ADSO is hosting ‘Council and its Governance Arrangements’ which will be delivered as two three-hour workshops held virtually.  Delegates will be required to attend both of the virtual workshops.

Audience

This course is aimed at Democratic Services Officers who wish to develop their understanding of the different types of governance arrangements and the role of Full Council meetings.  The target audience will be those who are relatively new to democratic service teams and those with a few years’ experience.

The content is also linked to the Council and Governance module of the ADSO Certificate so it will help learners with their research for this module.

How the course will be delivered

The course will be delivered virtually, to maximise the delegates learning experience the course has been broken into two virtual workshops.

The workshops will:

• provide an understanding of good governance principles and how they apply to democratic services
• provide an understanding of the internal governance arrangements by which councils exercise their powers
• examine the differences between Leader & Cabinet and the Committee systems
• explore how the Full Council meeting operates in different governance settings.

The workshops will include plenary presentations, case studies and smaller group working, enabling delegates to learn with democratic service officers from across the country.

Trainers 

Ian Millichap
Ian has over 30 years’ experience of working in local government and has spent 15 years in senior roles.  He has previously worked for London Borough of Southwark as head of the committee governance team.  Ian has Clerked Full Council, Cabinet and all Major Committees and has experience of both Committee and Executive arrangements.

Gary Marson

Gary Marson is a vastly experienced Democratic Services practitioner having served 34 years in roles across London Boroughs and Surrey Districts. A qualified Chartered Company Secretary, he has worked in both Committee and Executive governance arrangements and clerked Full Council, Cabinet and all major Policy and Regulatory Committees as well as leading the scrutiny function and Schools Admission Appeals service at the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham. Prior to his recent retirement Gary was the Corporate Head of Democratic & Electoral Services and Deputy Monitoring Officer at the Royal Borough of Kingston. He is an assessor for the ADSO Certificate in Democratic Services.

Date and time

Workshop One: Thursday 9th July 2026, 9.30am-12.30pm
Workshop Two: Thursday 16th July 2026, 9.30am-12.30pm

Delegates are required to attend both workshops.  Please note that you only need to book onto the 9th July course date to be able to attend both workshops.

Cost

• ADSO Member rate – £110 + VAT per person to attend the course
• Non-ADSO Member rate – £160 + VAT per person to attend the course
• ADSO Certificate in Democratic Services Knowledge Learner – Free

How to book a place 

To book a place please use the online booking form via the link below.  Terms and conditions for booking can be found here.

Booking requirements

• A purchase order number is required for all bookings made out to ADSO (see note above).  Courses cannot be attended if a purchase order is not received.
• A hardcopy of the purchase order is required.
• Please provide us with your ADSO Membership number (if applicable)
• A few days after booking you will receive a calendar invite for the workshop(s).  Please note that your email address will be visible to all participants unless you advise us otherwise.

Please send the above information to adsotraining@emcouncils.gov.uk.