Local Government Act 1972

Part IVE+W Community Councils

23(1)A community council shall in every year hold an annual meeting.E+W

(2)In a year which is a year of ordinary elections of community councillors, the annual meeting of a community council shall be held on, or within fourteen days after, the day on which the councillors elected at that election take office, and in any other year the annual meeting shall be held on such day in May as the community council may determine.

(3)The annual meeting of a community council shall be held at such hour as the council may fix or, if no hour is so fixed, 6 o’clock in the evening.

24(1)A community council may in every year hold, in addition to the annual meeting, such other meetings as the council may determine to hold for the transaction of their business.E+W

(2)Any of those other meetings shall be held at such hour and on such day as the council may determine.

25(1)An extraordinary meeting of a community council may be called at any time by the chairman of the council.E+W

(2)If the chairman refuses to call an extraordinary meeting of the council after a requisition for that purpose, signed by two members of the council, has been presented to him, or if, without so refusing, the chairman does not call an extraordinary meeting within seven days after such a requisition has been presented to him, any two members of the council, on that refusal or on the expiration of those seven days, as the case may be, may forthwith convene an extraordinary meeting of the council.

26[F1(1)Meetings of the community council and its committees and sub-committees are to be held at such place, either within or outside the council's area, as the council may direct.]E+W

(2)Three clear days at least before a meeting of a community council [F2or, if the meeting is convened at shorter notice, then at the time it is convened] —

(a)notice [F3of the meeting containing the information required by sub-paragraph (2ZA)] shall be [F4published electronically and] fixed in some conspicuous place in the community and, where the meeting is called by members of the council, the notice shall [F5set out the names of] those members and shall specify the business proposed to be transacted at the meeting; and

[F6(aa)any documents relating to the business to be transacted at the meeting must be published electronically (in so far as reasonably practicable),]

(b)a summons to attend the meeting, specifying the business proposed to be transacted at the meeting and [F7authenticated] by the proper officer of the council, [F8must, subject to sub-paragraph (2C), be sent to every member of the council electronically; and each member must specify an electronic address for that purpose. ]

[F9(2ZA)The information required to be in a notice under sub-paragraph (2)(a) consists of—

(a)where the meeting or part of the meeting is open to the public and is held through remote means only, details of the time of the meeting and how to access it;

(b)where the meeting or part of the meeting is open to the public and is held partly through remote means or is not held through remote means, details of the time and place of the meeting and how to access it;

(c)where the meeting is not open to the public and is held partly through remote means or is not held through remote means, details of the time and place of the meeting and the fact that it is not open to the public;

(d)where the meeting is not open to the public and is held through remote means only, details of the time of the meeting and the fact that it is being held through remote means only and is not open to the public.

(2ZB)In sub-paragraph (2ZA), references to a meeting held through remote means are to a meeting held by means of any equipment or other facility which enables persons who are not in the same place to speak to and be heard by each other (whether or not the equipment or facility enables those persons to see and be seen by each other).]

[F10(2A)The duty of a community council under sub-paragraph (2)(aa) to publish documents relating to the meeting does not apply where—

(a)the documents relate to business which in the opinion of the council is likely to be transacted in private, or

(b)the disclosure of such documents would be contrary to any enactment.]

[F11(2B)In sub-paragraph (2)(b) “authenticated” means signed or otherwise authenticated in such manner as the proper officer considers appropriate.

(2C)If a member of a community council gives notice in writing to the proper officer of the council that summonses to attend meetings of the council should be sent to the member at an address specified in the notice rather than electronically, such summonses must be sent to that member by being left at, or sent by post to, that address.]

[F12(2D)At least three clear days before a meeting of a committee or sub-committee of a community council, notice of the time and place of the intended meeting must be published electronically and fixed in a conspicuous place in the community.

(2E)If the chairman of a committee or sub-committee of a community council considers that a meeting of the committee or sub-committee should take place urgently, sub-paragraph (2D) has effect as if for the words “three clear days” there were substituted “ twenty four hours ”.]

(3)Want of service of any such summons as is referred to in sub-paragraph (2)(b) above on any member of the community council concerned shall not affect the validity of the meeting.

[F1326ZA(1)As soon as reasonably practicable after a meeting of a community council, and in any event before the end of seven working days beginning with the day on which the meeting is held, the council must publish electronically a note setting out—W

(a)the names of the members who attended the meeting, and any apologies for absence;

(b)any declarations of interest;

(c)any decision taken at the meeting, including the outcomes of any votes.

(2)The duty under sub-paragraph (1)(c) to publish a note setting out any decisions does not apply—

(a)in relation to a decision relating to business which was transacted in private, or

(b)where disclosure of the information would be contrary to any enactment.]

[F1426A(1)This paragraph applies where a community council has been given a notice under sub-paragraph (4) or (5)(b) of paragraph 38B below.E+W

(2)The community council must ensure that the question of what action (if any) the council should take in response to the community poll, or the part of the community poll, to which the notice relates is included within the business to be transacted at a meeting of the community council held within the relevant period.

(3)If it is necessary for the chairman of the community council to exercise his power under paragraph 25(1) above to call an extraordinary meeting of a community council in order for the community council to comply with sub-paragraph (2) above, the chairman must so exercise that power.

(4)In sub-paragraph (2) “relevant period” means the period of six weeks beginning with the day following that on which the notice referred to in sub-paragraph (1) was given.]

27(1)At a meeting of a community council the chairman of the council, if present, shall preside.E+W

(2)If the chairman of the council is absent from a meeting of the council, the vice-chairman of the council, if present, shall preside.

(3)If both the chairman and the vice-chairman of the council are absent from a meeting of the council, such councillor as the members of the council present shall choose shall preside.

28E+WSubject to paragraph 45 below, no business shall be transacted at a meeting of a community council unless at least one-third of the whole number of members of the council are present at the meeting; but, notwithstanding anything in that paragraph, in no case shall the quorum be less than three.

29[F15(1)The manner of voting at meetings of a community council is to be decided by the council, but (if a vote is necessary on the question) the proper officer is to determine the manner of voting on that decision; if agreement cannot be reached, the proper officer is to determine the manner of voting on all other matters.]E+W

(2)On the requisition of any member of the council the voting on any question shall be recorded so as to show whether each member present and voting gave his vote for or against that question.

[F1629A(1)This paragraph applies where—E+W

(a)a meeting of a community council has considered the question of what action (if any) the council is to take in response to a poll consequent on a community meeting,

(b)that question was included within the business to be transacted at the meeting in order to comply with paragraph 26A(2) above, and

(c)the poll was taken following a demand being made at a community meeting which was convened under paragraph 30A below.

(2)The council must take all reasonable steps to give notice to each of the individuals who convened the community meeting referred to in sub-paragraph (1) above of what action (if any) the council intends to take in response to the poll, or that part of the poll which was considered at the meeting.

(3)Notice under sub-paragraph (2) above must be given—

(a)subject to sub-paragraph (4) below, in writing by sending it to the address given in respect of an individual in the relevant convening notice, and

(b)as soon as is reasonably practicable after the meeting of the community council was held.

(4)Where an individual falling within sub-paragraph (2) above is an anonymous registrant in the register of local government electors, sub-paragraph (3)(a) above does not apply and the notice must instead be given in writing to the principal council within whose area the community in question lies.

(5)The notice under sub-paragraph (4) above must include the entry in respect of the individual which was included in the relevant convening notice.

(6)Where a principal council is given notice under sub-paragraph (4)—

(a)the council must, as soon as reasonably practicable, send the notice to the individual concerned, and

(b)for that purpose and for the purposes of paragraph 30D below, section 9B(8) of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (communications with anonymous registrants) shall have effect as if the council were an officer referred to in that section.

(7)The relevant registration officer must supply the principal council with any information that it is necessary for the council to have in order to comply with the duty under sub-paragraph (6) above.

(8)In this paragraph—

• “anonymous registrant in the register of local government electors” means an individual in respect of whom the relevant convening notice included an entry referred to in paragraph 30B(6)(a) below;

• “relevant convening notice” means the notice given to the council under paragraph 30B below which preceded the holding of the community meeting at which the poll in question was demanded;

• “relevant registration officer” means the registration officer under section 8 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 in relation to the register of electors for the local government area (within the meaning of that Act) in which the community in question lies.]