Agenda and draft minutes

Governance Committee - Tuesday, 11th November, 2025 10.30 am

Venue: Council Chamber, County Hall, Lewes. View directions

Contact: Hannah Matthews Governance and Democracy Manager

Note: Or at the conclusion of Cabinet, whichever is the later

Items
No.	Item
31.	Minutes of the meeting held on 21 October 2025 PDF 114 KB Minutes: 31.1 RESOLVED – that the minutes of the previous meeting of the Committee held on 21 October 2025 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.
32.	Reports Minutes: 32. 1 Copies of the reports referred to below are included in the minute book.
33.	Appointment of Returning Officer for Mayoral Combined County Authority (MCCA) election PDF 285 KB View item 33. as HTML 32 KB Report by the Deputy Chief Executive Minutes: 33.1 The Committee considered a report by the Deputy Chief Executive regarding the appointment of a returning officer for the MCCA election due to be held in May 2026. 33.2 The Committee RESOLVED to recommend the County Council to agree to appoint the Chief Executive of Brighton and Hove City Council as the Returning Officer for the Mayoral election for the Sussex and Brighton Combined County Authority.
34.	Members' Allowance Scheme PDF 371 KB View item 34. as HTML 20 KB Report by the Deputy Chief Executive Minutes: 34.1 The Committee considered a report by the Deputy Chief Executive regarding the review of the Scheme of Member Allowances. 34.2 The Committee RESOLVED to recommend the County Council to: 1) agree to postpone the full review of the Member Scheme of Allowances scheduled for 2026, with a view to the process commencing in 2027 ahead of the implementation for the Vesting Day in 2028. However, should Government not proceed with Local Government Reorganisation (LGR), to agree that a review be carried out and reported to Council in the autumn of 2026; and 2) note that the review of the annual adjustment mechanism will take place.
35.	Member Training and Development Annual report PDF 112 KB View item 35. as HTML 28 KB Report by the Deputy Chief Executive Additional documents: Appendix 1 - Member Training and Development , item 35. PDF 319 KB View as HTML (35./2) 37 KB Appendix 2 - Member Training Programme - November - December 2025 , item 35. PDF 399 KB View as HTML (35./3) 28 KB Appendix 3 - Member Training Options , item 35. PDF 322 KB View as HTML (35./4) 140 KB Minutes: 35.1 The Committee considered a report by the Deputy Chief Executive regarding an update on the training and development activities offered to Members. 35.2 The Committee RESOLVED to note the programme of training and development activities offered to Members.
36.	Amendment to the Constitution - Speaking to the Planning Committee PDF 283 KB View item 36. as HTML 27 KB Report by the Deputy Chief Executive Additional documents: Appendix 1 , item 36. PDF 160 KB Minutes: 36.1 The Committee considered a report by the Deputy Chief Executive regarding proposed amendments to Part 4 (Rules and Procedure) of the Council’s Constitution to update the speaking to the Planning Committee procedure rules. 36.2 The Committee RESOLVED to: 1) recommend that the County Council agree to amend the Constitution as set out in Appendix 1 of the report; 2) agree that the reason for a member standing in for the local member should be recorded in the official minutes of the meeting; and 3) agree that a monitoring report setting out the use of the provision be brought back to the Committee in six months’ time for review.