As we start to emerge from lockdown 3.0 I hope you are starting to regain some parts of your pre-COVID social lives. For someone who loves nothing more than a trip to the pub I am extremely disappointed to say that work commitments have prevented me from enjoying a trip to the beer garden… I will have to fix this at weekend! I am currently in training for my 16th marathon (I decided to run one for the Mayor of Spelthorne to assist his fundraising efforts which have been hampered by the pandemic) and managed to complete a 21 mile run on Saturday. It was a little painful, but it is for a good cause, and at least I can have a guilt free burger and chips with a large glass of wine to celebrate. I hope you all have a great week.
Remote meetings – High Court Hearing
As many of you know our joint case with Hertfordshire County Council and the Lawyers in Local Government will be heard by the High Court this Wednesday (21 April) and I am sure you are all waiting with bated breath, as I am, for the Judge’s ruling. Judging by some of the emails I have seen and forum posts many of you will have all been working on a Plan B should we not be successful; I am very much hoping we will be. Keep those fingers crossed!
John Austin’s 5(ish) minutes of fame
If you happened to be tuned into BBC Radio Somerset on Tuesday morning you may have heard Claire Carter discussing the remote meetings and our impending court case court case – and who better to discuss this with than our very own Chair, John Austin. It was a very interesting piece and if you have time do have a listen, if you are short of time and want to skip to the best part (John’s appearance of course) this can be found from 2:09 here.
Centre for Governance and Scrutiny Events
On April 27 (11:00 am – 12:30pm) the CfGS are holding a free webinar on Governance Risk and Resilience where you can learn about the new governance risk and resilience framework, hear from the authors, and talk to your senior peers about local authority governance issues. With the recent high-profile challenges faced by councils on everyone’s minds, and pandemic and financial pressures buffeting the sector, now is the time to reflect on where the biggest risks to governance might lie – and how we can work to mitigate them. You can register for a place here.
On May 14 (10:00 am – 11:30am) the CfGS are convening a workshop for health scrutiny chairs, and officers who support them, to discuss the Government’s proposals for changes to the health and care system in England. This free session will provide a unique opportunity for you to hear from, and speak to, the team of civil servants currently drafting the Bill which will be introduced in May. The workshop will involve a plenary Q&A for civil servants as well as small group working. You can register here.
Message from Hans Rijs (IIMC)
Our Dutch ADSO member Hans Rijs is campaigning for his re-election as Region Director for IIMC. His message below was supposed to be sent out by IIMC on Monday but it didn’t reach all of our members. Apologies if you have now received it twice. If you haven’t voted yet please do because every vote counts and last time it was a close call.
IIMC re-election message from Hans Rijs
extension: pdf
Newsletter take over!
Some time ago we said that we would like to have some of our members “take over” the newsletter. As there always seems to be so much to tell you we haven’t managed it yet BUT to kick things off I have spoken to Jenni Swift, Democratic Services Team Leader, from North Kesteven District Council, who has provided me with an excellent summary of her local government career to date. Please do have a read as it really is interesting and inspiring. Thank you Jenni!
Jenni Swift Profile
That’s all for this week, thank you for reading my first solo introduction to the newsletter. Have a great week – and stay safe!
Michelle Beaumont, Company Secretary (Joint)