Agenda item

Joint report of the Town Clerk and the Chamberlain.

The Sub Committee considered a report of the Town Clerk looking at ways to enhance user participation at committee meetings and support paper-free ways of working for Members and Officers.

During the course of debate, the following observations were made by Members:

• The user access/interface from non-CoL devices was unpredictable;
   
• On some occasions, hard copies of agenda packs were required;
   
• It was a challenge to keep track of papers when follow up supplements were circulated in separate emails;
  
  
• Page numbering of agenda packs when viewed via the Mod.gov App were different from numbering when viewed as a pdf email for example;
  
  
• Non-public reports were not always visible.

In response to comments and questions from Members, Officers stated that once physical/hybrid meetings resumed, it would be possible to gauge the level of need for paper agenda packs.  Non-public papers could be viewed via the Mod.gov app and assistance was available for any Members who were not able to view Non-public documents.  At present, confidential papers were not uploaded to Mod.gov and going forward, Members would have to decide whether to upload confidential papers which could then be accessed by all Members.  Settings could be adjusted easily to ensure consistency in page numbering across all platforms when viewing papers.

Although Members were encouraged by progress thus far, it was felt that:

a)    the pilot should be extended to all members including co-optees;

b)    a status update should be provided to the next meeting:
 

c)    the pilot should be extended beyond June 2021, if felt necessary.

RESOLVED –

1.   That all current members of the Court of Common Council and

Co-opted Members participate in a pilot from March to the end of June 2021 and use the Modern.gov app to view/manage all committee-related documentation.

2.   That Members provide feedback to the Committee and Member Services and IT-Technology Support Teams about their user experience by the end of June 2021.

3.   That Members attend training, where necessary, to support use of the Modern.gov app.

4.   That a status update be presented to the next Digital Services Sub Committee on 28 May 2021.

5.   That the pilot should be extended beyond June 2021, if felt necessary.

6. That a report, setting out feedback from the pilot and an assessment of its future use from both a user and digital solution perspective, be submitted to the Digital Services Sub-Committee on 23 July 2021.

7.  That subject to the outcomes of the pilot, the Sub Committee makes recommendations to the Finance Committee and the Court of Common Council that a paper-free approach (unless by exception) by all Members and officers, in respect of access to committee papers, be adopted by March 2022.