Yateley Town Council want Town Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer

Yateley Town Council
Town Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer

With a population in excess of 21,000, Yateley is a thriving community in North East Hampshire. In 2013 the town was rated one of the most attractive postcode areas to live in England. 

The Town Council is one of the largest and most active authorities in Hampshire. With a budget approaching £500.000 the council delivers a wide range of services to the population that it serves.

This summer, after 15 years in the post the current Town Clerk is retiring. The council looking for a candidate who will play a key leadership role in the management and ongoing development of the Town Council. 

The successful candidate will be highly motivated, focussed, forward thinking, and have a proven track record in delivering quality services and possess excellent communication skills. Heading a team of ten people, the ability to work in a team as well as individually is vital.
The position is full time and includes some evening working.

Salary scale is LC3 (NJC points 46-48) plus a car allowance and pension scheme.

A candidate pack (including the job description, person specification and application form) is available online at www.yateley-tc.gov.uk 

Closing date for applications is noon on Wednesday 20 May 2015

Interviews will be held during early June.

Transparency Code - does you council need a new website?

Small councils that haven't got a website may be interested in two companies which are offering their services to councils. 
 
The Transparency Code requires councils (with an annual turnover not exceeding £25,000)
to publish on their website:

• all items of expenditure above £100
• end of year accounts
• annual governance statement
• internal audit report
• list of councillor or member responsibilities
• the details of public land and building assets
• Minutes,agendas and meeting papers of formal meetings.

Please have a look at your website. Can a member of the public find your agendas and minutes in no more than two clicks or three at most? If council information is buried among the cricket club and the church perhaps you need to be rethinking your website. 

BALC has been approached by two companies offering their services:
HugoFox.com   this company offers to develop a site for free, building on the ethos of connecting communities.

Adam Curtis this link takes you to an example website developed by Adam Curtis :  07944 390923
Email:  adam@curtiswebsitedesign.com

BALC does not endorse either of these companies but hope you may find the information useful

Apply for funding - My Community Rights programme

NALC is supporting Locality in delivering the 2015-16 My Community Rights programmes as funded by DCLG which parishes can apply to.

The following support programmes are currently available and are open for applications, with some looming application deadlines:

Community economic development – Co-operatives UK will support 50 communities to develop economic plans to address local economic priorities like job creation and enterprise. Closing date for applications 8 May 2015.

Community ownership and management of assets – Locality will support 50 local authority/community partnerships to support the transfer of multiple or complex publicly owned assets into community ownership. Applications close when programme is full.

First steps and Our Place – Locality will support 115 more neighbourhoods to use the Our Place approach, enabling councils and other public sector providers, voluntary and community groups, local businesses and the community to work together to tackle important local issues from job creation to health priorities and 115 communities will receive support from the Community Development Foundation to take the first steps in identifying important local issues and developing Community Action Plans. Closing date for applications is 8 May 2015 for First Steps and 15 May 2015 for Our Place.

Neighbourhood planning and the Community Right to build – Locality will give grants and technical support to communities to shape new development in their area through a neighbourhood plan or neighbourhood development order, and to gain planning permission for new community led buildings. No closing date for applications.

There is also an advice service and network - Locality and the Community Development Foundation are providing communities with the opportunity to network and learn from each other through the new My Community Network. They provide a phone and online advice service that gives access to tailored advice to help communities use the range of community rights and other neighbourhood approaches that are available.  

Details of all the support and grant funding on offer are at: www.mycommunity.org.uk .

Employment Update for April - holidays

 

Annual Leave - Aprils Employment briefing covers the often difficult area of holiday entitlement and calculation.

• The statutory position
• The contractual position
• The maths
• Part-timers 
•  Adjustments for Bank Holidays
• Carrying over leave
• Accrued leave
• Rolled up holiday pay
• Controlling Leave
•  How does a sole, part-time employee, working from home actually take annual leave?

The complete briefing is here on the BALC website

Resources for those embarking on Neighbourhood Plans

Planning Aid has put together a whole suite of resources for groups embarking on a Neighbourhood Plan. 

It provides the whole tool kit - templates for project planning, spreadsheets, videos on how to do it. An extremely useful and free set of 'how to' tools. 

Well worth a look here

Entertainment in Village Halls

A raft of cuts in red tape will make it easier for village halls to be the social heart of their communities, says leading rural network ACRE.

The charity says major changes to Government regulations on entertainment licensing, which come fully into force from April 6, have reduced the burden on community buildings.

It says village halls now face less paperwork when it comes to putting on the events, plays, performances and social evenings which pull communities together.

The charity has produced a new guide ‘Entertainment in Village Halls’ which steers management committees through the rules and regulations on licensing, music copyright, cinema, events and more.

It is available through Wendy Dacey, CBAS Community Buildings Adviser in Berkshire wendy.dacey@ccberks.org.uk   0118 961 2000

Community Guide to Your Water Environment

The Community Guide to Your Water Environment has been produced by ACRE in partnership with Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group (FWAG), NFU and the Countryside and Community Research Institute.

The guide features a step by step guide to community projects to help manage water with case studies and resources to help your community. 

Nick Chase, ACRE said: "The floods of recent years got many local communities thinking about how they could protect their villages from the worst of the weather. However, people are confused by the number of individuals, agencies and authorities involved in managing the water environment... This guide sets out to put communities on the right path to be prepared for more extreme events.

The report is here