Councillors operate in a fragmented, often chaotic and differentiated world with different demands on their time, resources and efforts. They face not only the formal demands of council work in cabinet, scrutiny, various committees and full council, but also a series of demands made by the public and community and by the government. In addition, councillors are ever more interacting with an array of organisations outside the council of which they are a member and which they seek to influence on both an operational and strategic level. Then there is the party and party group and the expectations they have of councillors.
DSOs are the eyes and ears of the councillor and often those to whom councillors turn to for advice, support and assistance and not just for the practical stuff – for emotional support, a shoulder to lean on.
The aim of the webinar is to provide a further insight for DSOs into the demands, expectations and life of the councillor. It will also explore some contemporary issues and how they have affected the councillor such as virtual meetings and continuing demands for more stringent ethical and behavioural standards.
It will explore the following themes of relevance to DSOs:
- The differentiated roles of the councillor
- The expectations councillors face from the council, the public, the media and the government and how they respond
- The levels of support provided and those needed for councillors
- Interacting with external agencies
- The effects of council membership of councillors’ social, private and working lives
- Behaviour and ethics
- Centralization and devolution and the councillor
The webinar will focus on what the DSO needs to know about the life of the councillor and is particularly suitable for; Democratic Services Officers in all types of local authority; Councillors; all officers who work with councillors; and Officers who wish to know a bit more about what it’s like to be a councillor.
Our speaker is Colin Copus, Emeritus Professor of local politics at De Montfort University and a Visiting Professor at the University of Ghent. Colin has worked closely with policy-makers and practitioners in central and local government and is currently the academic advisor to two All Party Parliamentary Groups and a member of the Council of Europe’s group of experts on the Charter of Local Self Government.
Our webinar is sponsored MVI AudioVisual https://www.mvi-audiovisual.com/Connect/ who provide standard software for automatic camera control, name displaying and voting automation in council chambers. MVI’s products are widely used around Europe, including the UK.
To book, click on the following link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2429717711376338192
Please note that you will need to be able to login in to GoTo webinar in order to access the webinars. If you are logging in from your workplace, you will need to ensure that GoTo has not been blocked by your organisation. Otherwise, you can log on from your mobile.
Full details to follow.
Local leadership has never been more important. Local government continues to lead the response to some of the biggest challenges in our history, and councillors have a hugely challenging yet rewarding role serving and representing their communities.
To support councillors with their development and role in their communities, the LGA (Local Government Association) has developed a Local Leadership Framework for Councillors. This practical resource, informed by engagement with elected members, includes suggestions, prompts and further resources to help councillors to think about their skills and development.
This session will introduce attendees to the Local Leadership Framework for Councillors and discuss how it can be used in a practical way to help councillors further develop their skills and knowledge as local leaders. Attendees will also hear of the wider support offer that the LGA is delivering for councillors, enhancing local leadership across the country.
The webinar is particularly suitable for council officers who support councillors working in Democratic Services and of particular interest to those working in member development.
The webinar aims to:
- Provide an insight into the importance of local leadership for councillors in the current context, from a currently elected councillor
- Increase participant’s awareness and understanding of the LGA’s Local Leadership Framework for Councillors
- Increase participant’s understanding of how the Local Leadership Framework can be applied in their councils, to support the development of elected members
- Increase participant’s knowledge of the wider support available to councillors from the LGA
Our speakers are Poonam Mistry and Will Oldham from the Local Government Association and Cllr Neil Prior, Cabinet Member for Corporate Improvement and Communities at Pembrokeshire County Council, a Unitary Authority in Wales.
To book, click on the following link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8557630271320139102
Please note that you will need to be able to login in to GoTo webinar in order to access the webinar. If you are logging in from your workplace, you will need to ensure that GoTo has not been blocked by your organisation. Otherwise, you can log on from your mobile.
The proportion of Councils that no longer have stable, one-Party, administrations is increasing. There are implications for councils as a whole, but particularly for colleagues in Democratic Services who work at the interface between services and political governance structures.
This webinar will explore those implications. It will reflect on the implications of no overall control (NOC) for councils’ ability to deliver services well and rise to place-based challenges. It will draw on general learning and advice from umbrella organisations.
It will then bring the advice to life by sharing the experiences of two contrasting sets of circumstances: the unexpected fall of a minority administration in Kirklees and the tensions inherent in an Elected Mayor’s administration working in the context of a council dominated by his opponents in Doncaster. Both circumstances are from 10-15 years ago.
The webinar is aimed at Democratic Service colleagues who have faced the challenges of NOC and unstable administrations in the past, are doing so now, or may do so in the future.
The webinar aims to develop:
- understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of NOC
- understanding of the constitutional challenges
- understanding of the relationship challenges
- anticipation of short-term and longer-term issues following changes in administrations
… and thus, greater preparedness for actual or potential circumstances following local elections or changes in political deals supporting administrations.
Our speaker is Rob Vincent, ex Chief Executive of Kirklees Council.
To book, click on the following link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7161411033320292954
Please note that you will need to be able to login in to GoTo webinar in order to access the webinar. If you are logging in from your workplace, you will need to ensure that GoTo has not been blocked by your organisation. Otherwise, you can log on from your mobile.
Serving in public office is both a privilege and a responsibility. However, there is a growing issue of abuse and intimidation in public and political discourse that can have a negative impact on councillors, their families and local democracy. This is why the Local Government Association (LGA) commissioned Riber Consultants to work with councils and relevant partners to consider the best approaches to supporting councillors to prevent and manage abuse linked to their elected role. Through the project, researchers identified key challenges to supporting councillors with these issues, principles for councils to consider, and top tips and good practice case studies to help councils better support councillors prevent and handle abuse and intimidation.
Our speaker is Jess Norman who is a Senior Policy Adviser at the LGA responsible for Democracy and Voluntary and Community Sector issues. In particular, she leads on Elections and the Civility in Public Life programme which looks at councillor standards and conduct, issues of abuse and intimidation of councillors and councillor safety. She has previous experience working in Fire and Rescue, FGM and death policy and in frontline housing and benefits services.
The webinar is for anyone working in Democratic Services and will aim to provide attendees with an opportunity to consider new approaches to supporting councillors in their own authorities and to discuss the challenges and opportunities set out in the report.
Attendees will hear about principles of good practice identified in the report and particular examples from other councils. There will the opportunity to ask questions of the presenter and comment at the end of the presentation.
Our webinar is sponsored Link Support Services, led by David McGrath. As a former front-line councillor in Birmingham (8 years) and community campaigner for over 30 years, David provides lively, bespoke, interactive and practical personal safety training for members (over 1500 councillors between 2021-23).
Link Support Services courses look at how members can prevent and manage potential risks in a range of typical scenarios (e.g. on the doorstep, in surgeries, in challenging meetings, online and more). This thought-provoking training can be delivered at any point in the municipal year (induction, pre-election, refresher), and can also assist officers to review and bolster their member support strategies.
Visit www.linksupportservices.co.uk or email Linkukltd@aol.com or call David on 01676 522775 for further details
To register for the webinar, click on the following link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1919200178237666648
Please note that you will need to be able to login in to GoTo webinar in order to access the webinar on the day. If you are logging in from your workplace, you will need to ensure that GoTo has not been blocked by your organisation. Otherwise, you can log on from your mobile.