association of electoral administrators north east ... · john stuart middlesbrough david thomson...

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ASSOCIATION OF ELECTORAL ADMINISTRATORS NORTH EAST & YORKSHIRE BRANCH

BRANCH MEETING TUESDAY 2 SEPTEMBER 2014

10:30am (tea/coffee from 10:00am) The Hudson Board Room, York City Council, West Offices, Station Rise,

York YO1 9GA Item Description Papers

Attached Y/N

1 Apologies for absence

N

2 New members

N

3 Minutes of the Meeting held in York on 3 June 2014

Y

4 Matters arising

N

5 Notice of Matters not on the Agenda to be raised as Other Business

N

6 Correspondence

N

7 Education and Training

N

8 Financial Statement of the Branch

N

9 AEA Board and Management Team Minutes: (a) AEA Management Team - 4 Jun 2014

(b) AEA Board - 9 Jul 2014 (c) AEA Management Team – 5 Aug 2014

Y

10 AEA Annual Award Scheme and AEA National Bursary Scheme

Y

11 Feedback and discussion on electoral events and current issues - Maximising Registration Funding (Linda Lawty) - Elections 2015 – Count timings and any other issues of concern

N

12 The Roles and Responsibilities of AEA Branch Officers - Kath Richards AEA Development and Marketing Manager

N

13 Individual Electoral Registration - Update and Q&A Session - Colin Dingwall - Programme Director, Electoral Registration

Transformation Programme

N

14 Any Other Business

N

15 Confirmation of next meeting/AGM - York, Monday 1 December

N

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Lunch

(Please note: you may need to bring a packed lunch if you are attending the workshop

in the afternoon as there is likely to be only a short break between the close of the meeting and the start of the workshop)

WORKSHOP

Practical Election Count Methods. What’s the best way to count and can you improve your procedures? Find out in this hands-on workshop.

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ASSOCIATION OF ELECTORAL ADMINISTRATORS NORTH EAST & YORKSHIRE BRANCH

MINUTES OF THE BRANCH MEETING

HELD ON TUESDAY 3 JUNE 2014

AT THE WEST OFFICES, YORK CITY COUNCIL

Present: Susan Hutson Chair (Kirklees) Mags Evers Secretary (Rotherham) Carlo Bannerman Adare Debby Frost AEA James Stevens AEA Kate Crawford AEA Deputy Chair Debra Buckingham Barnsley Liz Holroyd Barnsley Susan Saunders Bradford Bill Gillatt Cabinet Office Mark Hughes Cabinet Office Steven Taylor Cabinet Office Michelle Brown Calderdale Linda Clarkson Calderdale Paul Dalton Darlington Lynne Wood Darlington

Joanne Cawthorne Doncaster Linda Lawty Doncaster David Collingwood Durham Martine Fell Durham Steven Templeton Durham Michael Witton Durham Deborah Sedman East Riding Kathryn Dunn Electoral Commission Paul McGary Electoral Commission Karen Birdsall Harrogate Bev Wigby Harrogate Debra Marshall Hull Sharon Salvanos Kirklees Susie Benton Leeds Sue Wolfe Leeds Bruce Holloway Middlesbrough John Stuart Middlesbrough David Thomson North Tyneside

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Jackie Brodie Northumberland Annie Howliston Northumberland Sue Bridges Redcar & Cleveland John Walker Retired Michelle Mellor Rotherham Bryan Jack Royal Mail Lynne Bayes Ryedale Simon Copley Ryedale Christine Armitage Scarborough Kerry Russett Scarborough Anna Wood Scarborough John Tomlinson Sheffield Melanie Cain South Tyneside Joanne Gelson South Tyneside Judy Trainer Stockton Mags Waggott Stockton Siobhan Atkinson Wakefield Sandra Hardy Wakefield Jacqui Milnes Wakefield Andrew Flecknor York Joanne Lowe York

1. Apologies for absence Apologies were received from Sue Bedford, Lorraine Bennison, William Booth, Martin Haigh, Diane Henry, Julie Holmes, Sandra Hullah, Joanne Macgregor and Linda Todd.

2. New Members Five new members have joined since the last branch meeting. Bruce Holloway and Kerry Russett were welcomed to their first meeting.

3. Minutes of the Branch Meeting held in York on 24 March 2014 The minutes of the AGM and minutes of the Branch were agreed as a true record.

4. Matters arising There were no matters arising.

5. Royal Mail – Election Review and Information on Services Brian Jack, Royal Mail Field Service Manager gave a presentation of how Royal Mail structure, organisation and the latest products would support the election process. He

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reminded members that new barcodes would be mandatory from November 2014 and that members should speak with their Field Manager regarding old licences that would have to be changed. The Chair thanked Brian Jack for his presentation.

6. Correspondence

The Secretary reported that no recent communications had been received.

7. Education and Training The Education and Training Officer reported: a) That 15 people had registered for the European Election Accounts course to be held in York on 20 June. b) Diploma Style Courses would be held in Camden in July and August the course subjects being Electoral Arrangements, Management and Finance and Electoral Law. c) A course on How to Organise a Neighbourhood Planning Referendum or Council Tax Referendum would be held in Coventry on 24 June and in Camden on 11 September. Members confirmed that they would welcome a workshop on election counting methods – especially in view of the various combinations possible in 2015, which may include multi-seat vacancies. It was agreed that the September 2014 meeting is likely to be the most appropriate for this.

8. Financial Statement of the Branch

The Treasurer submitted the latest Financial Statement that showed the Branch accounts were healthy. Agreed that the reported be accepted.

9. Minutes of the AEA Board and Management Team.

a) AEA Management Team Minutes of 2 March 2014

The minutes were received and accepted.

b) AEA Board Minutes of 2 March 2014.

The minutes were received and accepted.

10. AEA Policy Update for Branches No. 1 for the Period December 2013 to May 2014.

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Members considered the AEA Policy Update for Branches The report was noted. 11. AEA National Officer Report – Kate Crawford Deputy Chairman. Kate Crawford, who had joined the AEA Management Team in March 2014, attended the Branch meeting and informed members of the current activities of the Association. She was particularly pleased with the take up and quality of training courses and the numbers signing up for Certificate and Diploma courses. She reminded members that the AEA regularly met with the Cabinet Office, Electoral Commission and others and that she would welcome views of members on how they saw the AEA’s relationship with those bodies. The Chair thanked Kate for her report and attendance.

12. Cabinet Office general update and briefing note for the AEA Regional Branch Meetings in June 2014.

Members considered the Cabinet Office general update and briefing note. The update covered legislation, elections funding, the IER Support Centre, voter engagement and registration, neighbourhood planning referendums and Council Tax referendums.

13. Feedback and discussion on electoral events and current issues

- European/LG Elections 2014

Members felt that the number of changes introduced for this election and the delayed annual canvass had made the elections even more difficult to deliver. There seemed little justification for the requirement for the interim notices of alteration (particularly the second one). It was felt that postal vote changes had made it difficult to get postal votes printed on time and the consequential earlier return of postal votes meant that more staff were required earlier in the process. Members considered that an earlier dispatch of postal votes is only really necessary overseas voters and any voters whose circumstances (eg holiday dates) required an earlier dispatch. It was also felt that the earlier dispatch of postal votes provided a greater opportunity for fraudulent voting. Despite the earlier dispatch of postal votes members did not find any increase in returns.

Given the many difficulties faced at these elections, members expressed concern that in 2015 many would face, the General Election combined with district council and parish council elections. Parish elections significantly increase the number of candidates and numbers of ballot papers to be proofed and printed and members felt this would cause further difficulties in getting postal ballots out early.

- Election Staff Payments under HMRC Real Time Information �Rules

Members discussed the working of payroll payments and income tax issues.

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14. ER - Cabinet Office Report and Q&A

Mark Hughes from the Cabinet Office opened his report by apologising for instances when members had been contacted about IER during the very busy election period. Mark reported that there would be no immediate publicity to coincide with the introduction of IER on10 June. Publicity would follow in July thereby giving the opportunity to see how well it all works. The Service Centre was now in place and was there to give members help. He went on to inform members that the Cabinet Office would be meeting with some chief executives on a number of issues and particularly maximising registration. He reminded members that there were still monies available for this. The Minister had been in touch with chancellors of a number of universities regarding the release of data to registration officers. The Chair thanked Mark for his presentation.

15. Any Other Business. The Secretary reported that the British Council had made available online a number of short films including one about the General Election of 1945 and that she would email members with the web link.

16. Confirmation of next meeting - York The next meeting was confirmed as Tuesday 2 September 2014 in York. LUNCH WAS FOLLOWED BY AN AFTERNOON SESSION ON ROLLING REGISTRATION UNDER IER.

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A project plan for delivering the workshop was appended to the report.

RESOLVED To agree;

1. To a training needs analysis being carried out amongst branches, based on the details of the project plan, but also asking branches if they required any other training on matters not referred to.

2. To approve the project plan for delivery of branch officer training to each branch.

3. To agree that the aim be to commence the workshops from September 2014.

4. To seek the involvement of existing Branch Secretaries in the workshops and also to ascertain whether any existing branch officers would be willing to be involved in a mentoring capacity if required.

14/032 Formation of a Training Steering Group

The Executive Director (Resources) and the Development and Marketing Manager submitted a joint report on a suggestion to form a permanent working party to develop future training programmes and as a process for determining and planning training provision.

RESOLVED To agree;

1. That this matter be reconsidered and reported back to the next meeting, taking on board the view that a group be set up, to be referred to as a Training Steering Group, to consist of two Board members and the full Management Team, the purpose of that group being to determine the policies and strategies for training, aimed at identifying the main tasks for up to two years ahead, based on an updated roadmap.

2. That provisional arrangements be made for a meeting of the Steering Group to be held on 24 September 2014 at Camden Town Hall, prior to the meeting of the AEA Board on that day, and if necessary, continuing after the AEA Board meeting, to discuss this matter.

14/033

Training Progress Report – New Style Summary Sheet

The Development and Marketing Manager presented a new style summary sheet on which she set out the present financial position on training.

RESOLVED To note the report.

14/034

Draft Annual Budget 2014/15

The Executive Director (Resources) submitted the draft budget 2014/15 for consideration and recommendation to AEA Board.

Management Team considered the question of increases to advertising, exhibition, training and consultancy fees and agreed to apply an increase of 2.8% to those areas. It was also agreed that an increase of 10% be applied to elected officers’ expenses and a 2.5% increase in membership fees.

She also referred to a recent meeting of the Conference Working Party (CWP) and confirmed that she would adjust the draft budget to incorporate budget decisions made at that meeting.

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RESOLVED To recommend the draft Annual Budget 2014/15 to AEA Board as set out in the report and including the increases referred to in this Minute.

14/035 Branch Meetings 2014 – Officers’ Presentation

The Chief Executive submitted the current document relating to officers’ presentations at Branch meetings and sought views on the details set out in the document.

RESOLVED To note and approve the officers’ presentation document for Branch meetings.

14/036 Risk Management Assessment

The Chief Executive submitted the annual risk assessment report for consideration by the Management Team.

RESOLVED To agree;

1. To note the annual risk assessment report and to recommend AEA Board to approve the revised assessment.

2. To revisit the AEA’s Media Strategy at the next meeting.

14/037 Current Issues

The Chief Executive reported on the following current issues;

(a) IER

He reported on the current position on IER.

(b) Recall of MPs

This issue was back on the Coalition Government’s agenda and was referred to in the Queen’s Speech.

(c) Law Commission

He reported that the Law Commission was nearing the end of the period in deciding what was going to be in the consultation paper. He referred to a recent meeting with the Commission, one of a series of monthly meetings, and mentioned issues discussed, in particular the difficulty in defining “residence”. The Law Commission was on track to issue the consultation paper, but the proposed date of issue could be changed slightly by the Scottish Referendum result.

(d) General Election 2015

He advised that the AEA would need to be alert to matters arising from next year’s General Election result, as some matters would be likely to have cost implications affecting electoral services.

(e) Parish Polls

He mentioned a new Act, which included a power for the Secretary of State to amend rules for Parish polls. He reported that he would be attending a meeting next week at which this would be discussed.

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(f) Delivery of Nomination Papers

He reported that there had been no movement from the Cabinet Office on this matter. He stressed the importance of the position being changed in time for next year’s Parish Council Elections.

(g) PCC By-Elections

He mentioned that there were presently no rules in existence to deal with a PCC by-Election if one was to be required.

RESOLVED To note the Chief Executive’s reports on the above matters.

14/038

Website Development Update

The Executive Director (Resources) reported on the present position on the steps to develop the AEA Website.

The next stage would take place on 24 June and would involve the Executive Group, the Support Services Officer (Policy) with one other member to be invited. It was suggested that a member from the North West branch be invited to take part as the meeting was being held in Liverpool with a member from Liverpool City Council being approached in the first instance.


14/039 Pensions Update

The Executive Director (Resources) advised the meeting of the current position with regard to the introduction of an auto-enrolment pension scheme for AEA employees.

She reported that all stages for registration of the NEST scheme had been completed and that a three month waiting period will be applied.


14/040 Current Budget Report The latest budget report was presented for information.


14/041 Membership Report

The Executive Director (Resources) informed the meeting that membership currently stood at 1,782 members compared to 1,753 at this time last year.


14/042 Ballot Services Progress Report

A progress report regarding ballot services was submitted for information.

RESOLVED To note the report and review the position on ballots at the beginning of 2015.

14/043 Consultancy Progress Report

A progress report regarding current consultancy contracts was submitted for information.

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RESOLVED To revise the report, taking on board questions, corrections and comments raised at this meeting, and to circulate the revised report to Management Team members.

14/044 Conference Working Party

The Chief Executive referred to a meeting of the CWP held at Brighton on 1 and 2 June 2014 and reported on the decisions made at that meeting. He mentioned in particular the following:

1. A recommendation that a Seminar be held in July 2015.

2. A recommendation that Conference Delegate Fees be increased by 2.8% and be held at that level for two years.

3. The Development and Marketing Manager had prepared and presented to CWP a draft flyer with a provisional programme for next year’s Conference.

4. The Terms of Reference of the CWP had been updated.

He mentioned that he had requested documents relating to the above items to be updated and circulated electronically to all Management Team members, to enable them to consider the details in the last two weeks of June 2014, in time for the AEA Board meeting on 9 July 2014.


14/045 GLA – Elections Advisors 2016

The Chief Executive referred to a recent job advertisement for election advisors to support the delivery of the Mayoral elections in 2016, the payment for the job to be £250 per day worked. He mentioned that the London Branch would be considering this matter at their Branch meeting on 13 June 2014.

He suggested that the Branch’s views on the matter be supported in terms of any representations to the GLA, if it was considered necessary.


14/046 Radical Joint Working Plan

The Chief Executive referred to a press article regarding the publication by the Leaders of four councils of a radical proposal for a jointly-owned local authority company providing services and acting as a single employment vehicle, a move that would mean that the authorities do not directly employ any of their own staff.

In light of this article, he suggested that Management Team revisit their discussions on the matter of joint working.

RESOLVED To note the report and to revisit the previous consideration on the matter of joint working at the next meeting.

14/047 Staffing Structure – Discussion

The Chief Executive presented draft proposal for a review of the staff structure of the Association. The papers were discussed and it was decided that this matter would be fully considered by the Annual Review Panel at it's

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next meeting.

The Chief Executive confirmed that he would contact all members of ARP to determine a suitable date for them to meet and that a full report and recommendations based on the outcome of discussions at that meeting would be presented to the Board at it's meeting in September.

RESOLVED That this matter be considerd fully by the Annual Review Meeting at it's next meeting.

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MINUTES OF THE AEA BOARD MEETING HELD AT CAMDEN TOWN

HALL, LONDON ON WEDNESDAY 9 JULY 2014

Minute No Matter and Resolution

14/013

Present Laura Lock (Chairman), Kate Crawford (Deputy Chairman), George Cooper (Immediate Past Chairman), John Turner (Chief Executive), Gina Armstrong, Diana Bowden, Matthew Box, Vicky Breading, Bill Crawford, David Cunningham, Rhys George, Andy Hunter, Susan Hutson, Neil Middlehurst, Lynda Murlewski, Chris Solich, Peter Stanyon and Andy Tiffin.

14/014

Apologies

Apologies for absence were received from Sarah Cheek, Susan Findlay and Martha Matheou.

14/015 Minutes of the Previous Meeting and of the Decision of the AEA Board – Report Considered by Email

The Minutes of the meeting of the AEA Board held on 2 March 2014 and also the decision of the Board – Report considered by email on 2 May 2014, were received, taken as read and approved as a correct record of the meeting/email decision.

14/016 Minutes of the Meeting of the Management Team held on 4 June 2014

RESOLVED To receive the Minutes of the meeting of the Management Team held on 4 June 2014.

Minute 14/032 – Formation of a Training Steering Group

The Executive Director (Resources) referred to the decision by Management Team to set up a Training Steering Group and that this Group should include two Board members.

RESOLVED To agree that David Cunningham and Peter Stanyon be appointed as the two Board members to be added to this Group.

14/017 Declarations of Interest

There were no declarations of interest noted.

14/018 Report of Branch AEA Board Representatives

No items were received.

14/019 Report of the Executive Director (Resources)

Branch Business

The Executive Director (Resources) submitted a report detailing the minutes of Branch meetings that she had received since the AEA Board meeting on 2

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March 2014. She added that subsequent to the preparation of her report, she had also received a copy of the minutes of the meeting of the North East and Yorkshire Branch held on 3 June 2014. No items needed to be drawn to the attention of the Board.


Register of Contracts and Register of Gifts and Hospitality

The Executive Director (Resources) submitted a list of contracts that had been included in the Register of Contracts since the last meeting and reported that no items had been included in the Register of Gifts and Hospitality since that meeting.


Current Budget Report and Quarterly Profile

The Executive Director (Resources) presented the current budget report and quarterly profile. RESOLVED To note the report.

Membership Report

The Executive Director (Resources) informed the meeting that membership now stood at a record level of 1,798 members.


Company and Financial Returns

The Executive Director (Resources) submitted a report on the company and financial returns made since the last meeting.


Draft Annual Budget 2014/15

The Executive Director (Resources) presented the draft budget for 2014/15.

RESOLVED To approve the draft budget for 2014/15.

Development of AEA Website – Update

The Executive Director (Resources) reminded members that Connect Internet Solutions had been appointed to redevelop the Association’s website and she referred to a meeting held with that company to agree a detailed timeline for this project. She reported that there had been some slippage in the agreed timetable, as a further meeting was required to clarify technical details in the functional specification provided by Connect.

Branches had been invited to provide volunteers to assist at the latter end of September in the testing of the new website. She also said that members of the Board would be invited to take part in the User Acceptance Testing and would

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be notified of actual dates in due course.


14/020 Report of the Chief Executive

Business Plan/Target Plan 2013-2014

The Chief Executive presented the Target Plan for 2013/14.

RESOLVED To note the current position in terms of the Target Plan for the current year.

Risk Management Strategy – Annual Review

The Chief Executive presented the updated Risk Management Strategy.

RESOLVED To note the risk assessment paper and that the annual review has been carried out.

Current Issues

The Chief Executive advised the Board of the current situation on a number of matters: IER, Issues arising from the May 2014 elections, Recall of MPs, Law Commission – review of electoral law, Post General Election agenda, Canvass – house to house enquiries, Parish Polls, Delivery of nomination papers, PCC by-elections, Access to registers by registered third parties, and Voter Engagement.


14/021 Report of the Executive Director (Commercial)

The Executive Director (Commercial) reported on a recent meeting of the Conference Working Party, at which the Conference held at Blackpool in March 2014 was reviewed and planning continued for the Conference in Brighton to be held between 1 and 4 February 2015.

He mentioned that as there would be no National Seminar in 2014, brochures for next year’s Annual Conference could be made available to members this September. He also mentioned that the number of hotel rooms booked for next year’s event had been increased to 300.


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MINUTES OF THE MANAGEMENT TEAM MEETING HELD AT CAMDEN TOWN HALL, LONDON ON TUESDAY 5 AUGUST 2014.

Minute No Matter and Resolution

14/048

Present

John Turner, Bill Crawford, Gina Armstrong, Laura Lock, Kate Crawford, George Cooper and Chris Solich.

Notice of a matter not on the Agenda to be raised as other business

Government Knowledge Conference – Invitation to Speak

14/049 Declarations of Interest

There were no declarations of interest.

14/050 Minutes of the Meeting of the Management Team held on 4 June 2014

The Minutes of the meeting of the Management Team held on 4 June 2014 were received, taken as read and approved as a correct record of the meeting.

14/051 Action Points From the Meeting of the Management Team held on 4 June 2014

The action points from the meeting of the Management Team held on 4 June 2014 were reviewed and updated.

14/052 Formation of a Training Steering Group

Further to Minute 14/032 of the last meeting, the Executive Director (Resources) reported on the arrangements for setting up the Training Steering Group. It was noted that, should the formation of the Steering Group be agreed, the inaugural meeting would be held on 24 September 2014 and it was suggested that future meetings of this Group be held annually around budget setting time.

The proposed Terms of Reference for the Steering Group were appended to the report.

RESOLVED To agree;

1. The setting up of the Training Steering Group, with the Terms of Reference of that Group as set out in the appendix to the report, and

2. That the inaugural meeting of the group be held on 24 September 2014 with future meetings of the Group taking place at the time draft annual budgets are being prepared in each year.

14/053 Business Plan / Target Plan

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Management Team considered the Business Plan for 2014 to 2018, reviewed the Target Plan for 2013/14 and received the Target Plan for 2014/15.

RESOLVED To recommend the Business Plan 2014 to 2018, as amended by Management Team, to the next meeting of AEA Board for approval.

14/054 IER Update

The Chief Executive submitted provisional details received relating to the IER Confirmation Live Run.

RESOLVED To note the details.

14/055 Provision of Electoral Services

The Chief Executive drew attention to the question of shared electoral services and reminded Management Team that, when this issue was last considered in early 2013, it was agreed that the AEA should not be involved in this matter. He mentioned, however, that, since that time, the number of local authorities considering the question of how to provide electoral services had increased. He suggested that the matter be therefore re-considered and an appropriate recommendation be made to AEA Board.

RESOLVED To recommend the AEA Board that the previous decision not to consider the provision of electoral services be reversed and, if Board agree, the matter be re-examined by Management Team with a view to a suitable recommendation being made to the AEA Board meeting in December 2014.

14/056 Conference Working Party

The Chief Executive reported on the provisional Conference programme 2015 and details of the final actuals for Conference 2014 were received.

RESOLVED To agree;

1. That the provisional programme be agreed, subject to the title of the first plenary session on Tuesday morning being changed to “Is This the Model for the Future?”

2. That the budget statement for the 2014 Conference be received. 3. That the CWP be requested to consider whether, in future, it is necessary

to invite the Mayor to attend the Conference Annual Dinner, and 4. That the date of future CWP meetings at which the budget is set for the

following conference be arranged for a date no later than early June to ensure that full budget details are available to be included in the draft annual budget for consideration by Management Team.

14/057 AEA Media Strategy

The Chief Executive referred to the AEA’s present Media Strategy and sought the views of Management Team on the details.

RESOLVED To update the Media Strategy and to republish the document.

14/058 Current Budget Report

The latest budget report was presented for information.

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RESOLVED To note the report and to agree that, for ease of reference, in future the report submitted to AEA Board need not contain the individual portfolio details.

14/059 Membership Report

The Executive Director (Resources) informed the meeting that membership currently stood at 1,808 members compared to 1,753 at this time last year.


14/060 Ballot Services Progress Report

A progress report regarding ballot services was submitted for information.


14/061 Consultancy Progress Report

A progress report regarding current consultancy contracts was submitted for information.


14/062

Website Development Update

The Executive Director (Resources) reported on the present position as to the development of the new AEA Website. She confirmed that the functional specification had been signed off and that the target date for the new website to go live would be 20 October 2014.


14/063 Website Domain Name

Arising from discussions at the last Board meeting, the Executive Director (Resources) reported that she had looked into the possibility of leasing the website domain name ‘www.aea.co.uk’. She stated that the company presently holding (although not using) this domain name, would either have to renew or release the domain name in April 2015.

RESOLVED To monitor this matter and reconsider the possibility of buying the domain name at the appropriate time, if it becomes available.

14/064 Branch Officer Information Workshop

In accordance with Minute No.14/031 of the last meeting, the Executive Director (Resources) confirmed that a training needs analysis had been carried out amongst branches and she reported that the feedback received indicated a demand for branch officer information workshops.

As a result, the Executive Director (Resources) and the Development and Marketing Manager were developing branch officer training sessions and five such sessions had so far been confirmed.


14/065 Training Progress Report

Management Team received a progress report on training.

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14/066 Government Knowledge Conference – Invitation to Speak

The Chief Executive referred to an invitation he had received to be a guest speaker at an event entitled “Government Knowledge”.

The Executive Director (Resources) reported on a request she had received from the “Bite the Ballot” campaign, who wished to place an advertisement on the AEA website.

RESOLVED That the Chief Executive seek further information on each matter and respond to these requests.

AEA Annual Award Scheme – Rules Purpose The Association will make annual awards to those members or groups of members of the Association who, over a period of time, have made an outstanding contribution to its work or development of, for the greater benefit of the membership. The contribution can be at national, branch or local level and should not relate to one specific event, activity or an election in which they have been involved. There will be no limit on the number of awards made in each year. There will be no requirement to make any award in a particular year. Nomination process Nominations for awards shall be made by members of Council, Branches or by a group of not less than five full members of the Association. Nominations shall be in writing, on the prescribed form, and shall state the reason for the nomination. Nominations shall be sent to the Chief Executive and must be received by 30 November in each year. Contracted staff members of the Association shall not be eligible for nomination until such time as they have left the employment of the Association. Consideration of nominations The nominations shall be presented to and considered by the Management Team which shall have the power to approve, reject or defer consideration of such nominations. The decision of Management Team in these respects shall be final. Presentation and Form of Awards The awards shall normally be presented at the Annual Dinner of the Association. If a recipient does not attend the Annual Dinner, the award shall be presented at an appropriate Branch meeting by a member of Management Team. The award shall take the form of a Certificate and a gift of vouchers. The value of the gift shall be determined by the Management Team from time to time. Recording of Awards A list of the annual awards shall be published and maintained on a dedicated page on the Association’s website and the list of awards in each year shall be published in ARENA. Details of the Scheme These Rules shall be published on the Association’s website. A call for nominations shall be made in any appropriate way during the summer of each year. These Rules were adopted by a meeting of the Association’s Council held on 14 July 2010.

Name of the person / team being nominated

Name:

Position:

Name of the person / team making nomination

Name:

Job title:

Contact details:

Criteria to be taken in to consideration

Reason for nomination

AEA Annual Award Scheme Nomination Form

ASSOCIATION OF ELECTORAL ADMINISTRATORS

National Bursary Scheme

The Association has approved a scheme for the award of one bursary place for each Branch for attendance at the Association’s Annual Conference. The criteria for a bursary place is as follows:-

1. A member of the AEA for a minimum of one year. 2. The member has not attended Conference before. 3. It would be for a younger or less experienced member. 4. The member must work directly on electoral administration. 5. The member’s employing authority will not fund their attendance. In such a case, the member

should provide written confirmation from a senior officer of the authority. 6. Members from the same authority cannot benefit twice in successive years. 7. Members who meet the above criteria and are studying for the AEA Certificate will be given

priority. Standard public transport travel costs will be met by the Association at national level. To publicise the availability of the bursary, Members should be notified in the first week of September by Branch Secretaries and provided with the criteria and the grounds, below, on which the decision will be made.

Each application will be considered on its merits and to assist with this the following will be taken into account:-

1. The member’s reasons for wishing to attend the Conference. 2. Will the employing authority allow the member time off to attend and if not will the member be

prepared to use annual leave? Applications should be made to the Branch Chairman. The decision on who should be offered the national bursary place will be left to the officers of the Branch bearing in mind personal details of a member will be considered. The Branch should inform the Executive Director (Resources) of their applicants no later than 30 October in order that the details be reported to the next available Management Team meeting. An application form is attached. Approved by AEA Board 6 July 2011

THE ASSOCIATION OF ELECTORAL ADMINISTRATORS Application for a National Bursary to Attend the Annual Conference

Name:

Job Title:

Authority:

Address for correspondence:

Age:

How long have you been a member of the Association?

Number of years experience in electoral registration.

Number of years experience in elections administration.

Do you work directly on electoral administration (i.e. your main duties)?

Are you studying for the AEA Certificate?

Have you attended Conference before?

Has your authority refused to fund your attendance at Conference? If so, you should provide written confirmation of this from a senior officer of the authority.

If a bursary is granted to you, will your authority allow you time off to attend?

Will you have to take annual leave to attend?

Are you able to fund your travel to Conference?

Please set out your reasons for wishing to attend Conference

Signature of applicant: Date:

Telephone: Email:

association of electoral administrators north east ... · john stuart middlesbrough david thomson...

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