Oakham & Rutland News: Oakham Town Council Convenes to Address Budgetary Adjustments, Office Relocation, and Governance Overhauls at Meeting to be held on the 17th June 2026

10 June 2026

Oakham Town Council Convenes to Address Budgetary Adjustments, Office Relocation, and Governance Overhauls at Meeting to be held on the 17th June 2026

Oakham Town Council has issued an official summons to all members for its upcoming ordinary meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, 17th June 2026, at 6:30 p.m..

The evening's extensive agenda covers critical decisions regarding year-end financial compliance, substantial community infrastructure spending, a potential office relocation, and a series of stringent new protocols designed to safeguard staff welfare.

A primary focus of the meeting will center on financial accountability as the council reviews the 2025/26 year-end audit. The council is slated to vote on approving the internal auditor's report alongside the response drafted by the Locum Clerk/RFO. Additionally, members will review standard year-end financial accounting statements encompassing the balance sheet, trial balance, income and expenditure records, asset register, and bank reconciliations before formally signing off on Sections 1 and 2 of the Annual Governance and Accountability Statements for the 2025/26 financial year.

In what marks a significant shift in internal operations, the council will also debate several motions aimed at establishing safe working protocols and managing communications. Prompted by a legal duty of care to protect staff welfare and minimise administrative strain , the proposed measures require all councillor emails to be routed exclusively to the official Clerk's email address to ensure transparency and prevent duplicated contact. Furthermore, the protocols mandate that any councillor visits to the office must be approved in advance to avoid unplanned disruptions , and explicitly prohibit any councillor from being alone with an officer in the office unless agreed upon beforehand. Following recommendations from the Staffing Committee, the council will also consider adopting a new Managing Vexatious or Unreasonable Councillor Correspondence policy , alongside updates to existing Vexatious Complaints Procedures and Standing Orders. A Social Media Moderation Framework is up for approval as well, reaffirming that the Clerk holds sole responsibility for council communications and explicitly prohibiting councillors from executing independent moderation activities on official social media channels.

Several local projects and public requests require definitive council decisions during the session. The council will vote on a series of funding drawdowns utilising Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funds for Victoria Hall. This includes £6,815 for specialised surveys covering measured building, asbestos, and damp/timber analysis , alongside a structured schedule of upcoming payments to Kingsmead stretching into November 2026. Following a presentation of a new blog design for the council website , members will decide whether to authorise Welland Creative to proceed with the build phase at a cost of £700. Additionally, a £500 grant application for an RAF in Rutland memorial bench initiative will be reviewed to determine if the council will adopt the bench as a civic asset for future maintenance. Members will also vote to retroactively clear an overspend of £4,514 from the 2025 Christmas Lights Switch-On event using General Reserves , and review a retrospective event safeguarding and first aid cost of £2,904 plus VAT with Light Medical.

The future physical footprint of the local government is on the table as well, as the council considers the formal location of its headquarters, highlighting a formal offer from Oakham Baptist Church to lease operational space. This comes alongside community correspondence, including a resident's request to use Cutts Close on 6th June 2026 for a diversity picnic , concerns regarding the condition of the local skate park , an update on a requested bus shelter , and a resident's 12 questions regarding the Vale Feasibility Study. Per standard statutory regulations, the final portion of the meeting will enforce the exclusion of the press and public under Section 1(2) of the Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960. This confidential session will handle sensitive updates regarding ongoing staffing issues and matters concerning 2 Princess Avenue.

Residents wishing to voice concerns or ask questions regarding the agenda items are allocated a total of 15 minutes at the beginning of the meeting, with a maximum of 3 minutes permitted per speaker under the direction of the Chair. This represents the only slot where public participation is permitted during the session. The subsequent ordinary meeting of the Oakham Town Council is provisionally noted for Wednesday, 8th July 2026.