The Council of the Isles of Scilly is elected every 4 years and the next local election is due in May 2025 when we will once again be open to nominations for all 16 positions for another 4 year term to 2029. You can view a list of your councillors by clicking here.
As at May 2024, the configuration of the Council is such that there are monthly meetings of the Council, albeit no meetings in August. Council is where almost all decisions are made.
In addition to this we have an Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (IFCA), a Scrutiny Committee, a Governance Committee, a Licensing Committee and we are also part of the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Joint Health and Wellbeing Board. We should also have meetings of a SACRE, but we have a dispensation from the government on this.
We also have Lead Members. These are members who have been given a 'portfolio' outside of their normal duties as a constituency councillor, and so they are expected to liaise closely with their relevant officers and provide some additional insight, focus and guidance for all members in the chosen field.
All councillors are paid a basic allowance.
In addition to this there are SRA payments made to those councillors who Council recognises as being deserving of additional payment for services rendered. An example of this is a Lead Member position, and a Chairman position. A full breakdown of these costs can be found to the right of this page, they have been broken down into each year of the term of this council from 2021.
Councillors cannot make decisions individually. To do this would require a change in our governance model, this is something we have not agreed to do and therefore all decisions must be decided in Council by a majority decision following receipt of a report that has been published according to the requirements of the legislation. Council cannot make decisions without a report being published (available to the public) 5 clear working days before a meeting. This then gives the public a chance to lobby or appeal to councillors about pending decisions to be made. The public then have a right to be present at the meeting to listen to the debate.
This council has no 'constitution' in the literal sense, but it does have a suite of documents that collectively fulfil this void. The Standing Orders of the Council are published on our website, along with the list of associated documents ('Standing Orders Annex')that have been ratified by Council. You can visit this page by clicking here.
We welcome any and all enquiries about becoming a councillor, we strongly encourage people to take part in our elections in 2025. There is no fee to stand for election.
Further reading
To find out more about how to stand for election you can view or download the following resources from the Electoral Commission:
Standing as an independent candidate
Your right to attend key electoral events
After the declaration of results
Another valuable resource is the beacouncillor.org website.