Oakham Town Council Meeting Cancelled Due to Administrative Errors
An extraordinary meeting of Oakham Town Council, scheduled for tomorrow, June 6th, 2025, has been cancelled due to errors in the summons issued to council members. As a result, the agenda items intended for this meeting will now be deferred and added to the agenda for the full council meeting on June 11th, 2025.
The cancellation stems from an administrative oversight where the summons did not comply with the stringent requirements of the Local Government Acts. Councillor Martin Brookes highlighted the issue, pointing out that the council's inability to meet its legal obligations for publishing meeting documents online also contributed to the problem.
Under the Local Government Act, town councils are legally bound to publish meeting agendas and all supporting background papers on their official website at least three clear days before any meeting. This requirement is a cornerstone of open and accountable local government, ensuring transparency and public access to information regarding council proceedings.
"The summons issued to members contained errors, meaning it did not comply with the local government act requirements," stated Cllr Martin Brookes. He further elaborated on a critical underlying issue: "Oakham Town Council does not employ any staff capable of uploading agendas and supporting documents to the council website, until recently that task was carried out by Cllr Paul Ainsley is currently unavailable due to illness."
This lack of dedicated personnel for online publication has significant implications for the council's compliance with all its legal mandates. The current situation underscores the challenges faced by local authorities that may lack the internal capacity to meet evolving digital transparency requirements.
The cancellation of an extraordinary meeting and the deferral of its agenda items to a subsequent meeting can lead to delays in decision-making and potentially inconvenience for both council members and the public who may have wished to attend or follow the proceedings.
Oakham Town Council will now need to ensure that all future summons and meeting documents fully comply with the Local Government Act and that adequate provisions are in place to meet their legal obligations for online publication, thereby upholding the principles of open and accountable governance.
