COOKHAM PARISH COUNCIL

CLERK’S JOB DESCRIPTION

The Clerk to the Council is the Proper Officer of the Council and as such is under a statutory duty to carry out all the functions, and in particular to serve or issue all the notifications required by law of a local authority’s Proper Officer. The Clerk will be totally responsible for ensuring that the business of the Council is carried out in connection with its function as a Local Authority. The Clerk implements all decisions taken by the Council and provides all relevant background information to enable the Council to reach firm policy decisions. The Clerk may also be responsible for all financial transactions carried out by the Council as the Responsible Financial Officer.

Specific areas of responsibilities are listed below:

1.            COUNCIL MEETINGS:

The Clerk is responsible for the preparation and circulation of all agendas relating to the meetings of the Full Council and its various Committees, together with the provision of any necessary background information to permit clear decisions to be taken. The Clerk is responsible for taking clear and precise minutes of all meetings and disseminating these to all members of the Council. After the meeting, the Clerk will dispatch all actions decided and voted for by the Council.

2.            PLANNING:

The Clerk receives and records copies of all Planning Applications in the Parish and is responsible for including these on the next Planning Agenda. The Clerk must show these plans to any interested members of the public but must present the plans in a factual manner without passing any personal comment. After the Planning Committee have discussed each plan, the Clerk is responsible for advising the Borough’s Planning Office of the Council’s comments.

3.             ADOPTIVE ACTS:

The Clerk is responsible for the administration of the following items under this Committee: Burials, Allotments, Street Lighting and War Memorials.

(i)            Burials: The Clerk is responsible for the maintenance of correct and accurate records of all burials and cremations taking place in the Council’s Cemetery in Long Lane, Cookham. This includes recording the burial details in the Burial Register and Cemetery map and filing the relevant forms in the Council’s records. The Clerk is also responsible for ensuring that the Cemetery and Cemetery Chapel are maintained at all times and any necessary repairs undertaken.

(ii)            Allotments: The Clerk is responsible for maintained computerised records of rented plots on the three allotments administered by the Council, namely Sutton Road, Alleyns Lane (Cookham Dean) and the Alfred Major Ground (Cookham Rise).

(iii)       Street Lighting: The Clerk must maintain a record of all street lights owned by the Council and action all decisions with regard to new street lighting, repairs and maintenance as requested by the Adoptive Acts Committee.

(iv)       War Memorials: The Clerk is responsible for ensuring that the two War Memorials owned by the Council (in Cookham Village and in Cookham Dean) are maintained in good condition and reporting to the Adoptive Acts Committee any matter relating to their upkeep.

4.            FOOTPATHS & OPEN SPACES:

The Clerk is responsible for the administration of the following items under the control of this Committee: the Alfred Major Ground, Odney & Stonehouse Lane Commons, all Footpaths within the Cookham boundaries and the annual “Britain in Bloom” Competition.

(i)         Alfred Major Ground: The Clerk is responsible for ensuring that the Alfred Major Ground is maintained and kept free of rubbish at all times. The Clerk will report to the Police and Council Insurers any items damaged by vandals. The Clerk is also responsible for ensuring the upkeep, inspection and repair of the children’s play area on the Alfred Major Ground and liaising with the Contractors for the repair and replacement of any new items of equipment.

(ii)        Odney Common and Stonehouse Lane: The Clerk is responsible for ensuring that the Open Spaces known as Odney Common and Stonehouse Lane are maintained and kept free of rubbish at all times.

(iii)            Footpaths: The Clerk is responsible for ensuring the regular upkeep, maintenance and repair of all public footpaths within the Cookham Boundaries and reclaiming from the Borough Council the costs involved in carrying out this work.

(iv)            “Britain in Bloom” Competition: The Clerk is responsible for arranging the hiring of the hanging baskets, the tidying of the village prior to the day the judging takes place, forwarding a route for the judges to inspect for Cookham Village, Cookham Rise and Cookham Dean. The Clerk also arranges the judging of the individual front gardens under the Council’s “Gardens in Bloom” Competition and the printing and issuing of awards to the winners, runners-up, highly commended and commended gardens as chosen by the judges.

5.             FINANCE:

The Clerk is also the Responsible Financial Officer for the Council and as such is responsible for the control of all the finances of the Council. This entails:

(i)            Recording every receipt and payment on computer and reconciling these each month with the Bank Statements.

(ii)            Preparing Financial Summaries of all receipts and payments for each month for presentation to each monthly Council Meeting.

(iii)            Preparing the Annual Budget Plan after consultation with the Chairmen of the three Committees to be used in determining the annual precept request in January of each year.

(iv)            Preparing ongoing Financial Summaries of the current year to date for comparison with the Budget Plan for consideration by the Finance and General Purposes Committee.

(v)            Preparing the end of year Audit of Accounts for presentation to the Auditors.

6.            OTHER DUTIES:

The Clerk will be responsible for keeping secure but accessible custody of all deeds, plans, records, letters, writings and other documents or of concerning the Council or its staff.

The Clerk will supervise other members of staff and keep them up-to-date with the policies of the Council. The Clerk also undertakes all necessary activities including the management of salaries; conditions of employment; and work of other staff.

The Clerk must also be prepared to represent the Council on occasions and assist with the preparation of press releases about the activities and/or decisions of the Council.

The Clerk should be prepared to attend training courses on the work and role of the Clerk.