Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of making the qualification of Certificate in Local Council Administration (a) mandatory and (b) included in training in the first year of employment for town and parish clerks.

Town and parish council clerks play a crucial role in enabling councils to effectively serve and represent their communities. There are currently no plans to make the Certificate in Local Council Administration mandatory for town and parish council clerks, as this would place an undue burden on the sector. Town and parish councils operate independently of central government and are best placed to understand their staff’s development needs.