ADSO is hosting the popular course ‘Meetings Procedures’.  It will be delivered as two virtual 3-hour workshops.  Delegates are required to attend both workshops.

Audience

This course is aimed at Democratic Services Officers who wish to further develop their understanding of the legal and governance framework within which councils operate and the practical application of this to the range of work areas undertaken by democratic services teams.  The course content will be relevant both to those who are relatively new to democratic services and officers with a few years’ experience (6 months to 3 years’ experience of supporting meetings as a guide.)

The content is also linked a number of modules especially  Law and Practice module and the Structures and Functions of the ADSO Certificate and ADSO Diploma so it will help learners with their research for this module.

How the course will be delivered

The course will be delivered virtually via Zoom, and by the end of the workshop you will:

• Understand how decisions are made and reported and your role in supporting this, both in and out of meetings
• Constitutional issues of meetings- quorums, points of order
• Dealing with motions and voting including amendments, adjournments and deferrals
• Have a sense of how accountability and good governance works in local government, how Councils and Councillors are held to account and the role of scrutiny.
• Understand the rules of debate and consider the impact of politics and what this means for you as an officer of the Council.

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

Trainers

Vicky Wemyss-Cooke
Vicky is currently the Committee Services Manager at London Borough of Camden and has been a DSO in London for almost 30 years and for the last 7 years has been the Committee Services Manager in Camden, managing a small team servicing Council, Cabinet, scrutiny and non-executive committees, along with a range of other bodies such as school appeals panels and tenants’ consultative committees.  Throughout her career, she has also undertaken a range of roles in support of local, national and regional elections and currently serves as Chief Count Supervisor for the Holborn and St Pancras Constituency area.  Vicky has been an active ADSO Member from its inception and is an assessor for the Certificate in Democratic Services Knowledge.

Sarah Quinn
Sarah is the Regulatory Business Manager at Surrey County Council. She has over 20 years of experience in local government and has worked across a range of roles, with experience of Committee Management and Governance, Community Partnerships, Overview & Scrutiny, Member Support and Development, Civic Support and School Appeals. She currently leads the delivery of Surrey County Council’s decision making and appeals processes and is an experienced trainer.

Date and time

Workshop One: Thursday 20th Nov 2025, 9.30am-12.30pm
Workshop Two: Thursday 27th Nov 2025, 9.30am-12.30pm

Please note that you only need to book the workshop on 20th Nov to be able to attend both workshops and attendance is required at both sessions.

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
• Terms and conditions for booking can be found here.  

How to book a place – please use the online booking form via the link below.

Please note that ADSO will now only be using their Membership bank account.  The details are below:

Account Number: 23545903
Sort Code: 20-02-25

Booking requirements

• A purchase order number is required for all bookings made out to ADSO (please 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.