Remote council meetings: Adur and Worthing councils

In response to the COVID-19 emergency Adur and Worthing councils have begun preparing to run council meetings online under new Government regulations to ensure democracy is transparent.

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The solution

The team has selected Zoom as the video conferencing platform because it has a professional level of functionality, familiarity with users, and resilience for a high volume of attendees.

The team commissioned an audit of technical capability of all councillors to establish which devices they had access to, cameras and microphone capability, wi-fi and general connectivity. This allowed the team to formulate a solution that suited a wide range of users.  

The council established a project group with representatives from digital, HR, Legal and Democratic Services. The group is compiling an end to end process document that will cover how to run these meetings from preparation to voting in sessions to public participation. 

Zoom has been selected for the meetings as it provides user-friendly functionality around chairing meetings (in particular the raise hand, background, private message functions) while for the public who do not wish to contribute will be able to watch a YouTube live stream of proceedings. Councillors will vote via a traditional rollcall, having each member in turn cast their vote for, against or abstain. 

In order to prepare councillors, the digital team has run training sessions with 1 to 1 coaching on how to prepare technology for the meetings and ensure they familiar with the roles and processes in Zoom. They have also provided councillors with tips and tricks to ensure they do not encounter connectivity issues.

How is the new approach being sustained?

As of 7 April 2020, the team has hosted a test run with 25 officers and members from various councils assuming different roles in the council meeting proceedings in order to streamline the platform and processes. The team will also be carrying on their training sessions with members and officers to ensure everyone has the skills and knowledge to confidently participate. Pre-registered public question speakers will also have access to coaching on the technology if they would like it to ensure they are able to hold their members and council to account.

Lessons learned

  • It is important to survey and audit with officers and members in order to fully understand your technical capability.
  • Using the latest collaboration software and audio-visual equipment that suits your context is extremely beneficial.
  • Running personal 1 to 1 training sessions for councillors and officers ensures longevity and acceptance for this new form of technology.

Contact

Paul Brewer Director for Digital & Resources

[email protected]