council will have the Overview and Scrutiny Committees set out in Article 6 and will appoint to them as it considers appropriate from time to time. Such Committees may appoint Sub-Committees. The Overview and Scrutiny Committees may also be appointed for a fixed period, on the expiry of which they shall cease to exist. There will be no more than six Overview and Scrutiny Committees. In addition the Overview and Scrutiny Committees may set up panels for specific subjects and use creative ways to deal with such reviews by engaging the community.

OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEES

Overview Committee

The Overview Committee will be appointed annually by the Council and shall be politically balanced.

The functions of the Overview Committee shall be as follows:

(a) To hold general policy reviews and to assist in the development of future policies and strategies. (whether requested by Council or the Cabinet, or determined by the Committee itself) and to make recommendations to either the Cabinet or to the Council, as appropriate. The Committee may establish Policy Advisory Groups to assist it in this work.

(b)To receive representations and petitions from members of the public, raising matters of concern to the residents of the borough or to consider of its volition issues of local concern. To ask for a report from officers on such issues where the Committee has agreed by resolution that the matter ought to be addressed.

(c) To consider and make recommendations on any matter referred to the Committee by the Cabinet and/or Council.

(d) To invite to any meeting of the Committee and permit to participate in discussion and debate, but not to vote, any person whom the Committee considers would assist it in carrying out its functions.

(e) To require any Councillor who is a Member of the Cabinet and the appropriate Director or a senior officer nominated by him or her to attend any meeting of the Committee to answer questions and discuss issues.

(f) To ensure that any matter which is relevant to the functions of the Overview Committee and which a Member wishes to be considered, is included on the agenda and is discussed at a future meeting.

(g) To carry out Best Value Reviews in line with the rolling programme of Service Reviews approved by the Council and to submit reports thereon to the Council via the Cabinet.

Scrutiny Committee

The Scrutiny Committee will be appointed annually by the Council and shall be politically balanced.

The functions of the Scrutiny Committee shall be as follows:

(a) To consider the performance of Cabinet and officers and in particular those targets, which have not been met, to decide which service managers and/or portfolio holder should attend to answer questions on performance and to make recommendations to Cabinet on improving performance.

(b)To consider how contractors have performed against specification, and to make recommendations to officers/the Cabinet on actions where performance is not up to specification

(c) To consider how partnerships have performed against specification and to make recommendations to officers/the Cabinet on actions where performance is not up to specification. Representatives of partnerships are required to provide base data information in the format set out in Annex A, to provide an annual report to the Committee in the format set out in Annex B and the Committee is guided as to the lines of enquiry in relation to those set out at Annex C.

(d) To scrutinise decisions (in accordance with the Call In rules below) made in connection with the discharge of any functions which are the responsibility of the Cabinet or which are to be exercised by officers under the expedited procedure, but which have not been implemented, and in scrutinising decisions to recommend that the decision be reconsidered by the person who made it or to refer the decision to the Council for it to decide whether it wishes the decision to be reconsidered

(e) To scrutinise decisions not yet made (pre scrutiny) at the request of statutory officers, Cabinet, Council, or by resolution of the Committee itself, and to make recommendations on how to proceed (pre-scrutiny).

(f) To review decisions which have been made and implemented at the request of the statutory officers, Cabinet, Council or by resolution of the Committee itself, and to capture any learning for the future. The review of decisions made in closed session will take place in closed session.

(g) To receive reports from the Senior Responsible Owner and Programme Manager on the progress of capital projects, and to refer any concerns to the project board.

(h) To consider the annual management and CPA reports received from the Audit Commission and to make recommendations to Cabinet and Council as appropriate on matters raised in such reports.

(i) To invite to any meeting of the Committee and permit to participate in discussion and debate, but not to vote, any person whom the Committee considers would assist it in carrying out its functions.

(j) To require any Councillor who is a Member of the Cabinet and the appropriate Director or a senior officer nominated by him or her to attend any meeting of the Committee to answer questions and discuss issues.

2. Who may sit on the Overview and Scrutiny Committees?

All Councillors except Members of the Cabinet and the Mayor may be members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees. However, no Member may be involved in scrutinising a decision which he/she has been directly involved.

3. Co-optees

The Overview and Scrutiny Committees or Sub-Committees shall be entitled if they so wish to recommend to Council the appointment of a number of people as non-voting co-optees.

 

4. Meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees

(a) There shall be at least four ordinary meetings of both the Overview Committee and Scrutiny Committee in each year. In addition, extraordinary meetings may be called from time to time as and when appropriate. A Committee meeting may be called by the chair of the relevant Committee, by any three members of the Committee or by the Council Manager if he/she considers it necessary or appropriate.

(b) Where the Overview and Scrutiny Committees consider a decision of Cabinet that was made when the press and public were excluded then they must also exclude the press and public provided it is lawful for them to do so.

5. Quorum

The quorum for a Committee shall be as set out for Committees in the Council Procedure Rules in Part 4 of this Constitution.

6. Who chairs the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meetings?

The chairman of each committee must be from a political group which neither has a majority of seats on the Cabinet and which is not the largest political group.

7. Work programme

The Overview and Scrutiny Committees will be responsible for setting their own work programmes and in doing so they shall take into account wishes of Members on that Committee.

8. Agenda items

Any Member of the Council shall be entitled to give notice to the Council Manager that he/she wishes an item relevant to the functions of the Committee or Sub-Committee to be included on the agenda for the next available meeting of the Committee or Sub-Committee. On receipt of such a request the Council Manager will ensure that it is included on the next available agenda.

The Overview and Scrutiny Committees shall also respond, as soon as their work programmes permit, to requests from the Council and if it considers it appropriate the Cabinet to review particular areas of Council activity. Where it does so, the Overview and Scrutiny Committees shall report its findings and any recommendations back to the Cabinet and/or Council. The Council and/or the Cabinet shall consider the reports of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees within six weeks of receiving it.

9. Policy review and development

(a) The role of the Overview Committee in relation to the development of the Council’s budget and policy framework is set out in detail in the Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rules.

(b) In relation to the development of the Council’s approach to other matters not forming part of its policy and budget framework, the Overview Committee or
Sub-Committees may make proposals to the Cabinet for developments in so far as they relate to matters within their terms of reference.

(c) The Overview Committee may hold enquiries and investigate the available options for future direction in policy development and may appoint advisers and assessors to assist them in this process. It may go on site visits, conduct public surveys, hold public meetings, commission research and do all other things that it reasonably considers necessary to inform its deliberations. It may ask witnesses to attend to address it on any matter under consideration and may pay to any advisers, assessors and witnesses a reasonable fee and expenses for doing so.

10. Policy Advisory Groups and Scrutiny Working Groups

(a) The Overview Committee may establish Policy Advisory Groups to assist it in policy review and development.

(b) Policy Advisory Groups should normally have no more than 5 members and may never have more than 10. Membership will consist of the following:

• A Chairman appointed by the Overview Committee (this will usually be a member of the Committee itself)
• Members of the Committee and/or other non-executive members
• The relevant portfolio holder(s) (who will be invited to attend)

(c) When establishing a Policy Advisory Group, the Overview Committee must agree:

•  
• The precise terms of reference for the group.
• The date by which it must report back and the number of meetings it is expected to hold.
• Whether it is to report to Cabinet, Council or the Committee.
• The officer support.
• The membership of the group and which other persons it should invite to attend its meetings.

10.2 (a) The Scrutiny Committee may establish Working Groups to conduct performance management of partnerships and to pre-scrutinise decisions. Such Groups may be established by resolution of the Committee or by officers in consultation with the Chairman.

(b) Scrutiny Working groups will consist of 3 or 4 councillors drawn from the Committee and/or non-executive members. They may also invite the Portfolio Holder to attend to take part in the work of the group.

(c) When establishing a Scrutiny Working Group the Committee or officer must agree:

• Precise terms of reference for the Group;
• The date by which it must report back and the number of meetings it is expected to hold;
• Whether the Group should, in exceptional circumstances only, report direct to Cabinet or Council instead of the Committee;
• The officer support required; and
• The membership of the Group and which other persons including members of the Executive, it should invite to take part in the work of the group.

(d) The Scrutiny Working Groups will have the same powers to call members and officers to give account and to require the attendance of others as the Scrutiny Committee set out in paragraphs 14 and 15 below and also the powers of the Scrutiny Committee with regard to the Performance Management of Contracts and Partnerships set out in paragraph 19.

11. Reports from Overview Committee and/or Policy Advisory Groups

(a) Once it has formed recommendations on proposals for development, the Overview Committee and/or Policy Advisory group will prepare a formal report and submit it to the Council Manager for consideration by the Cabinet (if the proposals are consistent with the existing budgetary and policy framework), or to the Council as appropriate (e.g. if the recommendation would require a departure from or a change to the agreed budget and policy framework).

(b) If the Overview Committee or Policy Advisory Group cannot agree on one single final report to the Council or Cabinet as appropriate, then up to one minority report may be prepared and submitted for consideration by the Council or Cabinet with the majority report.

(c) The Council or Cabinet shall consider the report of the Overview Committee or Policy Advisory Group within six weeks of it being submitted to the Council Manager.

(d) The Chairman or Vice-Chairman of the Overview Committee or Policy Advisory Group shall have the right to attend a meeting of the Cabinet to present any report which has been prepared on behalf of the Committee for consideration by the Cabinet. The same right shall apply to one signatory to any minority report on the same subject.

12. Making sure that Overview reports are considered by the Cabinet

(a) Once the Overview Committee has completed its deliberations on any matter it will forward a copy of its final report to the Council Manager who will allocate it to either or both the Cabinet and the Council for consideration, according to whether the contents of the report would have implications for the Council’s budget and policy framework. If the Council Manager refers the matter to Council, he/she will also serve a copy on the Leader with notice that the matter is to be referred to Council. The Cabinet will have 6 weeks in which to respond to the Overview report, and the Council shall not consider it within that period. When the Council does meet to consider any referral from the Overview Committee on a matter which would impact on the budget and policy framework, it shall also consider the response of the Cabinet to the Overview proposals.

(b) Where the Overview Committee or Sub-Committee prepares a report for consideration by the Cabinet in relation to a matter where the Leader or Council has delegated decision making power to another individual Member of the Cabinet, then the Overview Committee will submit a copy of their report to him/her for consideration. At the time of doing so, the Overview Committee shall serve a copy on the Council Manager. The Member with delegated decision making power must consider the report and respond in writing to the Overview Committee within 6 weeks of receiving it. A copy of his/her written response to it shall be sent to the Council Manager and the Leader. The Member will also attend a future meeting of the Overview Committee to present their response.

(c) Where the Overview Committee or Sub-Committee prepares a report for consideration by the Cabinet in relation to a matter where the Leader or Council has delegated decision making power to another individual Member of the Cabinet, then the Overview Committee will submit a copy of their report to that individual for consideration. At the time of doing so, the Overview Committee shall serve a copy on the Council Manager and the Leader. If the Member with delegated decision making power does not accept the recommendations of the Overview Committee then he/she must then refer the matter to the next available meeting of the Cabinet for debate before exercising his/her decision making power and responding to the report in writing to the Overview Committee. The Cabinet Member to whom the decision making power has been delegated will respond to the Overview and Committee within 6 weeks of receiving it. A copy of his/her written response to it shall be sent to the Council Manager and he/she will attend a future meeting to respond.

(d) The Overview Committee will in any event have access to the Cabinet’s forward plan and timetable for decisions and intentions for consultation. Even where an item is not the subject of detailed proposals from the Overview Committee following a consideration of possible policy/service developments, the Committee will at least be able to respond in the course of the Cabinet’s consultation process in relation to any key decision.

13. Rights of Overview and Scrutiny Committee Members to documents

(a) In addition to their rights as Councillors, Members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees have the additional right to documents, and to notice of meetings as set out in the Access to Information Procedure Rules in Part 4 of this Constitution.

(b) Nothing in this paragraph prevents more detailed liaison between the Cabinet and the Overview and Scrutiny Committees as appropriate depending on the particular matter under consideration.

14. Members and officers giving account

(a) The Overview and Scrutiny Committees or Sub-Committees may scrutinise and review, as appropriate, decisions made or actions taken in connection with the discharge of any Council functions. In fulfilling their roles, they may require any Member of the Cabinet, the head of paid service and/or any senior officer to attend before them to explain in relation to matters within their remit:

i) any particular decision or series of decisions;

ii) the extent to which the actions taken implement Council policy; and/or

iii) their performance.

and it is the duty of those persons to attend if so required.

(b) Where any Member or officer is required to attend the Overview and Scrutiny Committees under this provision, the chair of the relevant Committee will inform the Council Manager. The Council Manager shall inform the Member or officer in writing giving at least 5 working days notice of the meeting at which he/she is required to attend. The notice will state the nature of the item on which he/she is required to attend to give account and whether any papers are required to be produced for the Committee. Where the account to be given to the Committee will require the production of a report, then the Member or officer concerned will be given sufficient notice to allow for preparation of that documentation.

(c) Where, in exceptional circumstances, the Member or officer is unable to attend on the required date, then the Committee shall in consultation with the Member or officer arrange an alternative date for attendance to take place within a maximum of 10 days from the date of the original request.

(d) Members of the Council who are not members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees or sub-committees may submit a question to the Chairman prior to any meeting at which the committee or sub-committee has required the attendance of any person under 13(a) above. That question may be put by the Chairman (in his discretion) to such person.

15. Attendance by others

The Overview and Scrutiny and Committees and Policy Advisory Groups may invite people other than those people referred to in paragraph 14 above to address it, discuss issues of local concern and/or answer questions. It may for example wish to hear from residents, stakeholders and Members and officers in other parts of the public sector and shall invite such people to attend. Any Member of the Council may make a statement of no more than five minutes duration on an agenda item prior to consideration by the appropriate Committee.

16. Call-in

(a) When a decision is made by the Cabinet, an individual Member of the Cabinet or a Committee of the Cabinet, or a key decision is made by an officer with delegated authority from the Cabinet, or an Area Committee or under joint arrangements, the decision shall be published, including where possible by electronic means, and shall be available at the main offices of the Council normally within 3 working days of being made. All members of the Council will be sent copies of the records of all such decisions within the same timescale, by the person responsible for publishing the decision.

(b) That notice will bear the date on which it is published and will specify that the decision will come into force, and may then be implemented, on the expiry of 5 working days after the date on which the decision was made unless the requisite number of Members of the Scrutiny Committee or the Council referred to in (c) below objects to it and calls it in.

(c) During that period, the Council Manager shall call-in a decision for scrutiny by the Scrutiny Committee if so requested by:

• any two Members of the Council from different political groups; or
• any five Members of the Council from the same political group; or
• in the case of an officer decision to be made under the delegation of cabinet functions (expedited procedure), emailed or signed by the Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee.

The called-in decision will be referred to the next meeting of the Scrutiny Committee, or to a special meeting called by the Chairman on the grounds of urgency. The Scrutiny Committee must determine the matter within a period of time which the Council Manager considers to be appropriate. At least one of the members who initiate a call-in should attend the Scrutiny Committee.

(d) To effect a call-in by the Members referred to in (c) above, a Call-In Notice must be received by the Council Manager which has been:

• signed by all the relevant Members;
• emailed by all relevant members; or
• in the case of an officer decision to be made under the delegation of cabinet functions (expedited procedure), emailed or signed by the Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee.

The Call-In Notice must state for which of the reasons below the members want the decision called in, and explain how each reason applies. Where the Overview or Scrutiny Committees have already considered a decision then it may only be called-in if one of the first two reasons applies.

• It is not in accordance with the budget or policy framework; and/or
• It is potentially unlawful or would amount to maladministration; and/or
• There was insufficient consultation; and/or
• There was insufficient or inadequate evidence on which to base the decision; and/or
• In the case of an officer decision, that decision is proposed to be made under the expedited procedures and the Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee wants the Committee to consider whether this is appropriate.

The Council Manager will only call in the decision if the Monitoring Officer is satisfied that the stated reasons apply and are valid.

(e) If, having considered the decision, the Scrutiny Committee is still concerned about it, then it may refer it back, setting out the nature of its concerns, to the decision making person or body, which shall choose whether to amend the decision or not before reaching a final decision and implementing it. Alternatively, the Scrutiny Committee may refer the matter to the Council.

(f) If following an objection to the decision, the Scrutiny Committee does not refer the matter back to the decision making person or body, the decision shall take effect on the date of the Scrutiny Committee meeting.

(g) If following an objection to the decision the matter is referred to full Council and the Council does not object to the decision which has been made, then no further action is necessary and the decision will be effective in accordance with the provision below. However, if the Council does object, it only has power to make decisions in respect of a Cabinet decision where it is contrary to the policy framework, or not consistent with the budget. In other cases, the Council will refer any decision to which it objects back to the decision making person or body, together with the Council’s views on the decision. That decision making body or person shall choose whether to amend the decision or not before reaching a final decision and implementing it.

(h) If the Council does not refer the decision back to the decision making body or person, the decision will become effective on the date of the Council meeting.

(i) Where a Cabinet decision has been taken by an Area Committee, then the right of call-in shall extend to any 3 Members of another Area Committee if they are of the opinion that the decision made but not implemented will have an adverse effect on the area to which their Committee relates. In such cases, those 3 Members may request the Council Manager to call-in the decision. All other provisions relating to call-in shall apply as if the call-in had been exercised by Members of a relevant Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

(j) The Cabinet may in its discretion authorise the Portfolio Holder, in consultation with the Council Manager, to reconsider and implement a decision (with or without amendment) in the light of observations received from the Call-In Committee.

Exceptions

The following exceptions shall apply:

• a Member shall not be a signatory to the call-in procedure if he/she is a Member of the Cabinet.
• a decision may not be called in if:
• it is considered urgent as set out in paragraph (l) below; or
• it is a decision by Cabinet to refer or recommend a matter to Council for decision; or
• it is a decision taken as part of the procedure for developing the budget and policy framework; or
• the Overview and Scrutiny Committees have already considered UNLESS one of the first two reasons in paragraph 16(d) applies.

Call-in and urgency

(1) The call-in procedure set out above shall not apply where the decision being taken by the Cabinet or those with delegated authority to make executive decisions is considered to be urgent and one of the following applies:-

(i) the Cabinet, an Area Committee or a Committee acting under joint arrangements has resolved by a majority vote that any delay in making the decision would seriously prejudice the Council’s or the public’s interests, or

(ii) the Council Manager, or in his absence the Monitoring Officer, has identified that a key-decision to be taken by an Officer under delegated powers is urgent for the reasons set out in (i) above.

In both of the above cases, the record of the decision and the notice by which it is made public shall state the reasons for the urgency and the fact that it will not be the subject of a call-in.

17. Performance Management

(a) The Scrutiny Committee will consider the performance of the Cabinet and officers as reported in performance indicators. It may require the relevant Service Manager and portfolio holder to attend and answer questions about any performance targets, which have not been met. The Chairman shall decide in consultation with the Council Manager which Service Manager or Portfolio Holder shall attend.

(b) The procedure for members and officers giving account at paragraph 13 shall apply to the scrutiny of performance.

(c) Where the Scrutiny Committee is not satisfied with the level of performance and/or reasons for failing to achieve a target then it may make recommendations to Cabinet.

(d) Where the Committee is dissatisfied with the performance of the same service on three consecutive occasions then it may refer the issue to Council for debate.

18. Project Management

The Scrutiny Committee shall receive reports from the Programme Manager and Senior Responsible Owner/Project Manager on the progress of capital projects. If it is concerned about any (lack of) progress or matter arising from the report then it may make recommendations to the Project board or Project Manager.

19. Contractors and Partnerships

(a) The Scrutiny Committee will receive reports on the performance of contractors and partnerships of which the Council is a member. The Committee will consider the performance of contractors against the contract specification and the performance of partnerships in accordance with the procedure approved by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 16^th December 2004 and Cabinet on 17^th January 2005.

(b) The Committee may invite representatives of the contractor or partnership to attend to give evidence in accordance with the procedure at paragraphs 15 and 18.

(c) Where the Committee is not satisfied with the performance of the contractor or partnership then it may make recommendations to the Cabinet and/or relevant Service Manager.

20. Procedure at the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meetings

(a) The Overview and Scrutiny Committees and Sub-Committees shall consider the following business:

i) minutes of the last meeting;

ii) declarations of interest (including whipping declarations);

iii) consideration of any matter referred to the Committee for a decision in relation to call in of a decision (Scrutiny Committee only);

iv) responses of the Cabinet to reports of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees; and

v) the business otherwise set out on the agenda for the meeting.

(b) Where the Overview and Scrutiny Committees conduct investigations (e.g. with a view to policy development), the Committee may also ask people to attend to give evidence at Committee meetings which are to be conducted in accordance with the following principles:

i) that the investigation be conducted fairly and all Members of the Committee be given the opportunity to ask questions of attendees, and to contribute and speak;

ii) that those assisting the Committee by giving evidence be treated with respect and courtesy; and

iii) that the investigation be conducted so as to maximise the efficiency of the investigation or analysis.

(c) Following any investigation or review, the Committee/Sub-Committee shall prepare a report, for submission to the Cabinet and/or Council as appropriate and shall make its report and findings public.

 

21. The party whip

When considering any matter in respect of which a Member of an Overview and Scrutiny Committee is subject to a party whip the Member must declare the existence of the whip, and the nature of it before the commencement of the Committee's deliberations on the matter. The declaration, and the detail of the whipping arrangements, shall be recorded in the minutes of the meeting.

22. Public Question Time

Members of the public are allowed to ask questions of the Chairman at ordinary meetings of Overview and Scrutiny Committees. The scheme is set out in Part 11 of this Constitution.

 

APPENDIX A

Defining the Partnership and the role of SABC Representatives

The following information needs to be 'on file' in advance of SABC being involved with a Partnership organisation. This information is required to ensure that we can match people with the role they are being asked to perform and that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee has the necessary information to help it carry out the annual scrutiny function.

Information Required		Purpose of the Information
Name of Partnership.		We need to know how the Partnership is identified within the Community/Borough
Objectives/Vision of Intent of the Partnership		This will help the Council to decide if the Short, Medium and Long-Term Objectives of the shared vision of intended achievements meet those of the Council.
Membership/Stakeholders		We need to know what other Organisations, Groups and/or individuals, will be members of the Partnership.
Constitution		The Council needs to have on file the Partnership's Constitution, or some formal statement that clearly defines the Partnership. We must also be aware of any Legal obligations that membership may imply.
Structure		It is important for the Council and it's delegated representative(s) to be aware of, and recognise, the Partnerships mechanism for making decisions and delivery of it's objectives.
Financial Position	How much it spends	It is also important that the Committee, on behalf of the Council, has a full understanding of the financial base of the Partnership.
	How much it raises
	How it raises its funds
	Number of Employees
	Number of Volunteers
	What audit facilities exist
	How it delivers "Best Value"
Extent of role of Member/Officer and the limit of responsibility.		We need to know precisely what is expected of our representatives and the limit of the responsibility they are taking on.
Skills and knowledge required, if any.		The Council must identify if its representatives need to have particular skills, or previous experience, to make them effective contributors to the Partnership.
Training needs to sit on the body.		The Council needs to identify if representatives on a Partnership require specific training to make them effective both as contributors and as ambassadors of SABC.
'Lead' Members and Officers		On each Partnership there should be a 'lead' Member and a 'lead' Officer. It is not necessary that the 'lead Officer be involved directly with the Partnership provided their role is to advise the Member. We recognise that in some cases the Council's representation will be via Officers alone. In this case the appropriate Portfolio Holder should assume the 'lead' Member role to support the Officer.
Annual Reports		The 'lead' Member or, exceptionally the 'lead' Officer, will submit an annual report to the Committee for discussion and scrutiny.
Meetings		Details of frequency, timing and location(s) of meetings.

 

Partnership Annual Report to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee

The 'lead' Member and 'lead' officer should jointly provide a brief annual report to Committee covering the following areas. Each heading is amplified with typical question areas to consider. The report does not need to go into fine detail, if necessary this will be pursued by the Committee when it scrutinises the Council's involvement with the Partnership.

1.	Purpose of involvement
	Does the Council continue to have clear and sound reasons for being involved in the Partnership? Does the Partnership satisfy any of the Council's strategic issues?
2.	Membership
	Who are the members of the Partnership and do they all share the same main objectives? Does this membership continue to be appropriate to the Partnership's objectives?
3.	Decision-Making
	Does the Partnership have an appropriately structured board or other decision-making forum? Which members are involved in decision-making? Specifically, does the Council have a role in the decision-making process?
4.	Empowerment
	Do the members of any steering groups in the Partnership have sufficient authority to commit their organisations to decisions? Is the Partnership prepared to delegate responsibility for parts of its work to particular partners?
5.	Performance
	Do the partnership's decisions get implemented effectively? Does the Partnership have a shared understanding of the outcomes that it expects to achieve? How is the Partnership's progress towards the expected outcomes measured? Does the partnership have performance indicators with jointly agreed targets? * What have been the principal achievements of the Partnership during the past year?
6.	Public Accessibility
	Does the Partnership publicise itself and its activities? Are some or all of the partnership's meetings open to the public? Is information about the partnership's spending, activities and results available to the public?
7.	Best Value
	How can it be demonstrated that the Partnership continues to deliver Best Value for the Council?
8.	Financial Arrangements
	What is the current financial statues of the Partnership? How has it performed in recent Audit inspections.
9.	Exit Strategy
	Has the Partnership considered when its work is likely to be complete, and how it will end/hand-over its work when this point is reached? Is it appropriate for the Council to continue its involvement with the Partnership, and why?

 

Appendix C

Questions Areas for the Scrutiny of Partnerships

and Partnership Representatives

 

Scrutiny Area 1 will be applied when the Council is considering the possibility of becoming involved with a new Partnership. The Partnership may already exist but membership is 'new' to the Council.

Scrutiny Area 2 will be applied prior to the Council reaching formal agreement to join a Partnership. It may, on occasions, prove constructive for Scrutiny Areas 1 and 2 to be considered at the same time.

Scrutiny Areas 3, 4 and 5 will be addressed annually when the Committee reviews the Council's involvement with Partnerships with which it has an on-going relationship.

Scrutiny Area 1 – DECIDING TO GO INTO PARTNERSHIP
1.	Does the Council have clear and sound reasons for being involved in its current partnerships?
2.	Where new partnerships must be set up to meet national requirements, what groundwork is being done locally to maximise their chances of success?
3.	Are changes in behaviour or in decision-making processes needed to avoid setting up partnerships with only limited chances of success?
Scrutiny Area 2 – GETTING STARTED
4.	Have all the partnerships in which the Council is involved been reviewed to evaluate whether the form of the partnership is appropriate to its functions and objectives?
5.	Does the partnership have an appropriately structured board or other decision-making forum?
6.	When setting up a new partnership, how are prospective partners identified?
Scrutiny Area 3 – OPERATING EFFICIENTLY AND EFFECTIVELY
7.	Do partners share the same main objectives for the partnership?
8.	Are the partnership's objectives consistent with those of the partnership organisations?
9.	If an outsider watched a partnership operate, would he/she be able to identify the partnership's main objectives?
10.	Do the partners know where the boundaries between the activities of the partnership and of their own organisations lie?
11.	Do the members of partnership steering groups (where they exist) have sufficient authority to commit their organisations to decisions?
12.	Is the partnership prepared to delegate responsibility for parts of their work to particular partners?
13.	If a large partnership does it have an executive group that all the partners trust to make decisions on their behalf?
14.	Are project-planning techniques used to ensure the separate agreement of all the partners to a course of action in good time, when necessary?
15.	Do the partnership's decisions get implemented effectively?
16.	Are partnership staff selected for their technical competence and for their ability to operate both inside and outside a conventional public sector framework?
17.	What actions are taken to build and maintain trust between partners?
18.	If members have dropped out of a partnership, what lessons have been learnt about how to maintain involvement in the future?
Scrutiny Area 4 – REVIEWING SUCCESS
19.	Does each partnership have a shared understanding of the outcomes that it expects to achieve, both in the short and longer term?
20.	What means have been identified for measuring the partnership's progress towards expected outcomes and the health of the partnership itself?
21.	Has the partnership identified its own performance indicators and set jointly agreed targets for these?
22.	Are the costs of the partnership known, including indirect and opportunity costs?
23.	Are these costs actively monitored and weighed against the benefits that the partnership delivers?
24.	What steps have been taken to make sure that partnerships are accountable to the individual partners, external stakeholders, service users and the public at large?
25.	Are some or all of the partnership's meetings open to the public?
26.	Is information about the partnership's spending, activities and results available to the public?
27	Are the adequate corporate governance arrangements in place? Does the partnership review those governance arrangements? What has been the outcome of such reviews?
28.	Has the partnership considered when its work is likely to be complete, and how it will end/hand-over its work when this point is reached?
Scrutiny Area 5 – REVIEWING THE COUNCIL'S POSITION
29.	Does the Partnership continue to reflect the Council's strategic priorities and/or its obligations to the community?
30.	Is the Council able to contribute effectively to the work of the Partnership?
31.	Do we have the right people acting as representatives of the Council on the Partnership?
32.	Is it appropriate for the Council to continue its involvement with the Partnership? The Committee should detail its reasons for the decision reached whether the answer is 'yes' or 'no'.

Sources: Questions 1 to 28: A Fruitful Partnership. A management paper published by the Audit Commission.

Questions 29 to 31: Partnership Task Group. A sub-group of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee of Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council.

 

Table 1:

Terms of Reference for the Overview

and Scrutiny Committees.

 

OVERVIEW COMMITTEE

Membership

Up to 16 Councillors.

Terms of reference

To fulfil all the functions of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee as they relate (but not limited) to the matters set out in Article 6 of this Constitution. In addition the Committee may set up panels for specific subjects involving any non-cabinet member and use creative ways to deal with such reviews by engaging the community.

 

SCRUTINY COMMITTEE

Membership

Up to 14 Councillors.

Terms of reference

To fulfil all the functions of the Scrutiny Committee as they relate (but not limited) to the matters set out in Article 6 of this Constitution.