Our Annual General Meeting provides our member councils with and opportunity to review DALC’s performance in the past year, and steer the strategic direction of DALC in the future. Catch up on this year’s discussions and continue to feed back what is important to your council.

On 27th September, parish and town councils descended upon Exeter Racecourse for the Annual General meeting.  The AGM is not just a formality.  At its heart is our Annual Report which showcases a year of remarkable achievements by parish and town councils, and the wide range of support DALC provides to councils to create effective local governance and thriving communities.

At this year’s AGM, directors demonstrated commitment to providing a quality service to member councils, recognising our core purpose and priorities to be the provision of advice, information and training services, but also partnership working and member engagement for effective representation of the sector.  All of which required a greater level of resource to ease pressures on DALC’s small staff team.

Directors presented proposals for subscription increases, to boost income to support of our members services.  Feedback from participants reflected the value DALC brings to councils, and the need for it to be properly resourced.  Participants gave widespread support for DALC to reconsider proposals with a view to generate further subscription income -the current proposal was too deemed too modest.

Widespread support was also expressed for improved member engagement, enabling councils of all sizes and experience to be able to contribute to DALC’s discussions on matters of importance to councils.  It was acknowledged that the previous County Committee structure was an ineffective use of resources.  DALC will utilise a range of tools in future, such as polls, surveys and open meetings, and look to provide more face-to-face networking opportunities, like our AGM & Conference.

Catch up on this years AGM

• Read the minutes
• View the presentation slides

Listening to our members

Our AGM this year included a member engagement session. We wanted to learn what was important to our members and how we can help. We asked 5 key questions:

1. What are the top 3 issues facing your council?
2. What is the most challenging and what is most satisfying about your role?
3. Do you have a good relationship with other authorities?  and what could be improved?
4. How could DALC help you achieve your goals?
5. What topics would you like to explore further through DALC networking opportunities?

We would like to give every member council an opportunity to join in and have their say, so please share your views with us. The survey is open to councillors and officers from any of our member councils; please do take a moment to share your thoughts!

Next steps

DALC staff team and directors will review all submissions and use this information to help shape our emerging business plan.  We will share our findings and future plans with all member councils.

Read more

All our members are invited to read our Annual Report 22.23, which contains all the news on what we’ve been up to the in last year and a selection of the fantastic projects our member councils have been working on.

Minutes from previous AGMs can be found on our governance page, along with details of our Board of Directors.

Keep an eye out for our new Connect Events, bringing councils together and connecting you with DALC, with other councils, and organisations whose work impacts our communities.

**Save the date for next year’s AGM which will take place on 2 October 2024**

Join us for our annual flagship event. A full day of speakers, workshops and exhibits as well as opportunities to engage with town and parish councils across Devon.

Stand for our Board of Directors to help oversee the day-to-day strategic management of the Devon Association of Local Councils and save the date (5 October) for our AGM 2022

Stand for our Board of Directors

As a company, DALC is required to have a Board of Directors and each year one-third of the board must stand down which means we will have 3 vacancies to fill at our AGM 2022 on 5 October.

The Board of Directors is responsible for the day-to-day strategic and operational management of the Association. This is a great time to join as we are developing our next business plan.

Who can stand and how to apply?

To be eligible to stand for the Board, individuals must be willing to act as a director and permitted in law to do so, and at the time of election, be either: a parish or town councillor, or a chairman of a parish meeting, within the county of Devon. Terms are for a 3-year period.

If you are interested in standing for the board, please take a look at the role profile and submit an application. Applications must be received by 5pm, Friday 19 August.

In the event of there being more candidates than seats available, there will be an election where all member councils will be able to vote. An advance poll will be called at the end of August so please make sure this item is on your September agenda.

If you require any further information or would like an informal chat, please do hesitate to contact us.

AGM, Conference and Exhibition – date for your diary

The Annual General Meeting of the Devon Association of Local Councils Ltd will take place on Wednesday 5 October 2022.  This meeting forms part of our Conference and Exhibition, and will be held at Exeter Racecourse.

Every member council has a vote at our AGM, and as an organisation led by and for its members, we appreciate every council making an effort to participate and contribute to our governance. Member councils can also submit motions for consideration at the AGM, which must have regard to constitutional matters (view our company articles).

Details on how to register to attend, and details of advance and proxy voting, will be circulated in the coming weeks. For now, pop that date in your representative’s diary!

Have your council project featured at our Autumn conference!

One of the benefits of our large network is the ability to share and learn from one another. Last year we were delighted to feature several councils and their projects in our online conference. Feedback was fantastic and we are looking to feature more councils this year at our hybrid conference on 5 October.

So if you have a project/service which you have delivered yourselves, or in partnership with others, and you would be happy to share your story and learning with others, please get in touch because we’d love to hear from you!

We are particularly keen on topics related to housing, and health and wellbeing, but all topics will be considered.

DALC AGM and Conference 2021

DALC’s annual conference is our flagship event of the year.  The 2021 event is a 3-day online conference offering the widest choice of speakers, workshops and panels for councillors and officers to date.

About

Date: Tuesday 5 to Thursday 7 October 2021.
Cost: £40 for first delegate, £10 for each additional booking. AGM only participants are free.

Councillors and officers will benefit from a mix of informative and practical sessions covering key issues facing our communities as well as hearing a range of best practice examples and case studies from other councils in Devon.  We also have a number of companies showcasing their knowledge and products to assist local councils to serve their communities.

The 3-day online conference includes:

• Opportunity to learn about DALC, who we are and what we do
• Three inspiring panels showcasing local councils covering the topics: Young People, Health & Wellbeing, and Climate/Ecological Emergency
• A range of informative sessions providing insight, advice and guidance to local councils
• Companies highlighting products to support local councils

The event also incorporates the Annual General Meeting, where the Annual Report 2021 will be presented, elections of board members, and discussion on member motions.

Tuesday 5 October

Young People

How and why should councils engage with younger people? We are delighted to welcome Cllr Keely Allin and Cllr Ollie Tucker who will be giving their insights as young councillors themselves; find out why they became councillors and their tips for encouraging others to stand.  We will also hear from a council about their work engaging with young people in their community.

Sponsored by: 

Sponsor to be confirmed

Wednesday 6 October

Health and Wellbeing

How are councils supporting the health and wellbeing of their communities? Councils large and small support the health and wellbeing of their communities in a variety of ways.  We welcome Great Torrington Town Council, Dawlish Town Council and Fremington Parish Council to share the projects they have been involved in for the benefit of their residents.

Sponsored by: 

Learn more about Parish Online

Thursday 7 October

Climate/Ecological Emergency

Making progress with the climate/ecological emergency. It’s been a few months now since declarations of emergency have been made by councils, and across the county Parish and Town Councils are approaching the issue in variety of ways, and projects large and small.  We welcome Exmouth Town Council and Brixham Town Council to share their recent work and their plans for the future.

Sponsored by: 

Sponsor to be confirmed

Parish Online is a self-service online mapping tool that helps your local council use maps to make council tasks more efficient and ultimately save money. Parish Online helps councils improve their local management of assets and improves efficiency and communication with principle authorities and the public, all using digital mapping. Some of the most common uses are for building neighbourhood plans, recording street assets, insurance liabilities, and planning events.

Whether you are interested in attending all or part of the conference, and/or the AGM, please use the booking form below to register your place at the event.  A couple of weeks before the event we will send you a list of all the sessions, and you can register in advance to attend the sessions of interest to you.  Please note that each session will have its own zoom link.

Fees will be charged at £40 for the first delegate from your council, and £10 for each additional delegate.  Delegates can book as many or as few sessions as they like.  Cancellations for the event must be received at least 48 hours before the event takes place, and any delegates which fail to attend will still be charged.

Firstly, thank you to everyone who came to our AGM today.  It was never going to be quite the same as our usual set up – no networking, coffee and biscuits!  But it was great to see our member councils represented in our virtual meeting room.

Cllr Ken Browse, Shadow Board Chairman, provided the welcoming address to the meeting.  He highlighted the journey DALC has been on over the past 2 years and the work the Shadow Board has been doing to develop a new business plan.  He also praised parish and town councils across the County for the support they have been offering their communities during such an unprecedented time.

Annual Report 2019/2020

Cllr Ken Browse presented the Annual Report 2019/2020.  The report provides an overview of DALC’s year, highlighting a range of our activities such as training and representing our members, through to member stories including Belstone’s first election in 30 years and Great Torrington’s youngest mayor.

Cllr Ian Cowling, Honorary Treasurer also reported on the Annual Accounts in which we saw improved income and reduced expenditure through 2019/2020.

AGM appoints a new Board of Directors

Thank you all who stood for election. Our newly appointed Board members are:

• David Chalmers,
• Elizabeth Brookes-Hocking
• Elizabeth Hitchins
• Glyn Richards
• Ian Cowling
• Ken Browse
• Michael Hocking
• Phillip Dredge
• Teresa Bowers.

AGM agrees subscriptions rates 2021/2022

The meeting agreed to a 2.9% increase on member subscriptions for next year. This includes a 3% increase on the NALC element (agreed by NALC) which forms part of your overall subscription fee