Explained: Nottingham City Council
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Explained:Nottingham City CouncilWhat is Nottingham City Council?It is a democratic organisation which works to improve life across the city. It is a unitary council, which means it is responsible for providing all local government services in the area. What does Nottingham City Council do?The Council is responsible for providing services including education, housing, libraries, social services, waste collection, transport planning, and for handling local planning applications. Housing services are provided by Nottingham City Homes, a company set up by Nottingham City Council to manage their council housing services. Neighbourhood management is how the council delivers local responsive services. The council is leading on this approach in the nine areas of Nottingham, in partnership with voluntary and community groups across the city. One Nottingham is the city’s Local Strategic Partnership. It is an organisation which brings together the public, private, community and voluntary sectors based in Nottingham, so that everyone living or working in the city has the chance to have their say about its future. NCVS supports voluntary sector involvement in One Nottingham’s work. What does Nottingham City Council not do?NHS Nottingham City is responsible for providing health care services across Nottingham. It works closely with the council and other independent health service trusts. Nottinghamshire Police is our local police authority. It works across the city and county of Nottinghamshire. Who runs the Council?The City Council has 55 elected councillors. There are elections every four years where all of the 55 seats are contested. The council is led by the leader of the ruling political party, which is currently Labour. The Leader of the Council is Councillor Jon Collins. Each of the 55 councillors represent an area of the city, called a ward. There are 20 wards in the city, with two or three councillors per ward. You can find the local councillor for your area by going to the council’s website and clicking ‘where I live’ or click here: http://nottinghamcity.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=3277 The council structure – the decision-makersAll 55 councillors meet as a full council around every six weeks. It would be impractical for all decisions to be made by all 55 councillors so the council delegates authority to these groups. The executive board is a monthly meeting of nine executive councillors, including the Leader of the Council, who all hold decision-making powers. Decisions on policy and financial matters are made by this board. Statutory and regulatory committees determine various practical issues, such as planning permissions or certain types of licences. Nine area committees across the city are attended by their local councillors, who consider matters of local interest and concern. Overview and scrutiny select committees hold the executive board to account, by closely examining its proposals and decisions. It is a different group of people that sit on overview and scrutiny committees to the executive board. The council structure – the doersThe councillors set the direction and policies of the council. Council workers carry out the service delivery. There are about 14,000 city council workers, who run the council’s day-to-day services for the 286,000 residents of Nottingham. Council workers are led by the Chief Executive of the council and the senior management team of corporate directors. The council produces a useful booklet giving contact details for all their services. Get a copy by going to the council’s website and click ‘my services’. Talking to the council – residentsHave your sayThe council welcomes feedback from residents on what they do well and how they can improve. You can fill in a form from any council reception points or office or find out more on the council’s website by clicking on ‘contact us’. Put your concerns and issues to your local councillorThere are regular surgeries where you can meet your local councillor and put your concerns and questions to them. To find out when your local councillors’ surgeries are held, go to the Council’s website and click ‘where I live’. Question the councilAt the start of every full council meeting there is a public question and petitions facility. Find out more on the council’s website by searching for ‘submit question’. Petition your councilLocal residents can submit a public petition to be presented at the beginning of an ordinary council meeting. Find out more on the council’s website by searching for ‘petitions’. Nottingham ArrowThis is a monthly newsletter from the council that tells you what’s happening in the city and the council. The Arrow is sent to all households in Nottingham city, but if you haven’t had your copy, get it on the Council’s website by searching for ‘arrow’. Local electionsMake sure you’re registered to vote in local and national elections. Go to the council’s website and search for ‘elections’. Talking to the council – voluntary and community groupsInfluencing decisionsNCVS links voluntary and community groups to One Nottingham so that people most affected by poor service delivery can get involved in discussing and planning how the services should be changed. Find out more on our website www.nottinghamcvs.co.uk Decisions about neighbourhoodsThere are nine area committees covering the whole of the city, each comprising of two or three adjoining wards. The area committees enable councillors, along with local residents, to influence what happens in each area, either through direct decision making or by consulting on matters that affect the area. To find your local area committee visit the council’s website and click ‘where I live’. Contact Nottingham City CouncilLoxley House, Station Street, Nottingham, NG2 3NG 0115 915 5555
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