Resources

This guide covers the ethical standards expected of councillors, including the Nolan Principles, declaring interests, gifts and hospitality, proper use of council resources, common pitfalls, and where to seek advice when unsure.

Facing a financial emergency, an LGA peer challenge, and five councils' worth of scrutiny culture to merge into one, Somerset streamlined its committees and reframed scrutiny as an enabling partner in good governance.

When Tower Hamlets came to us with a council culture in real trouble, we didn't hand them a policy – we got every political group in a room together and helped them write their own Members' Pledge, signed by every single councillor.

Discover how, one year on, Teignbridge District Council has turned recommendations into lasting improvements in scrutiny, governance and organisational culture.

How do you make scrutiny more than just a process? This case study explores how a council took a fresh look at its governance arrangements, creating the conditions for better conversations, stronger challenge, and more effective decision-making. It offers practical insights into building a culture where scrutiny supports improvement and helps elected members make a real difference.

This briefing paper explores how locally rooted citizens’ assemblies and other deliberative democratic approaches can strengthen neighbourhood governance by involving residents directly in informed, participatory decision-making.

This is a story of how strong, trust-based relationships between members and officers, built through openness, respect and a shared commitment to place, can bring governance and scrutiny to life.

This explainer offers a clear, concise overview of key amendments to the English Devolution Bill, highlighting what they mean for local governance and decision-making. It outlines the practical implications of the changes and why they matter for councils, leaders, and communities across England.

Read what happened at Woking Borough Council from a Scrutiny and Democratic Services officer perspective, as they reflect on tackling financial pressures and improving scrutiny to support better decision-making.

Joint scrutiny is about working together to look at shared issues, especially where services cut across boundaries. It’s essentially about making collaboration practical with clear roles, shared goals, and good relationships. Read more on how scrutiny adds value rather than becoming confused or duplicated.

This guide explains how scrutiny works in councils where no party is in control, focusing on working across political lines to challenge and improve decisions. The core idea is simple: when power is shared, scrutiny matters more and works best when it’s practical, constructive, and not overly political.

This short guide explains how an Executive–Scrutiny Protocol helps decision-makers and those holding them to account work together more effectively, making council processes clearer, fairer, and more transparent.

Rochdale Borough Council’s approach highlights how devolving decision-making can strengthen accountability and empower councillors to respond directly to community needs. This model demonstrates the value of place-based governance in improving engagement and delivering more responsive local services.

Scrutiny of partners and external organisations is about working with other agencies to improve services for local people. It builds strong relationships, gathers evidence, and makes clear recommendations for partners to act on. Working with external organisations brings in wider expertise, strengthens accountability, and helps decisions better reflect community needs.

Halton Borough Council’s approach shows how scrutiny can work best when it builds strong relationships. Read about practical improvements they made and how they used evidence and constructive questioning to help the council get better outcomes for local people.

This guide sets out how call-in should be used as a practical governance tool to improve decision-making, strengthen accountability, and support constructive challenge. Read on for practical advice on when and how call-in should be used as part of informed decision-making.

This guide explains how effective scrutiny of council financial planning should focus on a council's medium term financial planning

The government's amendments to the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill will allow a small number of councils to keep the committee system for a limited time