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Great Longstone Parish Council

Staffing Committee – 29th January 2026

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Minutes of the First Meeting of Great Longstone Parish Council Staffing Committee

held at 7.00pm on Thursday 29th January 2026

in the White Lion, Main Street DE45 1TA

 

Present: Cllr J Rigby, Cllr A Douglass, Cllr P Barrett, Cllr Hornsey

In attendance:  Simon Headington (Clerk)

SC-01/26           Election of the Chair. Cllr Hornsey was proposed, seconded and elected with all in favour. Cllr Hornsey then took the Chair of the meeting.

SC-02/26   Apologies for absence from members.  All members were present

SC-03/26   Declarations of disclosable pecuniary interest relating to items on the agenda.
None

SC-04/26   To review the Committee Terms of Reference. Noted

SC-05/26   To review and adopt the following policies and procedures:

  1. Dignity at Work Policy: Approved subject to the addition of a word to help improve clarity.
  2. Employee Privacy Notice: Approved subject to the correction of a reference/typing error.
  3. Grievances and Disciplinary Procedures: Approved
  4. Health and Safety Policy: Approved – The Clerk was instructed to ensure that an accident book was opened.
  5. Sickness Absence Policy: Approved – Clerk was instructed to find a suitable template for a sickness absence form.
  6. Training and Development Policy – Approved subject to the addition of the ILCA (Introduction to Local Council Administration) course as an example of a possible Mandatory qualification and noting that the courses referred to in this document were general examples and not specific to the roles of the Clerk.
  7. Next Steps: The clerk was instructed to make the necessary amendments and then to post copies of all these documents to the Parish Council website.

SC-06/26   To agree requirements for the following policies and procedures:

  • Expenses policy
  • Flexible working arrangements/ Homeworking Policy.
  • Induction and Appraisal Arrangements (Performance & Development Reviews) .
  • Recruitment Policy.

The clerk was instructed to work on these policies with the aim of bring them, one at a time, to the full Council meetings. All of the policies are to be in place before May 2027.

SC-07/26   To review SLCC guidance on setting an appropriate salary point or scale for the Clerk and to agree the working hours.

  • After reviewing the current guidance, provided by the Society for Local Government Clerks (SLCC), it was agreed that the position of Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer fell within Scale Range “LC1” (Scale Points 5-17).
  • It was agreed that Great Longstone would pay their clerk on the LC1 (substantive benchmark range) – Scale Points 7-12, with progression through the scale points being dependent on annual reviews and the meeting of any objectives set by the Staffing Committee or the Council. The starting point will usually be Scale Point 7 and the maximum, after progression, will be Scale Point 12.
  • It was agreed that if a clerk held the Certificate in Local Council Administration (CiLCA) qualification that they would be paid on the LC1 (above substantive benchmark range) – Scale Points 13-17. (The starting point will usually be Scale Point 13 and the maximum, after progression, will be Scale Point 17.)
  • It was agreed that the Council would continue the previous practice of employing the Clerk for 40 hours per month, working in a flexible manner to serve the needs of the Council and the local electorate.

SC-08/26   To approve Job Description and Person Specification

The Job Description and Person Specification were approved after making an amendment to the Job Description to make it clear that in addition to the 6 scheduled Council meetings that there can be up to 4 additional meetings each year.

SC-09/26   To appoint the Clerk/Responsible Financial Officer and approve the Contract of
Employment.

Simon Headington was appointed as Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer with a salary at Scale Point 7 to commence from 1st February 2026. The Contract of Employment was approved and once a clean copy has been produced the Chair was authorised to sign this on behalf of the Council.

SC-10/26    HMRC related procedures

The Clerk was instructed to set-up the necessary systems for calculating payroll and any deductions required by HMRC, along with the necessary reporting procedures. It was noted that the HMRC provide a free “Basic PAYE Tools software”, for small employers. It was noted that the starting level for the payment of Employee National Insurance contributions has been reduced since the Council last ran a payroll and that this additional taxation might now be payable by the Council.

SC-11/26    To authorise payment of the Clerk & any taxes due, from the agreed start date.

Agreed.

SC-12/26    To agree procedure for calling future meetings.

It was agreed that whilst future meets will be needed no dates will be set at this date. Meetings can be called at anytime by the Chair or two members if the Chair refuses a request to call a meeting.

The Chair closed the meeting at 8:45pm.

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