County Council decision making guide
Spirals worked with a County Council, Cabinet Office to develop a decision making guide for use by Members and senior officers.
The purpose of the Guide was to provide a straight forward, yet comprehensive, step by step guide for decision makers (and people seeking a decision) to ensure that all proposals follow the necessary processes, including consultation where appropriate, and so lead to legitimate and legal decisions.
The Guide is really an easy to use tool that interprets the constitution and it applies to delegated decisions – taken by Officers or by individual Cabinet Members. It does not relate to preparing reports for Cabinet meetings or for committees.
One of the intentions of the reforms introduced by the Local Government Act 2000 was to provide efficient, transparent and accountable decision making. In trying to make sense of the processes and procedures that the Act and subsequent Regulations put in place it is easy to lose sight of the original intention.
These guidelines clarify the processes and procedures. They also provide a useful list of contacts and a glossary to eliminate jargon.
Ref: 000224