Decision details

To agree:

• To establish a Woking Joint Committee in place of the current Woking Local Committee and make the relevant changes to the County Council’s constitution to enable this to happen.
• To delegate the recommended Surrey County Council executive functions to the Joint Committee, and recommend to Council that the current non-executive functions currently delegated to Woking Local Committee are delegated to Woking Joint Committee.
• To agree the Constitution and Standing Orders for the Woking Joint Committee
• To note the functions which Woking Borough Council will delegate to the Woking Joint Committee.

1.       To recommend to County Council the establishment of a Woking Joint Committee to deal with both executive and non-executive functions from 1 June 2014 in place of the current Local Committee in Woking which will cease to function from that date.

2.       To agree (as set out in Annex A of the submitted report):

·         that the current Local Committee executive functions be delegated to the Woking Joint Committee

·         that the Surrey County Council element of the new joint SCC/WBC executive functions be delegated to the Joint Committee

·         to recommend to Council that the current non-executive functions delegated to the Local Committee be delegated to the Woking Joint Committee

·         that the advisory functions that will come under the remit of the Woking Joint Committee be agreed.

3.       That the functions that Woking Borough Council has delegated to the Woking           Joint Committee, as set out in Annex A of the submitted report, be noted.

4.       That the Woking Joint Committee Constitution, including the Standing Orders under which it will operate, as set out in Annex A of the submitted report be agreed, and  authority be delegated to the Head of Legal and Democratic Services to agree to any minor amendments to the Constitution which may be required.

5.       To recommend that Council agrees to the relevant changes to the County Council’s Constitution to enable the Joint Committee to be established and become operational, as set out in Annex B of the submitted report.

Reasons for Decisions:

Cabinet and Full Council agreement is required to establish a Woking Joint Committee in place of the current Local Committee arrangements; to delegate recommended executive functions to the newly formed Woking Joint Committee; and to agree the new Constitution and Standing Orders under which the newly formed committee will operate.

The new Joint Committee will simplify and speed-up local decision making processes, enabling for the first time, all functions and budgets delegated to it by both authorities to be jointly decided upon.