Charter for Elected Member Development

IDeA assessment of South East Employers as the provider of the Charter for the south east and eastern regions

"Some good practice that should be shared with other regions. As robust a process as you could have, no other region can better this and many others could strengthen their own process up to this standard. Evidence requirement appears to be more explicit in the south east and eastern regions".

The Charter for Elected Member Development has been developed in partnership with the IDeA and is based on the North West Employers’ Charter, building on the experience of their well established and successful regional Member Development Charter which all councils in that region have made a commitment to.

SEE is also leading on the Charter for Elected Member Development of the 54 councils in the Eastern Region.

In the South East region 22 councils have committed to the Charter and 6 have been awarded Charter status. Twenty six councils in the Eastern Region have committed to the Charter and 3 have been awarded Charter status.

The Charter – what is it and why do we need it?

Any local authority dedicated to meeting the needs of its community must be committed to developing its Elected Members. The evolving modernisation agenda has placed increasing emphasis on an authority’s need to rethink their approach to member support and development. The impact is such that a majority of local authorities across the South East now have some form of support programme in place – however, the approach, levels of commitment, effectiveness and progress varies considerably. The Charter has a number of objectives.

How does the Charter work?

There are five key stages in working towards the Charter :

Stage 1: Signing up to the Charter and an Action Plan.

Stage 2: Improving the development of Elected Members

Stage 3: Assessment

Stage 4: Awarding the Charter

Stage 5: Re-assessment

Charter Milestones/Standards

Commitment to Member development
Strategic approach to Member development
Member learning and development plan in place
Learning and development is effective in building capacity
Elected Member development promotes work life balance and citizenship

Support and Assistance

Ongoing support will be provided as soon as you commit to the Charter.

Following commitment you will receive a ‘certificate’ demonstrating your commitment to meeting the Charter standards.
An in-authority workshop will be organised to explain to the Elected Members and officers the process of moving towards Charter status.
Self assessment materials and a Charter commitment pack will be provided to each authority.
Assessment will be undertaken in the authority where it is seen as ready by the authority and by SEE
Nine Elected Members from the IDEeA Peer Clearing House have been trained as “Peer Assessors”
A detailed report will be provided to the council outlining good practice and areas for improvement and whether it has achieved Charter status
A regional annual celebration event will be organised. A national celebration event is also being considered.

Total cost £3,000 per authority plus VAT and expenses.