The General Purposes Committee of Wandsworth Council was scheduled to meet on Monday 09 June 2014 to discuss the appointment of members to various sub-committees for the upcoming municipal year. The report pack outlines the proposed structure, terms of reference, and political group allocations for these sub-committees.

Appointments to Sub-Committees 2014/15

The primary item on the agenda was the appointment of sub-committees for the 2014/15 municipal year. The Chief Executive and Director of Administration, Paul Martin, presented a report recommending the approval of these appointments. The report proposed the establishment of three sub-committees: the Chief Officer Remuneration and Compensation Sub-Committee, the Service Charge Review Sub-Committee, and the Staff Management and Appeals Sub-Committee.

The report recommended that the committee approve:

• The appointment of sub-committees with specific sizes and terms of reference.
• The allocation of seats to the political groups, reflecting the council's membership.
• The appointment of members and alternate members to these sub-committees, including the selection of Chairmen and Deputy Chairmen.
• An approach for the appointment of members to Appointments Sub-Committees.

The proposed sub-committees and their terms of reference were detailed as follows:

• Chief Officer Remuneration and Compensation Sub-Committee: This sub-committee would be responsible for setting targets and assessing the performance of the Chief Executive and Deputy Chief Executive for performance-related pay. It would also determine staff severance packages exceeding £100,000, with all such decisions to be reported to the relevant committee and the full council. The sub-committee was proposed to have 4 members.

• Service Charge Review Sub-Committee: This sub-committee would review any decisions made by the Director of Administration regarding applications for the reduction of service charges. It would consider representations from applicants and, if deemed appropriate, substitute an alternative decision. This sub-committee was proposed to have 3 members, with up to 2 alternates.

• Staff Management and Appeals Sub-Committee: This sub-committee would address personnel management issues requiring member-level consideration. It would also handle urgent variations in remuneration arrangements for individual employees or groups to aid recruitment and retention, and hear and determine appeals against decisions made by the authority. This sub-committee was proposed to have 4 members, with up to 2 alternates.

The report also outlined the proposed allocation of seats to the two political groups on the council: the Conservative Group and the Labour Group. Based on the council's membership, the Conservative Group was allocated a larger proportion of seats on each sub-committee. The report listed the specific councillors nominated by each group for appointment to these sub-committees, including the proposed Chairmen and Deputy Chairmen.

Additionally, the report detailed the proposed framework for the Appointments Sub-Committees, which would interview and appoint Chief Officers to HAY Band posts, as permitted under the Local Government Act 2000. The framework suggested different numbers of members for these sub-committees, with a consistent allocation of seats to the Conservative and Labour groups to ensure political balance.

The report also noted that appointments to other bodies, including the Major Works Review Panel, Chief Officers Joint Consultative Committee, Joint Staff Committee, and Joint Schools Teaching Staff Committee, would be made by the Director of Administration under his delegated authority.

The report pack can be found at Public reports pack 09th-Jun-2014 20.39 General Purposes Committee.