Key Facts K. Extraordinary Council Meetings

An ordinary meeting is a scheduled meeting convened by the council’s Proper Officer. Schedule 12, Local Government Act 1972 (para 8) requires councils to hold a minimum of four meetings (annual meeting plus three) during the course of the year. Most councils meet monthly or bi-monthly.

A local council with internal delegation arrangements to committees or officers may require fewer ordinary meetings of the Council.

An extraordinary meeting is an unscheduled meeting and these may be called at any time by the Chair of the council. They are usually occasioned by urgent business that needs to be resolved before the next ordinary meeting of the council. The Chair of a council should not hesitate to call extraordinary meetings when necessary if the matter is urgent, concerns have been raised by the public, or the matter is best considered by the full Council rather than delegated to a committee.

If the Chair of a council fails or refuses to call an extraordinary meeting of the council within seven days of having been requested to do so by two councillors, any two councillors may convene a meeting of the council. The public notice giving the time, place and agenda for such a meeting must be signed by the two councillors who called the meeting.

If a local council has appointed a Vice-Chair , its standing orders may permit them to convene an extraordinary meeting in the Chair’s absence.