About the Council and its Constitution

Introduction

The Council’s duties and services are managed by the elected councillors (known within the Council as ‘members’) through a democratic structure.

In accordance with government legislation, the County Council has:

Appointed a Leader of Council, who has formed a single party cabinet of eight members (together they take key decisions and are responsible for the day-to-day running of the Council)
Three cross party Scrutiny Committees:
Scrutiny for Policies and Places
Scrutiny for Policies, Children and Families
Scrutiny for Policies, Adults and Health
A cross party Regulation Committee of nine members, responsible for the Council’s planning and regulatory functions

The full County Council of 55 elected members is responsible for deciding the democratic arrangements for the Council and agreeing our policy framework and each year’s budget.

Whistleblowing Policy – We are committed to the highest possible standards of openness, probity and accountability. In line with that commitment we wish to encourage employees, and other workers within the Council, who have serious concerns about any aspect of the Council’s work to come forward and voice those concerns. You can read the policy in the downloads section below.

The Council's Constitution

The Constitution of Somerset County Council is a document detailing how decisions are made and the procedures followed to ensure that these are efficient, transparent and accountable to local people.

Please note that due to the Coronavirus pandemic and government advice, Council meetings have been suspended and the constitution has been amended in line with the Council’s Emergency Democratic and Decision-making Arrangements set out in the report below.

We are required by the Local Government Transparency Code 2015 to publish details of our constitution. You can find the documents in Downloads.

If you would like more information about the Council and its Constitution please contact the Council’s Monitoring Officer:

Scott Wooldridge
Monitoring Officer
Democratic Services
Somerset County Council
County Hall
Taunton
Somerset
TA1 4DY

Email: democraticservices@somerset.gov.uk
Phone: 01823 357628

Terms and conditions of access and re-use

Material published and accessed on our website is provided free of charge. Unless otherwise stated, this content is © Copyright of Somerset County Council. The information is made available for re-use under the terms of the Open Government Licence for public sector information. Provided you accept the terms of this licence, it is not necessary to ask permission to re-use this information.