BEECH PARISH COUNCIL
FREEDOM OF
INFORMATION ACT 2000
INFORMATION
FOR PARISHIONERS
Beech Parish
Council will make available Parish Council information on written request to
people resident in this parish. In so
doing, the Council is following the provisions of the Freedom of Information
Act 2000 which includes a Publications Scheme for Parish Councils. Copies of the Scheme (with a table showing
what information is accessible) will be available on request at Parish Council
meetings and on the Parish Council Website (www.BeechPC.com).
This is a new
initiative and as parishioners are aware, the Parish Council has modest
resources. The Council therefore has to
charge for this information, to account for some of the costs of production. The Publication Scheme will be revised from
time to time.
Beech Parish
Council has a policy of accountability to residents and aims to be as open and
transparent in its dealings as possible.
We welcome public interest in the Parish Council.
Parish Clerk
(Mrs Sheron
Gillard)
January 2003
BEECH PARISH COUNCIL
Publication Scheme
under the
Freedom of
Information Act 2000
The purpose of
this publication scheme is to be a means by which the Council can make a
significant amount of information available routinely. The scheme will ensure that the Council
will publish
more information pro-actively and help to develop a greater culture of openness
and transparency. This authority’s key
responsibilities are to represent the electorate of its areas, to take action
within the legal framework and to provide a leadership focus for the community.
Council
Internal Practice and Procedure
|
Information |
Format in which it is available |
Charge for
supply
(yes/no) |
|
Minutes of
Council, committee
and sub-committee meetings (limited to last 2 years) |
Council
Minutes: A4 loose-leaf sheets
– average 2-3 pages per meeting. Committees:
N/A |
Yes
– 20p per sheet + postage. N/A |
|
Procedural
standing orders |
2
x A4 loose-leaf sheets. |
Yes
- £5.00 per copy. |
|
Council’s
annual report to parish
meeting |
Minutes
of Annual Parish Meeting: average 2-3 sheets. |
Yes
- £1.00 per copy. |
|
Agendas and
supporting papers for council, committee and sub-committee meetings – limited
in each case to the forthcoming/ immediate committees acceptance
of office |
Council
Agendas posted on Parish Notice Boards. Committees
– N/A |
Yes
– 20p per sheet plus postage. |
Code of
Conduct
|
Information |
Format in which it is available |
Charge for
supply
(yes/no) |
|
Members’
declaration of acceptance
of office |
Monitoring
Officer at District Council holds this. |
EHDC
Policy refers. |
|
Members’
register of interests |
As
above. |
N/A |
|
Register of
members’ interests book |
Available
to view on request. |
N/A |
Page 2 of 4
Periodic
Electoral Review
This is information
concerning changes to the electoral arrangements for parish councils. It
includes
recommendations for the creation of new wards, the amendment of existing
wards, proposals for
the names of new wards and alterations to the number of councillors
to be elected to the
council.
|
Information |
Format in which it is available |
Charge for
supply
(yes/no) |
|
Information
relating to the last Periodic
Electoral Review of the Council Area |
District
Council Democratic Services Dept holds this information. |
Refer
to District Council |
|
Information
relating to the latest boundary
review of the council area |
Information
held by District Council. |
Refer
to District Council |
Employment
Practice and Procedure
|
Information |
Format in which it is available |
Charge for
supply
(yes/no) |
|
Terms and
conditions of employment |
A4
sheets – approx. 3 pages. |
Yes
- £5.00 |
|
Job
Descriptions |
2
x A4 sheets. |
Yes
- £3.00 |
|
Equal
opportunities policy |
Copy
Council resolution on Racial Equality only |
Yes
– 20p per page + postage. |
Planning
Documents
|
Information |
Format in which it is available |
Charge for
supply
(yes/no) |
|
Responses to
planning applications |
District
Council response form: A4 loose-leaf.
Specify application ref. no and date. |
Yes
– variable. |
|
Village
Design Statement |
A4
colour booklet |
Yes
- £5.00 |
Page 3 of 4
Development
and implementation of Policy
|
Information |
Format in which it is available |
Charge for
supply
(yes/no) |
|
Responses
made by council to consultation papers |
Public
requested to specify subject, date, etc when requesting details. |
Yes
– variable. |
|
Village
Appraisal |
A4
booklet |
Yes
- £5.00 |
|
Complaints
handling procedure |
Dealt
with individually as these arise. |
Yes,
if applicable. |
Audit and
Accounts
|
Information |
Format in which it is available |
Charge for
supply
(yes/no) |
|
Annual
return form – limited to the last
financial year |
A4
loose-leaf – average 3-4 pages. |
Yes
- £5.00 |
|
Annual
statutory report by auditor (internal and external) – limited to the last
financial year |
As
above |
Yes
- £5.00 |
|
Receipts/payment
books, receipt books of all kinds, bank statement from all accounts – limited
to the last financial year |
Viewing
by appointment at place to be arranged. |
Yes
– variable. |
|
Precept
request – limited to the last financial year |
A4
copies |
Yes
- £2.00 |
|
VAT records
– limited to the last financial year |
A4
copies |
Yes
- £2.00 |
|
Financial
Standing Orders and Regulations |
A4
loose-leaf copies – approximately 2 pages. |
Yes
- £3.00 |
|
Assets
register – includes details of commons/village greens owned by the council
including management schemes for commons as well as village halls, community
centres and recreation grounds. |
Assets
listed in Annual Receipts & Payments Account. Loose-leaf copies available. |
Yes
- £3.00 |
|
Financial
risk assessment |
Under
development |
To
be advised |
Page 4 of 4
EXCLUSIONS
Core Classes of Information
Employment Practice
and Procedure
‘Personal
records’, ie. appraisals, employee specific salary details, disciplinary
records, sickness records and the like by virtue of being personal data under
the Data Protection Act 1998.
Planning Documents
Copies of
planning consultations, the Development Plan, Structure Plan, Local Plan and
Rights of Way/Footpath maps, all of which are available from the local planning
and/or highway authority respectively.
Audit and Accounts
All
commercially sensitive information, eg. quotations and tenders, loan
documentation and insurance policies. With
regard to quotations and tenders, this information is treated as confidential
to ensure that the whole tender process is fair, ie. if tender information is
released to a third party prior to the end of the tender period, those who
initially submitted tenders could be undercut and/or unfairly disadvantaged.