Board information page
Welcome to the SALC Board and thank you for stepping up as a representative in your area of Suffolk. This induction page is designed to give you a broad overview of how things work to enable you to contribute. Hopefully you already know a little bit about SALC, our service offer and forums. If not - take a look using the links above.
SALC objectives:
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assist members in the performance of their duties
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protect and promote the interests, rights, functions and privileges of members
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promote good local government, including through advice and training
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promote and develop the quality of life of towns and villages
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promote a widespread and well-informed interest in local government
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represent and promote the value and views of members at local, regional and national level.
The SALC Board is made up of a total of 16 members representing the following areas of Suffolk (number for each area):
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Babergh (2)
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East Suffolk (4)
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Mid Suffolk (4)
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West Suffolk (4)
The additional two places are optional through a nomination process at the AGM. The Board meets four times a year which includes an awayday at the start of the calendar year to review the strategic direction and update the business plan.
There is a small team of six employed by SALC whose support member councils on a daily basis.
Your role at area forums - Chair plus up three Vice chairs
Area forums are currently an important part of SALC governance, it is the way we get members onto the Board that represent the district. Your role is to chair/encourage attendees to share and exchange information to ensure these events are valuable and informative. They are one of the only ways councillors can network and hear from the experiences of others.
Term of office - no more than four consecutive years (although you can re-stand for election after a break of one year).
Practicalities
Dates for diary
We will liaise with you over dates for the year - forums and Board (if applicable).
Documents
We will register you for area forums and you will receive Zoom room links and documents. Papers for SALC meetings will be sent by email.
Meetings
Currently the majority of our meetings are online but may offer hybrid in the future. The annual strategic meeting is face to face.
Expenses
SALC will pay the reasonable expenses in relation to its business including mileage. Use this link to access our online claim form.
The annual strategic review meeting
One of the most important sessions we have with representatives - where the Board and the team spend the day looking at what has been done, what has worked well and what has not and what our members have told us about the challenges ahead. Working together we will consider if the current priorities are adequate. We also take a steer from national projects and NALC's direction of travel and priorities alongside those for the county of Suffolk. It does take some preparation - and Board members will be provided with data and information in advance to help bring thoughts and ideas to the session. The day will consist of a normal Board meeting followed by the review and take place at a central location - like Stowmarket.
National Association of Local Councils
SALC is part of a network of 43 county associations across the UK. Whilst not officially affiliated to NALC, the National Association of Local Councils, we work closely with them. This includes:
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collecting their subscriptions alongside our own, because local councils have to be a member of a county association to be a member of NALC.
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Have a representative on their National Assembly which oversees the delivery of NALC's objectives.
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Meeting fortnightly with NALC and other county officers to discuss hot topics, receive updates and information.
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Opt-in membership of the Improvement and Development Board that oversees improvement and development initiatives in the local council sector including the Local Council Award Scheme and the Certificate in Local Council Administration
Society of Local Council Clerks
The SLCC are a membership body and seen as the professional body for clerks, officers and senior council employees. They ensure that members are equipped with the necessary knowledge, training and skills to enable them to thrive in their role and best support their council and their community.
SLCC has a local branch in Suffolk and SALC are looking at ways to work more closely with them and benefit from collaborative initiatives for local councils.
Our partners
Who else do we work with and why?
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Suffolk County Council provide us with approximately £42k worth of grant funding annually. The deliverables from this are embedded in our business plan and we provide the contract manager with a copy of our quarterly reports so they are aware of our activities. We meet regularly with the CEO to highlight hot topics from grass roots and changes happening across the county impacting parishes.
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East Suffolk Council provide us with £5k so that we can employ a business support officer to help support their Community Partnership Boards.
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West Suffolk Council work with us to run joint parish liaison meetings in the district.
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Babergh/Mid Suffolk have started to explore ways to work with us, having attended our area forums.
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Our Vice Presidents - local MPs we endeavour to meet them regularly (every 6 months) to compare issues from parishes against what comes in their mailbox and to update on our work and nationally (NALC lobbying etc.)
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We meet quarterly with Suffolk Growth - who work with a range of stakeholders to align and promote countywide economic growth.
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Community Action Suffolk and Most Active County - offer of the Suffolk Community Awards
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SALC ARE ALSO MEMBERS OF:
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Collaborative Communities Board - and sub-groups, attending meetings when we can.
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Greenest County - through the Suffolk Climate Change Partnership (the communities workstream)
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We have a member of our Board on the National Assembly at NALC and our CEO is on the Improvement and Development Board
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VCSE Leaders Group