Agenda item

The report of the Chief Executive is attached.

Councillors Purdue-Horan, J Stockwood and Williams stepped out of the chamber for the consideration of this item.

The Leader and Portfolio Holder for Strategic and Borough Wide Leadership, Councillor Robinson, commended Mr Fox, and his team, for their hard work and dedication in putting the petition together and thanked him for the passion with which he presented it.

Councillor Robinson stated that the Nolan Principles to which Mr Fox had referred were a fundamental part of all tiers of government and that he felt there was no valid excuse to not abide by these or to seek support when these principles were not adhered to. He mentioned the Local Government Association and the National Association of Local Councils, both of whom offered support and guidance when local authorities were faced with challenges and they did not feel equipped to deal with.

Councillor Robinson highlighted the two actions called for by the ‘Bingham Deserves Better’ petition: firstly, that the Borough Council dissolves Bingham Town Council and takes over its operation until new elections can be held; and secondly, that the Borough Council takes action to reset the culture and strengthen the procedures at Bingham Town Council. He reminded Councillors that the petition was not about the Standards Committee, not about the behaviour of two councillors, not about the budget and finances at the town council; it is about this Council considering the two calls for action contained within the petition.

The Leader referenced the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 and the specific guidance relating to Community Governance Reviews published in 2010. He informed Council that this was the legislative lens through which the petition had to be viewed. The petition is effectively asking the Borough Council to trigger new elections in Bingham; the Council’s legal advisors, both internal and external, have advised that this is not something the Borough Council can do within the aforementioned legislation. Elections and the electoral cycle are pillars of local democracy.

Councillor Robinson drew Council’s attention to the Chief Executive’s report and the five recommendations that she had proposed. He outlined his intention to strengthen the final recommendation to ensure that robust and tangible action is taken to address the situation highlighted in the ‘Bingham Deserves Better’ petition. The revised recommendation offers to establish an improvement board to provide support and oversee changes at Bingham Town Council, and also calls upon the Council’s Monitoring Officer to make changes to the Council’s Constitution in order for this to happen.

The Leader outlined the key features of the proposed improvement board, such as an independent chairman, appropriate sector-focused support, and individuals committed to driving the improvements outlined as necessary by the petition to ensure Bingham Town Council is more efficient, effective, fit for purpose and serves the needs of the local community. Councillor Robinson also committed to write to the new Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities requesting that the Community Governance legislation is updated to ensure it is also fit for purpose. In addition, he will write to both local Members of Parliament to outline the situation and seek their support in moving forward.

Councillor Robinson concluded the presentation of the Community Governance Review (Bingham Town Council) report by urging Bingham Town Council officers and councillors to listen to their residents and take on board the views expressed via the petition. He asked the town council work with the Borough Council and to take up the offer of an improvement board to address the concerns expressed by the community, to improve local democracy, and to resolve the governance issues perceived to be damaging the town council. He concluded by stating his desire to make Bingham a better place to live and work.

Councillor Edyvean seconded the recommendations contained within the report, including the revised recommendation e), and reserved the right to speak.

Under Standing Order 13, Councillor Gowland called for an adjournment to the debate. This was seconded by Councillor Gray and agreed by the Mayor.

The meeting was adjourned for 7 minutes.

On reconvening the meeting, the Mayor invited Councillor J Walker to speak. Councillor Walker thanked Council for the adjournment and asked Councillor Gaunt to speak on this item.

Councillor Gaunt shared his experience of sitting on Ruddington Parish Council where the meetings were polite, inclusive and focused on serving the needs of the local community. He recognised that this was very different from the situation that appeared to be present in Bingham as highlighted in the petition and in the local press. Councillor Gaunt welcomed the stronger final recommendation proposed by Councillor Robinson and asked for confirmation regarding who would be on the improvement board, and whether it would include anyone from Bingham, and if progress would be reported at the next Council meeting.

Councillor Jones informed Council that in his view Bingham Town Council requires a reset but recognised that the legal position in this matter limits the Borough Council to just a few actions. He stated that it is not within the gift of the Borough Council to dissolve Bingham Town Council as requested and drew Council’s attention to paragraph 4.28 of the report which highlights that an offer of support was made over a year ago but was never taken up. He recognised the strength of feeling displayed by the local community through the petition and expressed his support for the Leader’s revised recommendation.

Councillor R Mallender expressed sympathy to the residents of Bingham and disappointment in the town council. He recognised that Bingham is a growing community with significant levels of investment in both housing and infrastructure and that something clearly needed to be done to improve the governance of Bingham Town Council. He highlighted that it is difficult to disassociate the petition and the report under consideration from the investigation and conclusion of the Standards Committee and expressed disappointment that the recommendations of that Committee had not been acted upon. He thanked Mr Fox and the ‘Bingham Deserves Better’ group for bringing the petition to the meeting and hoped that a better way forward could be found for all members of the community.

Councillor Thomas recognised that a Community Governance Review is not the correct method for dealing with the current situation in Bingham but wished to support what action could be taken to improve the situation. Therefore, she suggested a further change to the revised recommendation and asked for the inclusion of a commitment to bring terms of reference and the board’s membership back to Council for approval.

Councillor Robinson apologised for not making his intentions clear. He stated that he was committed to bringing a report back to the next Council meeting, in December, detailing the membership and terms of reference of the improvement board which would broadly be based on the model adopted by Nottingham City Council recently. Councillor Thomas withdrew her amendment to the revised recommendation.

Councillor Clarke informed Council that in his view Councillor Robinson had clearly and succinctly set out the current situation and proposed a solution within the bounds of the legislation as it stands. The report outlines an extremely complex position and the addition of the offer of an improvement board strengthens the recommendations of the report. He urged Bingham Town Council to accept this offer of assistance. He hoped that the petition has acted as a catalyst for transformational change and improvement within Bingham Town Council. As a location, Bingham is a fantastic place to live and a significant amount of investment is being made by a number of partners to improve the town even more.

Councillor Butler expressed his concern for the people of Bingham and reminded Council that the town had been voted the best place to raise a family in a recent national survey. It was, therefore, even more distressing that the people of Bingham felt that their views were not being listened to by the councillors they elected to represent them. He welcomed the petition and the recommendations in the report designed to address the concerns raised by the petition and hoped that Bingham Town Council saw this as an opportunity to resolve the unfortunate situation.

Councillor Gowland supported the actions outlined in the recommendations to the report to avoid the situation in Bingham bringing local democracy into disrepute. Councillor Simms thanked those behind the petition for bringing the situation to the Council’s attention and recognised that Bingham does indeed deserve better. 

In reflecting on the debate, Councillor Edyvean highlighted that there wasn’t anyone within the Council Chamber that did not recognise the hard work that had gone into bringing this petition forward or anyone that would disagree with the importance of good governance in local government. In conclusion, Councillor Robinson spoke directly to Mr Fox in the public gallery. He pointed out that the entire Council seemed to be in agreement that the situation needed to be addressed and was committed to doing what it could within the bounds of the current legislation to resolve the situation. He stated that the Borough Council wants what is best for the residents of Bingham. He wished he could have come with a fully formed plan of action for the improvement board so that it could be set up immediately following the meeting; however, the situation is very fluid, and the recommendation had only been formed the previous day. Finally, Councillor Robinson implored Bingham Town Council to accept the offer of support in the form of the improvement board and commit to addressing residents’ concerns as highlighted in the petition submitted by Mr Fox on behalf of the ‘Bingham Deserves Better’ group.    

It was proposed by Councillor Robinson and seconded by Councillor Edyvean and RESOLVED that:

a)     the Council does not accept the Petition;

b)      the Council does not proceed to conduct a Community Governance Review of Bingham Town Council;

c)      the Council provides a written response to the Petition organisers, indicating its reasons for rejection of the Petition;

d)      the Chief Executive writes to Bingham Town Council and Nottinghamshire County Council sharing the contents of this report and setting out what is agreed by Council; and

e)      the Council supports a commitment to working collaboratively with Bingham Town Council and will write to offer to set up an improvement board to review governance and improvement issues at the Town Council and asks the Monitoring Officer to make any necessary changes to the constitution to allow Council to establish such a group.

Councillors Purdue-Horan, J Stockwood and Williams returned to their seats.