Scrutiny Committee meetings
Scrutiny Committees usually hold their meetings on a 4 or 6 weekly basis. The meetings are open to the public except when private items are being discussed (e.g. where individual personal or financial information is being considered). They have their own Forward Work Programmes.
The relevant Officers will present a report that has been requested by the Committee and Members of the Committee will then have the opportunity to ask questions related to the topic being Scrutinised. The respective Cabinet Members are also invited to the meeting to be held to account for the areas for which they have responsibility.
During the meeting, Members comments, observations and recommendations on the topics are recorded and considered later by Cabinet when they are taking the final decision.
Occasionally Committees will also receive an overview of a ‘Task and Finish’ inquiry report that Members of the Committee have undertaken. The Committee is required to give final approval to the report and its recommendations before it is sent to Cabinet.
How issues are scrutinised
When Scrutinising an issue or topic, Members will be presented with background information and the key challenges facing the Council in relation to that service or policy being considered.
The purpose of questioning at a Committee meeting is for Members to act as a ‘Critical Friend’ when considering specific issues in relation to services or policies being discussed.
Questioning can help to identify how efficient and effective our services are, how fair they are in providing access to all citizens, whether our services are performing well, what the key risks are and how they could be improved.
To ensure that the Council demonstrates that it has discharged its duty under the Equality Act 2010, Members must give due regard to completed Integrated Impact Assessments (IIA's).
