We’ve spent the last few months traveling around the country talking to town councils, community partnerships and local authorities about the implications of the Localism Act, mainly focusing on what new planning tools have become available.

Just the other week, we were fortunate enough to find ourselves in Dawlish, a coastal town, reached via one of the great British railway journeys, traveling right along the shoreline of Devon.  During our question and answer session one delegate asked us about the implications for petitions under the new legislation. Not immediately knowing the answer, we decided to investigate in more detail and uncovered the following which you might find an interesting read:

Chapter 10 (miscellaneous repeals), Section 46, of the Localism Act (http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2011/20/section/46/notes accessed 9 May,2012): states

“Repeal of provisions about petitions to local authorities.  This section removes the requirements for principal local authorities in England and Wales to make, publish and comply with a scheme for the handling of petitions made to the authority, and to provide a facility for making petitions in electronic form to the authority. It also removes the powers of the Secretary of State and Welsh Ministers to make provision by order in relation to petitions schemes.”

What does this mean?

The Act is repealing legislation previously set out in the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009, in particular the repeal of Chapter 2 of Part 1.

This means that from 1^st April 2012, there is no longer a requirement on Councils to provide a statutory petitions scheme and mandatory ePetitions facility, hence:

• It removes the need for councils to make a scheme for the handling of petitions which are made to the authority (with the exception of those petitions made under another enactment, such as one asking for a referendum on an elected mayor).
• It removes the need for councils to be able to accept petitions electronically.
• It removes the need for councils to comply with its own petition scheme.
• There is no need for a council to publish its petition scheme on its website.
• There is no need for a council to acknowledge petitioners, tell petitioners what it intends to do with their petitions or place their petitions on the councils website.
• It removes the need for councils to do one of the list of the required steps when considering a petition (see link above for detail on these steps)
• It removes the need for councils to have thresholds to determine how to process petitions, for those thresholds to be reasonable and the requirement for petitions reaching those thresholds to be debated at full Council and/or Overview and Scrutiny.
• It removes the power of review by the Secretary of State, to review a council’s scheme if the council does not receive any petitions that the council has to debate.
• The specified reasons for rejection of a petition have been removed.

Why is the government doing this?

In terms of petition procedures the former legislation relating to petitions was widely considered as being very prescriptive with regards to how a Council acknowledged and informed petitioners about what was happening with their petitions once they had been submitted to the Council.   In light of the new legislation, some councils are exploring options for keeping an amended petitions procedure (eg. by omitting the statutory elements of their former schemes).  This is because they feel it remains useful for there to be a set procedure for handling petitions that is consistent and orderly, clarifying to the public what the council will do and the steps that officers have to take when it receives a petition.  Keeping a procedure in place also sends a clear message to the general public that the council takes their views seriously.

In terms of ePetitions, the former legislation required that each local authority set up on its website an ePetitions facility. The Government made a financial contribution to the cost of doing this which, in many cases, substantially exceeded the cost incurred by the council in setting one up.  Some councils have taken down their e-petition facilities already while others are considering keeping an e-petition if they feel it a useful service for their community.  There is much debate over how much e-petitions were actually used and whilst no formal research has been undertaken, there is some evidence to suggest that the tool has not had widespread take-up.

Do readers have any views about this?

The change in legislation does not prevent council members from:

(a) Formally presenting petitions at Council meetings

(b) Submitting motions relating to the subject matter of petitions

(c) Requesting that the relevant Overview & Scrutiny Committee consider the subject matter of petitions

In addition there are some instances where statutory procedures are triggered by petitions, such as changing governance arrangements to an elected Mayor-led executive or in relation to Council Tax increases. These are unaffected by the Localism Act as they are requirements set out in other enactments.

In addition to the above, note that in the original draft of the Localism Bill, there was a clause stating that a petition signed by 5% of the local population or just 1 elected member would have instigated a non-binding referendum on any ‘local matter’.  This was later dropped and does not appear in the final Localism Act. This removal was welcomed by various organisations including the Local Government Association which said that removing local referendums under this proposal would save councils an estimated £310 million over the next 10 years.

What do you think about this?

• Is it a weakening of democracy, or is it a strengthening of the relationship between councils and their citizens?
• Or does it place too much power back in the hands of councillors to act on their own whims rather than take note of the expressed concerns of their constituents?
• Send your comments and feedback to Policy@towns.org.uk or post below
• Back to Strategy blog menu page

Tuesday 24 July 2012

Where

Frodsham Community Centre, Frodsham, West Cheshire.

With the numerous challenges facing small towns, combined with the recent Government and media spotlight on the health and long term future of traditional High Streets and Town Centres,  AMT’s  ‘Town Centre Solutions’ workshops are proving to be in great demand.

We are therefore pleased to announce that another Town Centre Solutions workshop has been confirmed, this time to take place in Frodsham, Cheshire on Tuesday 24 July.

This full day workshop offers a unique opportunity for those who work in and on behalf of town centres to learn about an innovative set of solutions, services and ideas which help deliver economic vibrancy.

The workshop is vital for all those wanting to

• UNDERSTAND THEIR TOWN CENTRE AND GENERATE LOCAL LOYALTY
• MEASURE THE SUCCESS OF THEIR TOWN CENTRE
• ENGAGE, WORK WITH AND TRAIN INDEPENDENT RETAILERS
• CREATE A TOWN CENTRE ACTION PLAN

The workshop will be delivered by town centre specialists:

amt-i will provide an insight into the importance of understanding your town centre from a customer perspective, outlining an array of tools and techniques such as footfall counts, town centre surveys, mystery shopping and car parking and signage audits. The need to measure the success of town centre performance will be outlined via the AMT Town Benchmarking system.

Retail specialists, Metamorphosis , will guide delegates in approaches to engage with independent retailers to help create a ‘town centre vision’ and ensure customers’ experiences are positive.

The Town Centre Manager from Hitchin will share best practice of engaging and working with local businesses  from their experience of establishing a highly successful Business Improvement District in Hitchin.

Delegates will leave the event with a template to ensure the vibrancy of their town.

Click here to download the Workshop Programme

To Book:

Attendance fees start at just £35 including lunch, for AMT members

We also have an introductory offer for non-AMT members of £75, which includes three months trial membership of AMT.

Please see bookings form for more information

Click here to complete an on line bookings form

Venue

Frodsham Town Council have kindly offered to provide a venue for the event which is  The Frodsham Community Centre, Fluin Lane, Frodsham WA6 7QN. Full joining instructions will be sent to booked delegates and uploaded here nearer the time of the event.

 If you have any questions about the event please contact Dawn Dowds on 01284 756567 or email: dawn.dowds@towns.org.uk

What next?

• Download AMT’s 21st Century Town Centres Report {opens pdf}
• Read reports from past AMT seminars here
• Share your thoughts or ask questions on how to save our town centres in the AMT Forum
• See more upcoming AMT events