Chapel St Leonards Parish Council has a maximum of 10 seats that can be filled either by election or co-options of parish councillors. The quorum (minimum number of councillors who must be present) for any meeting of the parish council is a third of the seats so a minum of 4 parish councillors is required to make decisions at any parish council meeting.
The parish council may delegate many activities and decisions to committees who can decide many of the day to day issues. The quorum for any parish council committee will vary depending upon the quorum decided for each committee but will never be less that 3 members of that committee.
Parish councillors meet to make strategic decisions about how the council is run, what services they provide and how much they need to raise from charges, fees and the precept (the amount they need to raise from their share of the council tax payable by those householders living in the parish). Councillors work for the benefit of the community and all local residents. Operationally the management of the parish council is delegated to the Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer who advises the parish council on statutory functions, guidance about how to reach decisions and obtains the information councillors need to make decisions and also line manages other staff working for the parish council. Councillors do not directly manage staff, contractors and operatives working for the council.
The Parish Council is fully accountable and subject to detailed audit to make sure that decisions are lawful and all income and expediture has been properly accounted for, reported and provides the services expected.