Barrow Council Information
The Role and Structure of Barrow Borough Council
The Council is composed of 36 Councillors (called 'Members') with all-out Elections held every four years.
All Councillors meet together as the Council. Meetings of the Council are normally open to the public. Here Councillors decide the Council's overall policies and set the budget each year.
Most day-to-day decisions are made by Committees. Committees also carry out a number of regulatory functions, including dealing with planning applications, licensing and most other regulatory business.
Meetings of the Council's Committees are open to the public except where personal or confidential matters are being discussed.
The Council's Staff
The Council has people working for it (called 'Officers') to give advice, implement decisions and manage the day-to-day delivery of its services. Some Officers have a specific duty to ensure that the Council acts within the law and uses its resources wisely. A code of practice governs the relationship between Officers and Members of the Council.
Main Location of Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council - ( See this location on Google Maps )
Town Hall,
Duke Street,
Barrow-in-Furness,
Cumbria,
LA14 2LD.
Tel:- 01229 876543
Email:- customerservices@barrowbc.gov.uk
Opening Hours for Central Reception are Monday to Friday, 9:00am - 4:00pm.
Services and Contacts
Consultation & Policy
Citizens' Rights
Citizens have a number of rights in their dealings with the Council. Some of these are legal rights, whilst others depend on the Council's own processes. The local can advise on individuals' legal rights.
Citizens have the right to:-
- Vote at local Elections if they are registered;
- Contact their local Councillor about any matters of concern to them;
- Obtain a copy of the Constitution;
- Attend meetings of the Council and its Committees except where, for example, personal or confidential matters are being discussed;
- Petition to request a Referendum on a Mayoral form of Executive;
- Participate in the Council's question time and contribute to investigations by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee;
- Use the Council's formal complaints procedure to complain to the Council when dissatisfied with the action or lack of action taken by the Council on a matter which is the responsibility of the Council and which has been previously raised by them and where they remain dissatisfied with the Council's response;
- Complain to the Ombudsman if they think the Council has not followed its procedures properly. However, they should only do this after using the Council's own complaints procedure; and
- Inspect the Council's accounts and make their views known to the External Auditor.
The Council welcomes participation by its citizens in its work. Further information on your rights as a citizen can be obtained from the Council's offices (Tel: 01229 876543) or by calling at Central Reception at Barrow Town Hall.
- Details of the dates and times of meetings are published at Barrow Town Hall an on this website.
- Copies of Agendas and Reports (except Reports which are likely to be considered when the public are excluded from meetings) are available for inspection five clear days before the date of the meeting unless:
(a) The meeting is convened at shorter notice, in which case the documents will be available from the time the meeting is convened.
(b) An item is included afterwards, in which case it will be available from the time it is added to the Agenda.
The documents referred to above, together with the Minutes, or a copy of the Minutes of meetings will be open for public inspection at the offices of the Council until the expiration of a period of six years beginning with the date of the meeting.
Background papers, that is documents which disclose material on which a report or an important part of it has been based and which has been relied upon to a material extent in preparing the report, are listed by including details at the end of each such report. Background papers are open to inspection for up to four years beginning with the date of the meeting.
Gov.uk Website
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