The General Purposes Committee of Breckland Council met on 11 September 2025, and approved the Member Development Plan for 2026. A report regarding an addition to the establishment was deferred for discussion at a future meeting.

Member Training and Development

The committee approved the Member Development Plan for 2026, as outlined in Appendix A of the Member Development report. Councillor Alison Webb, the Executive Member for Customer & Corporate Services, presented the plan, which aims to strengthen councillors' existing knowledge, prepare them for changes due to the forthcoming Local Government Reorganisation (LGR), and provide flexible training opportunities.

Key training areas identified for 2026 include:

• Questioning techniques
• Change readiness for LGR
• Roles and responsibilities
• The constitution
• Forward Plan/Corporate Plan
• Members' pages

The plan incorporates feedback from members, committee chairmen, and surveys. It favours bite-size sessions after full council meetings and recording sessions for those unable to attend in person. Mandatory training for planning and licensing committee members will continue.

Councillor Harry Clarke, Chairman of the Overview & Scrutiny Commission, welcomed the plan, noting its potential usefulness in preparing for scrutiny under LGR.

The Member Development Plan 2026 is designed to be a living document that is tailored to meet members' training and development needs. It aims to strengthen existing knowledge, prepare members for LGR, and provide appealing, accessible, flexible and responsive training.

The plan details face-to-face sessions to be carried out after Full Council, including:

• Questioning Techniques – 22 January 2026
• Change Ready – 2 July 2026
• Roles & Responsibilities – 3 September 2026

Members' Pages

Following a June 2025 member survey, the members' pages are being refreshed to make them clearer, more accessible, and useful. The new landing page will cover six key areas:

• Member safety
• Communications
• Training
• LGR and devolution
• iTrent
• Community support

Two videos will be produced to support members: a navigation guide for members' pages and a step-by-step guide to iTrent¹.

Addition to Establishment

Agenda item 7, regarding an addition to the establishment, was deferred for discussion at a future meeting. The report sought approval to create a permanent Residential Property Officer post in the Property Service. The council approved a temporary post in 2024 to manage its residential property assets, which provide housing for vulnerable residents and reduce nightly paid accommodation costs. The portfolio has grown to 99 units/69 properties, increasing the need for repairs and maintenance. Making the post permanent would reduce reliance on external contractors and ensure a more responsive approach to asset management.

If the post was not made permanent, the report argues that the properties would not be fit for purpose and those in need would not be able to be temporarily or permanently housed in one of the Council's properties, meaning the use of third party properties at extremely high cost to the Council.

The financial appraisal in Appendix 1 shows the costs to the council, with costs for 2025/26 calculated from September 2025.