has told her she can no longer hold surgeries in her own home. If this is true
then the advice given by are dishonest incompetent clerk is wrong.
be Councillors can hold surgeries where ever they chose and it does not have to
be in a public place.
There is a misunderstanding at Oakham Town Councillor when it comes to
surgeries and contact with those we represent.
A surgery is a confidential meeting. Over the years Cllr Lucas has never
shared anything from her surgeries with the Council and that is fine if the
resident want it that way.
It has been a concern for many years and this was highlighted by Cllr Lowe
at the last meeting that concerns raised which may not be confidential have
never been shared with the council. But then Cllr Lowe has never raised any
residents concerns.
The Clerk never shares any residents communications with Council members.
I have asked for all correspondence to be shared with member and the clerk
has refused.
I have had residents contact me and shared with the council members and given
names when consent has be given, The old guard only seem to be interested in
names rather than the issue at hand, to be honest not many resident contact me
directly despite my efforts to let people know they can contact me or any other
member. Residents should not contact the clerk with their issues.
Councillor Lucas has always held her surgeries in her home with her husband
listening at the door so I don't see why residents who want to call on her should
not be able to continue to do so, I can not find anything to support the Clerks
advice Cllr Lucas claims she has been given. I can find plenty of sensible advice
from other councils an example is shown below.
5.3 PERSONAL SAFETY – GUIDANCE FOR LOCAL COUNCILLORS
1. INTRODUCTION#
An important role of councillors is to keep in touch with their communities.
This includes helping individuals with any problems they might have. Often
this extends beyond just the delivery of council services. These contacts are
usually rewarding and non-adversarial. Councillors become experienced in
calming down and treating with respect and sympathy angry and frustrated
residents who often resort to their elected representative when they feel that
they are getting nowhere in resolving their problems through other channels.
The purpose of this guide is not to make councillors nervous but to set out
what personal safety measures can be taken to prevent and to deal with those
rare circumstances when they might find themselves in situations where they
become anxious for their safety.
2. WARD SURGERIES
If possible do not hold surgeries alone in an otherwise empty building. Try to
get someone to act as a ‘receptionist’. This not only makes you safer but
makes it much easier to manage a busy surgery.
If you cannot avoid doing surgeries on your own, make sure that the layout of
the room suits you, i.e. you should sit nearest to the door with the constituents
seated on the other side of the table. Seating is best set out at an angle of
45 degrees (seating directly opposite can be confrontational).
If there is no separate waiting room, try to ensure that the waiting constituents
are as far as possible away from those whom you are talking to.
Make sure that there are no heavy items in the room that could be used as
weapons.
If you are looking for suitable premises in which to hold a surgery, try to get a
space with as many as possible of the following features:
1. council premises (eg libraries) during opening hours or other
premises where there are many other people about
2. premises where the names of any visitors for councillors are
recorded
3. premises where there is a comfortable waiting area
4. the surgery (interviewing) room:
- is in view of the reception or public area
- is connected to the reception by an alarm and there is a
procedure for dealing with a call for assistance
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- has a vision panel in the door
- is decorated in calming (pastel) colours
- has a swift means of escape and any visitors are not able to lock
the door from the inside.
3. DEALING WITH EMOTIONAL CONSTITUENTS
It is inevitable that some of the people you will meet will be angry or upset.
You need to be prepared to handle all types of emotion.
Councillors have to develop the quiet skill of being concerned about
constituents’ problems without being so involved that they become too
emotional to be of help. Calmness in the face of whatever comes up will help
you and your constituents.
You may find that racist or other offensive remarks are made. If they are
directed at you – do not respond – this will only make the situation worse.
Instead bring the interview to an end as quickly as possible. If they are more
general remarks, you should indicate that this is not acceptable and that you
cannot continue with the interview. Often this will elicit an apology. Otherwise
ask the person to leave. However, you must use your own judgement and if
you are alone and in a vulnerable situation, do not put yourself at risk no
matter how angry the remarks make you.
4. HOME VISITS
Councillors do sometimes visit residents in their homes especially those who
are elderly or disabled or where they simply wish to see for themselves
conditions that are the subject of complaints.
It is for each councillor to decide whether a particular visit should be made,
especially if the person to be visited is unknown to the councillor. Most
councillors trust their own instincts as to whether to meet someone alone.
Sometimes the councillor might prefer to be accompanied by a ward
colleague or obtain an initial report from council officers or invite the person to
a more public place. It is always advisable for you to keep a record of your
whereabouts. If necessary, you can let the person whom you are visiting
know there is such a record or that you are expected at another place by a
certain time etc. or make a call on your mobile phone during the visit.
5. PERSONAL CALLERS
Most councillors seek to maintain a balance between their personal and
public lives and do not want to encourage any callers at their private homes.
Good publicity by the authority as to how to contact councillors and details of
ward surgeres reduces the chances of unwanted callers.
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6. MALICIOUS AND NUISANCE TELEPHONE CALLS
Councillors occasionally get the odd nuisance or abusive call. Although
infrequently, they can become the target of a persistent, anonymous caller
who may have a grudge against the council. These calls need to be dealt
with in accordance with police advice:
- keep the caller talking
- note any clues the caller may provide as to sex, age, accent etc.
- listen for any clues as to the motive and intention of the caller
- write down the details immediately to assist police at a later stage
- listen for background noise which may provide valuable information (eg
railway sounds, industrial noises, machinery, music, animals)
- inform the police
- inform the council
7. MAIL
As with telephone calls, councillors on rare occasions can become the target
of a malicious anonymous letter. Any such letters should be given
immediately to the police.
8. CAR SAFETY AND PARKING
You need to take the same precautions as most car owners do:
- consider whether an area will be dark and isolated when you return to
your car
- park, where possible, under street lighting
- lock car doors as soon as getting into the car
- take boxes/bags to the car when other people are around.
9. REPORTING INCIDENTS
Any incidents of concern even if fairly minor or ‘nearly happened’ should be
reported to the authority’s Health and Safety Officer. This enables the Council
to undertake proper monitoring and decide if any action needs to be taken to
prevent a similar incident reoccurring. You may also consider it advisable to
warn ward colleagues.
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