Access to Information
Woodhouse Parish Council adopted the new Parish Council model scheme on 1 December 2008 approved by the Information Commissioner.
The purpose of the scheme is to make information available routinely, without waiting for someone to specifically request it. The scheme is intended to encourage local councils to publish more information pro-actively and to develop a greater culture of openness and transparency.
The scheme specifies the classes of information covered, as detailed below.
Excluded are general correspondence and information relating to private individuals [personal data under the Data Protection Act 1998] and commercially sensitive information such as quotations & tenders, loan documentation, and insurance policies.
Information is also available in print from the Clerk [See Contact Us web page] which may be charged at 10p per page for copying & 2nd class postage, or by email [if available] free of charge. This website has the Browse Aloud system link on the Home page for blind readers. The Parish Council does not have an office but if you wish to consult any documents that are not available on this website you can arrange with the Clerk to do so at the Village Hall, Main Street, Woodhouse Eaves at a mutually convenient time.
Class 1: Who we are and what we do Organisational information, structures, locations and contacts See the web pages on:
Councillors Committees Reps on organisations Parish Wardens Administration
Class 2: What we spend and how we spend it Current and previous financial year:
Income, expenditure & budget Annual audit form & auditor's report Any contracts Precept Standing Orders & Financial Regulations Grants given & received Members allowances & expenses
Class 3: What our priorities are and how we are doing
Parish Plan - See Parish Plan web page - also in print for £3.00 Annual Report - See Meetings web page Quality Status - not applicable Local Charters - not applicable
Class 4: How we make decisions
Agendas - See Meetings web page Timetable of meetings - See Meetings web page Minutes - See Minutes web page Reports presented to Council meetings [excluding information that is properly regarded as private to the meeting] - available on request Responses to consultation papers - available on request Responses to planning applications - available on request Bye-laws - available on request
Class 5: Our policies and procedures Policies and procedures for the conduct of Council business See Powers & Processes and Administration web pages or ask the Clerk for anything not provided there
Procedural Standing Orders Committee & Sub-committee terms of reference Delegated authority in respect of officers Code of Conduct - See Powers and Processes web page Policy statements - See Administration web page
Policies and procedures for the provision of services and about the employment of staff Internal policies relating to the delivery of services
Equality & diversity policy Health & Safety policy Recruitment policies [including current vacancies] Policies and procedures for handling requests for information Complaints procedures [including those covering requests for information and operating the publication scheme] Information security policy Records Management policies Data protection policies Schedule of charges for the publication of information
Class 6: Lists and Registers
Assets register Disclosure log Register of Members Interests [available for inspection only] Register of gifts and hospitality
Class 7: The services we offer
Allotments - See Allotments web page Burial grounds and closed churchyards - available from local churches Community centres and village halls - See Village Hall web page Parks, playing fields and recreational facilities - Property page Seating, litter bins, clocks, memoriaLs and lighting - Property Bus shelters - See Property web page Markets - not applicable Public conveniences - [on Car Park and managed by Charnwood BC] Agency agreements - not applicable Summary of services for which the Council is entitled to recover a fee, together with those fees [e.g. burial fees] See Village Hall charges on Village Hall web page
Further details on the provisions of the Act can be found at the following web address:
The data.gov.uk website allows you to to drill into sets of data about many aspects of life. Currently, smaller parish councils don't have to submit their data sets to the site, but might have to do so in future. However, it is a useful website for comparing local areas.
All councillors have to declare any interests that might conflict with council decision-making. Below is a link to the Registers for this council.