A record of who is responsible for particular types of decisions or decisions relating to particular areas or functions can be found in part 3 of the Council Constitution.
Principles of decision making
All decisions of the council will be made in accordance with the following principles:
- proportionality (i.e. the action must be proportionate to the desired outcome)
- due consultation and the consideration of professional advice from officers
- respect for human rights
- a presumption in favour of openness
- clarity of aims and desired outcomes
- the legal test of reasonableness (i.e. the decision must not be so unreasonable that no reasonable Council could have reached it)
Key decisions
Key decisions are significant decisions, made by the Full Council, a Committee or Sub-Committee of Council or an officer.
A key decision is currently defined in Regulations (Statutory Instruments 2012/2089) as one which:
- results, or is likely to result, in the Council incurring expenditure which is, or the making of savings which are, in excess of 10% of the relevant budget head of £500,000, whichever is the smaller; or
- is significant in terms of its effect on communities living or working in an area comprising two or more wards (where the meaning of ‘significant’ is subject to any guidance to be issued by the Secretary of State and, in the absence of any such guidance, is to be interpreted as a decision which, in the view of the Leader, will have a significant effect on a significant number of people).
Key decisions are made in accordance with the requirements of the various procedure rules set out in Part 4 of the Council Constitution.