Elected Member Mandatory Training - Final Days to Comply!
Phew – it’s been a whirlwind of Elected Member Mandatory Training over the past 12 months!!
Kelledy Jones Lawyers, in conjunction with its recognised training partners, has had the absolute pleasure, as part of its Post-Election Training Essentials for Council Members program, to provide elected member training sessions for 53 councils across SA. It’s not only been a fabulous opportunity to meet new members, but also to re-acquaint with continuing members and Administration.
However, there remain some elected members who are yet to complete some of their Mandatory Modules. Our message to those members is ‘time is running out!’’
As part of the broader local government sector reform, the situation now is that if a member fails to complete their mandatory training requirements within the first 12 months of their 4 year term, the council must suspend that member from office (unless the member satisfies the council that ‘good reasons’ exist for the failure to comply).
A suspension is to be publicly notified and the member is not entitled to their allowance during the period of suspension.
The timing imperative is to be calculated from the date that a member ‘takes’ office, being the conclusion of the elections based upon the final declaration of the result of the elections by ECSA – not from the date the member made an undertaking in accordance with section 60 of the Local Government Act 1999 (and regulation 6 of the Local Government (General) Regulations 2013)).
Members should refer to their CEO to determine the date of the relevant declaration for their council.
To assist those remaining members comply with these obligations, we are offering our final ‘round’ of Zoom Catch up Sessions for Modules 1, 2, 3 and 4, attendance at which will satisfy the learning outcomes for the purposes of the LGA training standards.
Please see the attached Flyer for details.