Members' Allowances Scheme 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024

1st April 2023 to 31st March 2024

In accordance with the Local Authorities (Members' Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003 (as amended) ("the Regulations"), the Council's scheme for the payment of allowances, with effect from 1st April 2023 is as follows (please see following pages).

(a) A basic allowance of £9,300 per annum will be paid to each Member of the Council.

(b) Where the term of office of a Member begins or ends otherwise than at the beginning or end of a year, his entitlement shall be to payment of such part of the basic allowance as bears to the whole the same proportion as the number of days during which his term of office as member subsists bears to the number of days in that year;

• (a) The following Special Responsibility Allowances will be paid to the Members of the Council specified:

• (b) Where a Member does not have throughout the whole of a year any such special responsibilities as entitle him to a Special Responsibility Allowance, his entitlement shall be to payment of such part of the special responsibility allowance as bears to the whole the same proportion as the number of days during which he has such special responsibilities bears to the number of days in that year.
• (c) No Member must receive more than one Special Responsibility Allowance from the Council, including Mayoral Allowances, and where a Member occupies two or more positions qualifying for such an Allowance, then only the higher or highest Special Responsibility Allowance will be paid.

The following allowances will be payable:

• Mayor - £15,625
• Deputy Mayor - £4,910 

• (a) A child care and dependent carers' allowance of up to £8.71 per hour (or, in special cases, such larger sum as shall be certified as necessary and reasonable by the Corporate Director of Children, Education and Social Care) (actual expenditure), with a maximum monthly payment to a claimant of £400, will be payable to any Member of the Council who incurs child care and dependent carers' costs, for the duration of an approved duty, plus reasonable travelling time to and from that duty and carers' reasonable travelling expenses at Members' rates.
• (b) An approved duty will consist of any of the following:
  • a meeting of the Cabinet
  • a meeting of the Council
  • a meeting of a committee of the Council
  • a meeting of some other body to which the Council makes appointments or nominations, or
  • a meeting of a committee or sub-committee of a body to which the Council makes appointments or nominations
  • a meeting which has both been authorised by the Council or a committee of the Council or a joint committee of the Council and one or more other authorities, or a subcommittee of a joint committee and to which representatives of more than one political group have been invited
  • a meeting of a local authority association of which the Council is a member
  • duties undertaken on behalf of the Council in pursuance of any standing order requiring a Member or Members to be present while tender documents are opened
  • duties undertaken on behalf of the Council in connection with the discharge of any function of the Council conferred by or under any enactment and empowering or requiring the Council to inspect or authorise the inspection of premises
  • duties undertaken on behalf of the Council in connection with arrangements made by the Council for the attendance of pupils at a school approved for the purposes of section 342 of the Education Act 1996
  • any other duty approved by the Council in connection with discharging the duties of the Council or its committees

• (a) The following allowances will be payable to Co-optees (persons who are not Members of the Council but who are members of a Committee of the Council, with or without voting rights): except for co-optee for diocesan and parent governor representatives.

All co-optees
(One payment only per co-optees)
£650

• b) Where the appointment of a Co-optee begins or ends otherwise than at the beginning or end of a year, his entitlement shall be to payment of such part of the co-optees' allowance as bears to the whole the same proportion as the number of days during which his term of office as member subsists bears to the number of days in that year.

• (a) Mileage Allowances

In addition 3p per mile can be claimed for each passenger carried (up to a maximum of 4) to whom a travelling allowance would otherwise be payable.

• (b) Meal Allowances

• (c) Subsistence Allowance

• d) Travelling and subsistence allowances may be paid for:
   
  • a meeting of the Cabinet
  • a meeting of the Council
  • a meeting of a committee of the Council
  • a meeting of some other body to which the Council makes appointments or nominations, or
  • a meeting of a committee or sub-committee of a body to which the Council makes appointments or nominations.
  • a meeting which has both been authorised by the Council or a committee of the Council
  • or a joint committee of the Council and one or more other authorities, or a subcommittee of a joint committee and to which representatives of more than one political group have been invited
  • a meeting of a local authority association of which the Council is a member
  • duties undertaken on behalf of the Council in pursuance of any standing order requiring a Member or Members to be present while tender documents are opened
  • duties undertaken on behalf of the Council in connection with the discharge of any function of the Council conferred by or under any enactment and empowering or requiring the Council to inspect or authorise the inspection of premises
  • duties undertaken on behalf of the Council in connection with arrangements made by the Council for the attendance of pupils at a school approved for the purposes of section 342 of the Education Act 1996
  • any other duty approved by the Council in connection with discharging the duties of the Council or its committees.
     
• e) Within the context of this section of the Scheme "Member" includes a Co-optee.

• (a) A person may, by notice in writing given to the Proper Officer of the Council, elect to forgo his entitlement or any part of his entitlement to allowances
   
• (b) The time limit from the date on which an entitlement to each of the following allowances arises during which a claim for such allowances must be made by the person to whom they are payable is two months:

(i) dependants' carers allowance

(ii) travelling and subsistence allowance; and

(iii) co-optees' allowance

This will not however prevent the Council from making a payment where the allowance is not claimed within the period specified in the scheme should the circumstances justify doing so.

• (c) Where a Member of the Council is also a member of another authority, that Member may not receive allowances from more than one authority in respect of the same duties
   
• (d) The Basic, Special Responsibility and Co-optees Allowances will be paid on a monthly basis
   
• (e) Where payment of any allowance has already been made in respect of any period during which the Member concerned:

(i) ceases to be a Member of the Council; or

(ii) is in any other way not entitled to receive the allowances in respect of that period, the Council may require that such part of the allowance as relates to any such period be repaid to the Council.