Agenda and minutes

To agree the previously circulated minutes of the meeting held on 15^th July 2024 as a correct record.

The minutes of the meeting held on Monday 15^th July 2024 were agreed to as a correct record of the meeting.

Items which in the opinion of the Chair should be considered at the meeting as  matters of urgency.

There were no items requiring urgent attention.

To appraise Members of the learning and development activity that has taken place since the last Steering Group meeting and of learning and development opportunities available going forward.

The Scrutiny Officer appraised Members of the training and development opportunities since the last meeting and the future training and development opportunities.

The report highlighted sessions that had taken place since the previous Steering Group meeting and the upcoming opportunities.

Verbal update on the Member Development Budget.

The Deputy Head of Democratic Services reported on the remaining monies in the 2024/25 Member Development Budget.

Democratic Services and Scrutiny Officers promote a range of training opportunities, both internally and externally, and make use of free training opportunities from organisations such as the LGA and CfGS.

Officers commented that the next round of 121 Personal Development Interviews were due to take place and that additional training needs and opportunities may arise from those sessions with Members.

There was discussion about the importance of training and development for the next council year following the Local Elections.

A request was made from Councillors to roll over the remaining budget from HR for Member Development into the next Financial Year (2025-26) due to the Local Elections and need to support newly elected Councillors. This was supported by the Steering Group and the Learning and Development Team Manager agreed to find out if this would be possible.

To familiarise Members with the 2025 Councillor Recruitment Campaign - Be a councillor - Democracy in Devon.

The Head of Scrutiny appraised Members of the recent launch of the Councillor recruitment campaign and the initial positive reaction received. Officers were encouraged by the numbers of potential candidates signing up to the information sessions in December 2024 and January 2025 which is an indication of the effectiveness of the campaign to date.

The Head of Scrutiny reported that there will also be a voter campaign in the months before the Local Elections to accompany the Councillor recruitment campaign.

To receive feedback on the draft Member Induction Pack as part of the 2025 Induction programme.

Members were presented with the overview of the draft 2025 Induction Pack for Members to provide any feedback and reflections on the information provided within the packs.

There was broad agreement that this appeared to cover essential information needed by newly elected Councillors.

It was explained that there would be further analysis on this to ensure that there was a comprehensive set of material available to guide members right from the start

To receive feedback on the draft Exit Interview surveys for Councillors standing down from the Council at the end of the term.

Members were presented with the draft Exit Interview Survey for Members who are standing down at the 2025 Local Elections to provide any feedback and reflections to inform the Member Induction Programme 2025 and other member support issues.

Exit interviews would take place from November 2024 and will be conducted on a confidential basis.

Members and Officers discussed the distribution of the information in order to ensure that Councillors standing down are aware of the Exit Interviews.

There was a request for members to inform others in their group about these and encourage those who are standing down to come forward and involve themselves in these sessions.

It was also suggested that Group Leaders be informed of these.

To receive a verbal update on the Member’s Sharepoint Division pages.

An update on the development of Division Pages on SharePoint for Members was provided by the Head of Scrutiny, this followed a request from Members at the June 2024 to have easy access to division related information. Subsequently, the Steering Group have received updates from the Head of Scrutiny on the development of the pages.

Officers shared a further development of the draft SharePoint page. The links reflect the ask of Members, and is categorised into sections such as Highways, Schools and the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment. The SharePoint pages will continue to be developed as more Division specific information becomes available.

Members welcomed the presentation of the draft pages commenting positively on the layout and having key information in one place. Members agreed for the page to be added to the live SharePoint site. Members thanked the Officers involved for their work to date. Members highlighted the importance of information being available at the Division level. 

Members also highlighted the importance of good communication between Officers and Members. Members were informed of work to develop a Member portal to improve communications between officers and Members.

As shown in the calendar of meetings at http://democracy.devon.gov.uk/mgCalendarMonthView.aspx?GL=1&bcr=1

The next meeting is 25^th February 2025.

Members noted that the next meeting of the Steering Group is 25^th February 2025 at 10:30am.