herefordshire council
Hereford
Herefordshire Council was established in April 1998 and took over the
responsibilities of South Herefordshire District Council, Hereford City Council
and Hereford-Worcester County Council and some of Leominster District Council
and Malvern Hills District Council. Herefordshire Council's ambitions are set
out in full in our county plan. They focus on the key areas of environment,
community and economy and are to: Protect and enhance our environment and keep
Herefordshire a great place to live Strengthen communities to ensure everyone
lives well and safely together Support an economy which builds on the county's
strengths and resources Herefordshire Council operates a leader and cabinet
model of governance. The council's 53 members meet together as full Council to
set the policy framework, agree the budget and spending plans, set the Council
Tax, elect the leader of the council and make constitutional decisions. It is
also a forum for debate on major issues affecting the council and the county.
Once elected, the leader of the council appoints and chairs the cabinet,
sometimes called the executive. Each cabinet member has a specific area of
responsibility, called a portfolio. The different service areas or activities
the council is responsible for are called functions and the law determines
whether decisions about a function are the responsibility of full Council (or
one of its committees), an individual officer, or of the executive. The
council's employees, often called officers, are responsible for delivering the
council's policies and for the day-to-day operation of the organisation.
Officers have a duty to support the whole council, are not accountable to
individual councillors or to the political group in control of the council and
must remain politically neutral.
