Member Councils are encouraged to use ESALC CEO as a sounding board for all aspects related to recruitment, including but not limited to: pay scales, likely response to a vacancy, job descriptions and person specifications. An advert can be placed on the website at no charge or we can provide the full service if preferable: responding to applicants, arranging interviews, checking references, drafting contracts. A small charge may apply. This will vary depending on the amount of work likely to be involved. Please get in touch for further information.
We can also assist with sourcing a locum where necessary, please contact Trevor Leggo or Emily Simpson if you have any queries.
Clerk Mentoring
The needs of a new clerk will vary greatly depending on their background and size of Council, amongst other things. Whilst new councillor training is offered on a demand basis by ESALC, and is something which all new clerks are strongly encouraged to attend (current cost is £75+vat for a 4 hour Zoom training session), bespoke packages can also be offered to Councils who have recruited a new clerk, and the following is just a guide which will help Councils to budget effectively when it comes to staffing as well as have the confidence to recruit a brand new clerk:
- A qualified Clerk will meet the new clerk for a set number of hours per week to train them on the basics of being a parish or town clerk. The number of hours will depend on the size of the Council. This may involve but is not limited to attending Council meetings, help with drafting agendas and checking minutes, ensuring they understand their Council’s policies (and that they are up to date), making sure the Council has “A Council Year” document which is updated with all important deadlines (when to book internal audit, what month budget must be discussed and precept form submitted etc). Different areas of training will be considered on each visit with plenty of opportunity for the Clerk to ask questions. This package could also include telephone/Zoom calls. This is the most comprehensive service on offer and we would anticipate the cost to be in the region of £35-45 per hour. Final fees would be negotiated with the CiLCA qualified clerk and payment would come directly from the Council. We would endeavour to place a local experienced clerk to avoid any excessive travel or mileage costs for the Council.
- A qualified Clerk will be available at the end of the phone/Zoom for a set number of hours each week. This will involve remote training, similar to the above but without the face-to-face contact. We would anticipate the cost to be in the region of £35-45 per hour.
In all cases, a CiLCA qualified Clerk will be sought but, where this is not possible, a clerk with substantial experience will be placed. After the above initial training has taken place, an agreement may take place between the mentor and the Council whereby the Council can pay a retainer for several hours per week (or month) whereby the new clerk can still contact their mentor. In many cases we appreciate that a lot of clerks may be happy to continue to help fellow clerks at no additional cost, but in the event of larger councils or those where new clerks feel they will require a lot more support after the initial training has ended, a fee may be necessary.