Online Committee success
July 2021
We all know the rules of a committee meeting: the more convenient it is to be there and the less time it lasts, the more likely there will be decent attendance and sensible decisions.
This is why the innovation of online meetings has been a revelation. There have been challenges (‘Minister, you’re still on mute…’) but, in my view, these are outweighed by the benefits. For example, I attended a club AGM this year for the first time simply because it was online; it would have been a four-hour round trip otherwise, and I wouldn’t have bothered.
Indeed, that AGM attendance was their highest ever; other organisations are having similar experiences. Since moving the meetings online, more people have been able and willing to turn up and whilst we miss some of the personal aspects of such events, the fact that people from far away can easily take part has been a boon.
The same has been true within our village; too small for a Parish Council, we have a Parish Meeting, and our online AGM had the highest ever recorded attendance. This included several less mobile villagers who would have struggled to go to a physical meeting, but whose contributions were invaluable.
I am also a Trustee of a Charity that has found Zoom meetings to be not only effective but preferable; Trustees can attend from here or abroad, and do; nobody has to drive anywhere, we don’t need a meeting room and so on. In fact, we have even changed our Trust Deed to permit all future meetings to be held online.
I have a regular ‘working lunch’ with a couple of colleagues; we make our own sandwiches and then chat for an hour, spread between Suffolk, Newcastle and Edinburgh. We enjoy it very much, and will be carrying on, pandemic or not.
So far so good; online meetings, if properly run, can be effective and well attended. They can also take up much less time than a meeting in person, which is especially important if you are all volunteers.
Despite this, since 6th May it has been illegal (yes, illegal) for Local Authorities and Parish Councils to meet online. The relaxation of the rules during the pandemic has expired. This was bonkers; you’ll recall that the general unlocking was not expected until 21st June at the earliest.
It left Councils in an impossible position: they were not allowed to hold meetings online and not allowed to gather in person by virtue of the COVID rules. Ridiculous.
I suppose they could meet in a field, socially distanced, using megaphones, but somehow that lacks an appropriate level of civic dignity.
However, the ban has undoubtedly galvanised opinion in favour of allowing the option of remote attendance; to be fair to the Government a consultation on the issue was briskly launched and may result in a change of the law. I certainly hope so; to pretend that the technology just doesn’t exist is futile, and to ignore its undoubted benefits would be foolish.
There are issues to overcome; one parish councillor in Yorkshire who can’t get the hang of Zoom fell foul of rules that force disqualification for non-attendance. Obviously that sort of thing needs sorting out, but surely Councils should have the chance to meet online, if they want to; apart from anything else, it means we can watch what they are up to. Very democratic.
In fact, I believe that we are heading towards a world where meetings are hybrids of both online and offline, in other words, both at once. Believe me, it’s coming.
It would be also great if more people could learn how to position their computer so it’s not looking up their nose, but let’s fight one battle at a time.
A few links:
Strensall parish councillor is ‘sacked’ because he can't use Zoom - ironically, the story is published in an online.
https://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/19242903.strensall-parish-councillor-sacked-cant-use-zoom/
Government Consultation: Local authority remote meetings: call for evidence https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/local-authority-remote-meetings-call-for-evidence/local-authority-remote-meetings-call-for-evidence
National Association of Local Councils response to the ban.
https://www.nalc.gov.uk/coronavirus?mc_cid=5302d16382&mc_eid=b5df9a4189
The Court Judgement confirming the ban
https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2021/1093.html
Press release from the Association of Democratic Service Officers
https://www.adso.co.uk/application-to-the-high-court-in-relation-to-virtual-meeting-provision-outcome/
