The county council comprises 84 councillors who all meet in full council at least six times a year. All meetings are broadcast live on our website as part of our policy of bringing decision-making closer to the public.
The main role of the full council is:
Within the budgetary and policy frameworks set by the Full Council, the Cabinet is responsible for carrying out almost all of the Council’s functions in delivering services to the community; mainly Children and Young People Services, Adult and Community Services, Highways and Transportation, Planning and the Environment, and Public Protection.
The Cabinet meets generally once a month, and can hold such other meetings as the Leader may consider necessary.
All meetings of the Cabinet are broadcast live on our website as part of our policy of bringing decision-making closer to the public.
The Cabinet can establish Committees, Working Groups or Panels.
The following working groups have been established to assist the Cabinet. They cannot take any decisions and access to agenda/minutes may be restricted to members of the working group.
The county council has established a Scrutiny Management Board and four Scrutiny Committees. Scrutiny Committees have no power to make decisions or to make others act on their recommendations. However, the council's Cabinet, relevant partners and NHS bodies must consider and respond to what has been recommended.
The Committees work to deliver local public sector accountability. They are able to require the council's decision-makers, as well as those of its key partners, to account for their decisions and actions. They do not consider individual complaints, which must be made through the council's complaints procedure.
The Committees are also a key mechanism for reviewing Council policies and services, as well as services delivered by other organisations in Lancashire.
Following approval from Full Council on a new approach to Overview and Scrutiny in May 2022, the Scrutiny Management Board is required to produce an annual report. Copies of each annual report starting from 2022/23 will be stored here.
By law, some important Council functions cannot be undertaken by the Cabinet, and some of these functions are exercised by the following Committees:
The county council provides support to the bodies below. They are not formal council Committees:
Joint Working Arrangements:
· Lancashire Local Access Forum
· Lancashire Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE)
· Lancashire Waste Partnership
· Public Rights of Way and Access Forum
· Forest of Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Joint Advisory Committee
The council owns wholly or in part a number of companies that support the delivery of the council's objectives and priorities.