The Assembly is the Council’s senior body and is the central political focus of the Council and the co-ordinating body for all elements of the political structure. It sets the overall corporate direction, policy framework and financial limits for the Council within which all operations and policies are carried out. It aims to foster a community-focused approach to the formal side of the Council's business, recognising the wider interests of the community and the need to be accountable to them.
The Assembly comprises all 51 Members of the Council.
Meetings are generally held every two months and take place on Wednesday’s at Barking Town Hall, starting at 7 p.m.
You can find out from our Forward Plan the main issues due to be considered by the Assembly in the coming months.
The Cabinet (formerly known as the Executive) is:
It works within the Council's overall policy framework and pays particular attention to the effective and appropriate use of the Council's resources (workforce, finances and assets). It is also the body which gives direction to the Chief Executive and the Corporate Management Team, and holds those employees to account for their performance, and is also responsible for ensuring appropriate links with external partners.
The Cabinet comprises of 10 Councillors from the Labour Majority Group and is chaired by the Leader of the Council.
The Cabinet typically meets every four weeks on Tuesday evenings at 5.00 p.m. at the Civic Centre, Dagenham.
You can find out from our Forward Plan the main issues due to be considered by the Cabinet in the coming months.
The Licensing and Regulatory Committee (previously known as the Licensing and Regulatory Board) has overall responsibility for a range of licensing matters such as applications for premises licenses for the sale of alcohol, review applications for premises licenses, applications for street trading, night cafes etc. and licenses for sex establishments and betting shops. The three main aspects of legislation relating to the Board’s work are the Licensing Act 2003, Section 101 of the Local Government Act 1972 and the Gambling Act 2005.
In November 2014 a Licensing Sub-Committee was established to make decisions on applications, in line with statutory guidance issued under Section 182 of the Licensing Act 2003.
The main Licensing and Regulatory Committee meets quarterly to consider strategic / policy matters, other current issues and, in exceptional circumstances, applications which would otherwise have been dealt with by the Licensing Sub-Committee but where it has been decided that the matter should go before the full Committee.
The Planning Committee (previously known as the Development Control Board)makes decisions on larger planning applications or ones that may have a significant impact on the local community.
The Planning Committee is open to the public. Meetings are usually held every four weeks at Barking Town Hall, starting at 7pm. You can check past and future meeting details at Planning Committee Meetings
If you have an interest in any particular planning application and wish to address the Committee, you can register to speak via our online form at
https://www.lbbd.gov.uk/planning-committee. Alternatively, you can send an email to Democratic.Services@lbbd.gov.uk.
Scrutiny Panels form a part of the Scrutiny function. Scrutiny Panels look at specific areas of the Council’s work, recognising what is done well and asking for improvements where necessary. Scrutiny panel meetings are open to the public, except where confidential matters are discussed. The Council is keen to include external representation on the Panels.
Scrutiny panel meetings are not fixed, so are advertised when they are arranged.
The list below shows those Scrutiny Panels that are currently ‘active’. The following link will take you to a list of completed Scrutiny Panels and their final reports - Click Here