Wootton (Nr Abingdon) Parish Council Meeting Etiquette

Notes for members of the public attending meetings

References to Standing Orders relate to the WPC’s standing orders that can be downloaded using the this link: Wootton (Nr Abingdon) Parish Council Full Standing orders.

1. Meetings shall be open to the public unless their presence is prejudicial to the public interest by reason of the confidential nature of the business to be transacted or for other special reasons. The public’s exclusion from part or all of a meeting shall be by a resolution which shall give reasons for the public’s exclusion.
2. Members of the public may make representations, answer questions and give evidence at a meeting which they are entitled to attend in respect of the business on the agenda.
3. The period of time designated for public participation at a meeting in accordance with standing order 3(e) shall not exceed 20 minutes unless directed by the chairman of the meeting.
4. Subject to standing order 3(f), a member of the public shall not speak for more than 5 minutes.
5. In accordance with standing order 3(e), a question shall not require a response at the meeting nor start a debate on the question. The chairman of the meeting may direct that a written or oral response be given.
6. A person shall raise his hand when requesting to speak.
7. A person who speaks at a meeting shall direct his comments to the chairman of the meeting.
8. Only one person is permitted to speak at a time. If more than one person wants to speak, the chairman of the meeting shall direct the order of speaking.
9. Subject to standing order 3(m), a person who attends a meeting is permitted to report on the meeting whilst the meeting is open to the public. To “report” means to film, photograph, make an audio recording of meeting proceedings, use any other means for enabling persons not present to see or hear the meeting as it takes place or later or to report or to provide oral or written commentary about the meeting so that the report or commentary is available as the meeting takes place or later to persons not present.

Disorderly conduct at meetings

1. No person shall obstruct the transaction of business at a meeting or behave offensively or improperly. If this standing order is ignored, the chairman of the meeting shall request such person(s) to moderate or improve their conduct.
2. If person(s) disregard the request of the chairman of the meeting to moderate or improve their conduct, any councillor or the chairman of the meeting may move that the person be no longer heard or be excluded from the meeting. The motion, if seconded, shall be put to the vote without discussion.
3. If a resolution made under standing order 2(b) is ignored, the chairman of the meeting may take further reasonable steps to restore order or to progress the meeting. This may include temporarily suspending or closing the meeting.