How Decisions Are Made

The Forward Plan

Major decisions on policy or involving a high level of expenditure or affecting large sectors of the community are known as key decisions. When such decisions are due to be made, notice of them will be included in the Forward Plan. This is published monthly by the Council and will set out the key decisions to be made over the next four months. The Forward Plan is issued by the Executive Leader, Councillor Seán Woodward, to enable him to meet his statutory duty to give notice of key decisions to be made by, or on behalf of, the Council's Executive during the next four months.

A key decision is an Executive decision that is like to:
 

• Result in the Council incurring expenditure which is, or the making of savings which are significant, having regard to the Council's budget for the service or function to which the decision relates; or
• Be significant in terms of its effect on the communities living or working in the area, comprising two or more wards of the Borough.

The Forward Plan tells you:
 

•  Who will make the decisions;
•  When it is due to be made;
•  How people will be consulted; and
•  How you can comment

Sometimes urgent decisions have to be made, which cannot be included in the Forward Plan. There are special procedures to be followed when this needs to happen.

You can see the Forward Plan (56 Kb)  at the Civic Offices or on this website.
 

Decisions by the Executive

The Executive has regular meetings - eleven per year - where it makes its decisions. The dates of Executive meetings are published on this website and the agenda and reports it will consider will also be published here a week or so before the meeting. Alternatively, the information is available at the Civic Offices. For more information, select Executive.

You may attend meetings of the Executive and if you wish, you may apply to make a deputation to put your point of view before the Executive makes its decision. For more information, select deputations.

Select Executive Work Programme (77.1 Kb) to see the decisions the Executive will be making over the next 2 years.

A notice of the decisions made by the Executive will be published and made available for you to see on this website or at the Civic Offices. It will include reasons why the decision was made and what (if any) other options were considered.

Please note that sometimes a report being presented to the Executive will contain confidential information which cannot be made public and you will not, therefore, be allowed to see it. You will, however, be able to see what decision is made and why.

Decisions by Committees

All of the Council's Committees have scheduled meetings throughout the year. The dates of their meetings are published on this website and the agenda and reports they will consider will also be published here a week or so before the meeting. Alternatively, the information is available at the Civic Offices.

You may attend meetings of the Council's Committees and if you wish you may apply to make a deputation to put your point of view before a decision is made. For more information, select deputations.

The minutes of the meetings, recording the decisions made by the Committees, will be published and made available for you to see on this website or at the Civic Offices.

Please note that sometimes a report being presented to a Committee will contain confidential information which cannot be made public and you will not, therefore, be allowed to see it. You will, however, be able to see what decision is made and why.

Overview and Scrutiny

Under the Council's Executive arrangements, a system of overview and scrutiny has been set up. A Scrutiny Board established by the Council will look at decisions made by the Executive to see if they have been made in the right way and if they are the right decisions for the Borough. The Board cannot change a decision, but it can ask the Executive to reconsider its decision.

In addition, a number of Review Panels have been established to review and develop policy and examine the way services are provided.

The dates of meetings of the Scrutiny Board and Review Panels are published on this web-site and the agenda and reports they will consider will also be published here a week or so before the meeting. Alternatively, the information is available at the Civic Offices.

You may attend meetings of the Council's Scrutiny Board or Review Panels and if you wish you may apply to make a deputation to put your point of view. For more information, select deputations.

The minutes of the meetings, recording the matters discussed by the Scrutiny Board and the Review Panels, will be published and made available for you to see on this website or at the Civic Offices.

Please note that sometimes a report being presented to a Panel will contain confidential information which cannot be made public and you will not, therefore, be allowed to see it. You will, however, be able to see what decision is made.
 

 

 

 

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