Agenda item

The Committee noted that Council Procedure Rule 24 (v) required the appointing body to review annually, the continuation of task groups appointed by them. Although the Councillors’ Development Steering Group had been set up originally as an Executive working group, it was agreed in 2015 that the Steering Group, which met quarterly, would report on its work to this Committee.

The Corporate Governance Task Group had been established by the Committee in November 2019 to review a number of corporate governance related matters and had met on ten occasions in 2022-23.

The Committee considered a report which reviewed the work carried out by the Steering Group and the Task Group over the past twelve months, and the work to be undertaken over the next twelve months. The Committee was asked to agree that the Councillor Development Steering Group should continue its important work and continue to be representative of all political groups on the Council.

The Committee was also asked to consider disbanding the Corporate Governance Task Group and to establish, jointly in conjunction with Waverley Borough Council’s Standards and General Purposes Committee, a new Joint Constitutions Review Group (JCRG) with an overall objective of aligning key parts of the Councils’ respective constitutions, where it was appropriate to do so.

Having recorded their thanks to the members and former members of the Corporate Governance Task Group, the Committee

RESOLVED:

(1)         That the Councillor Development Steering Group should continue its work and that the numerical allocation of seats on the Steering Group to each political group shall be one member per group for the 2023-24 municipal year as follows:

Cllr Katie Steel

Cllr James Walsh

Cllr Catherine Young

1 x Conservative Group member (to be confirmed)

1 x Guildford Greenbelt Group member (to be confirmed)

(2)         That the Corporate Governance Task Group be disbanded.

(3)         That a new Joint Constitutions Review Group be established jointly in conjunction with Waverley Borough Council’s Standards and General Purposes Committee, and Guildford’s membership shall comprise:

Cllr Joss Bigmore

Cllr James Jones

1 x Conservative Group member (to be confirmed)

1 x Liberal Democrat Group member (to be confirmed)

(4)         That the draft terms of reference of the Joint Constitutions Review Group, as set out in Appendix 2 to the report submitted to the Committee, be approved.

(5)         That the Committee notes the purpose of the Joint Constitutions Review Group, which will be to review the Guildford Borough Council Constitution, alongside the Waverley Borough Council Constitution, and to report back with their recommendations to both the Corporate Governance and Standards Committee at Guildford and the Standards and General Purposes Committee at Waverley.  The Corporate Governance and Standards Committee will then have the opportunity to consider any recommendations from the Joint Constitutions Review Group relating to this Council’s Constitution and may make appropriate recommendations to the Council to approve any changes.

(6)         That, from among those councillors appointed, the Committee, appoints a co-chairman of the Joint Constitutions Review Group.

Reasons:

·      To comply with the requirement for this Committee to review the continuation of the task groups reporting to it, in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 24 (v).

·      To commence work on the review of Guildford Borough Council’s Constitution, and to do so in collaboration with partners from Waverley Borough Council, with an overall objective of aligning key parts thereof, where it is appropriate to do so.