Scrutiny

Scrutiny at Southend

Southend on Sea City Council has four multi-party Overview & Scrutiny Committees which support the work of the Executive (Cabinet) and the Council as a whole:

There are 9 elected Members appointed to each Overview & Scrutiny Committee, reflecting the political balance of the full Council. Cabinet Members are not allowed to be a member of an Overview & Scrutiny Committee. The Health and People Overview & Scrutiny Committees include in their memberships some co-opted members as required by law.

The Committees meet on average six times a year, the meetings are held in public and generally take place at the Civic Centre, Southend-on-Sea. For further information about the meetings of Overview & Scrutiny Committees, please visit the "Meetings" page.

The Terms of Reference of each Overview and Scrutiny Committee can be found here.

The Role of Overview & Scrutiny Committees

The key responsibilities of the Council’s Overview and Scrutiny committees are:

To hold the Executive to account for their decisions, through constructive “critical friend” challenge;
To contribute to the development of policy by investigating issues of local concern and reflect the voice and concerns of the public and its communities;
To review Council policy, the way policies are implemented and their impact on local people; and
To scrutinise decisions before they are made and implemented or to scrutinise the implementation of decisions.

Members of Overview and Scrutiny Committees can also form smaller ‘task and finish’ groups to look closely at particular issues, reporting back to the relevant committee or committees.