This page was updated May 2022
Shrewton Parish Council has a number of policies and procedures that provide guidance for members and officers.
Put simply, they set out how things should be done. They are all based on sensible behaviour, mostly backed up by legislation.
Introduction to Available Documents
All the documents that make up the policies and procedures are kept and maintained by Shrewton Parish Council. At least every two years they are reviewed and revised if necessary. Should changes be needed earlier, then they are revised as soon as time allows. Revisions could be due to changes in governing legislature, changes in policy by Wiltshire Council or in response to events in Shrewton. All changes must be confirmed by a resolution at a meeting of Shrewton Parish Council before they are added to the website.
The intention is to keep the documents up to date and relevant.
Existing councillors need to follow what is in these documents. New councillors need to become familiar with them but since most is simply common sense and being polite and many only apply to particular events or selected members, this is a lot easier done than reading all the documents at once!
Document Summaries
A summary of each document is given below which briefly explains the contents, the relevance and why it is needed. These are meant solely as a summary – do not rely on them! Links to the documents – stored as PDFs which you can download – are included with each summary.
Should you have questions then please contact the Clerk to the Council
Standing Orders – Sets out the meetings SPC must have throughout the year and the rules governing how they should be run. Also included are how the meetings should be publicised and recorded. See the full document.
Parish Councillor Job Description – This outlines what is required of a councillor and what they will do. See the full document.
Email Policy – This is guidance on how best to use email securely for council activities and for appropriate records to be kept. See the full document.
Term of Reference (ToR) for Working Groups – This document sets out the governance of working groups set up by the council to ensure they abide by the same standards as the Council. See the full document.
Code of Conduct – This document sets out how councillors must conduct themselves on council business and are based on the seven Nolan principles. Basically, be polite, considerate and fair. See the full document.
Complaint Procedure – Although hopefully never used, this procedure sets out how an individual can make a complaint over the Council’s behaviour and how that complaint will be dealt with. See the full document.
Financial Regulations – These are one of the council’s three governing policy documents (the others are Standing Orders and Code of Conduct) providing procedural guidance for members and officers and must be observed in conjunction with the council’s standing orders and any individual financial regulations relating to contracts. See the full regulations.
The regulations ensure that effective financial management is adequate and that a sound system of internal control is in place. These cover production of accounts, safeguarding public money by preventing and detecting inaccuracies and fraud. They also identify the duties of officers.
Media Policies – there are two media policies. The first covers the way recordings, audio or visual or using social media, can be made of public meetings. Click to see this policy. The second covers how communications with the media should be handled to avoid confusion between personal opinions and parish council views. Click here to see this policy.
Emergency Policy – to be done
Business Risk Management Register – The Council is expected to carry out an annual assessment of the business and financial risks it is exposed to and identify any actions it considers necessary to minimise those risks. Click here to see this policy.
Retention and Disposal of Documents- Click here to see this policy
Grants Policy – The policy document describes the guidelines as to the validity of an application and conditions associated with any grant awarded. Also included is a letter that will be sent to all applicants and the form that needs to be completed and returned. Click here to see the policy, the letter and the application form.
Grievance and Disciplinary Procedure – Describes how such issues need to be handled. Click here to see this policy.