Agenda item

Recording of Meetings

Report of the Service Manager, Elections and Members’ Services.

Minutes:

Helen Barrington, Council Solicitor and Monitoring Officer and Alec Dubberley, Service Manager Elections and Members’ Services attended the meeting to inform Members about the options available for the recording of Council committees following a request made at the previous committee.

 

Three viable options for the recording of meetings were outlined:

 

Option 1 – Recording of meetings for Council use.  This would entail making audio recording of any meeting taking place in the Council Chamber using a simple recorder connected to the audio system already installed.  The cost of this could be managed from existing budgets with only officer time would be required to administer the recordings. Access to the recordings would have to be considered. This option would do nothing to comply with the spirt of the 2014 regulations by promoting transparency of meetings.

 

Option 2 – Video Webcasting of meetings.  This would require the Council Chamber to be adapted to enable meetings to be fully recorded through the installation of a series of cameras.  The audio and video could then be streamed live over the internet and integrated into the Council’s committee management system to enable the public to watch meetings.  The videos would be archived and available to watch online after the meeting.  This would have the advantage of making Council proceedings accessible to a greater number of citizens and provide a definitive record of the meeting.  It would be a very expensive option and there is currently no budget available to deliver this system.

 

Option 3 – Voice Webcasting meetings.  As with Option 2 the Council could consider webcasting the audio content of the meeting.  This would achieve the same outcome as video webcasting but only the audio recording would be broadcast.  This would provide an affordable option as no equipment would need to be purchased as it can be streamed, through the existing microphone system via a tablet computer, to the internet.  There are no set up costs and the council would have a ‘pay as you go’ arrangement.  The cost is relatively modest and could be met from existing budgets requiring only minimal staff time.  Recordings would be available on line for a year. Members listened to a recording made at an earlier meeting which demonstrated how the system could work.

 

Members were informed that none of these systems would stop members of the public recording or filming meetings but would act as an official transcript should any mischievous or malicious recordings be made.

 

Members again expressed concern about members of the public potentially making their own recordings and re editing the content.  They were particularly concerned that this could happen at Planning and full Council meetings. After discussion Members agreed that Option 3 would be the most viable and would go some way to alleviating their concerns.

 

RESOLVED:

 

      I.        A report be sent to the September Cabinet recommending that the Council implement a system of voice webcasting of meetings as laid out in Option 3.

 

    II.        A progress report on the recommendation made to Cabinet be presented at the next Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Supporting documents: