Aberdeenshire Council has put out a call for a religious representative to sit on the council’s education committee.
The council is required by law to reserve three committee seats for religious representatives: one Church of Scotland member, one Catholic Church member and one other seat to be determined.
The council said in a statement that they are seeking applications and nominations for a third member from a different church or religious group. The deadline to apply is August 26.
For more information on the role, or to submit a nomination contact the council on committee.services@aberdeenshire.gov.uk.
Council legally required to appoint three religious representatives
The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 requires all local authorities to appoint three religious representatives.
Church leadership in the Church of Scotland and Catholic Church are responsible for nominating their members.
Aberdeenshire Council said that nomination forms should illustrate how well the third member’s faith group would represent the area.
“Any nomination should be accompanied by information relating to how representative that nomination would be of other faith groups in the area and should indicate the comparative strength of the nominee’s own faith group, in terms of numbers of worshippers and numbers of places of worship.”
Councils typically fill the third seat with a representative from a religious group that is well-represented in the area.
Local authorities have some leeway to decide how to fill the third seat and how the positions function locally.
Appointed religious representatives on the Aberdeenshire Education and Children’s Services Committee have the same voting powers as fully elected councillors. But councils have the authority to set their own rules when it comes to voting powers.
Different strokes, different votes
The first instance of restricting religious representatives’ voting rights came in 2019, after votes from church representatives proved decisive in closing a Perth and Kinross school.
In Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles, one seat is reserved for a Church of Scotland member. The council can fill the other two with members from any other religious group in the area.
In Orkney, there had long been one seat filled by a Church of Scotland representative. But this year, the council appointed three religious representatives – all of whom are Church of Scotland members.
This led some Orkney councillors to ask whether it was time to reconsider the voting rights of religious representatives on the committee.
In response to Aberdeenshire Council’s call for nominations, some Facebook users are also asking about the arrangement, including whether other non-religious groups should have a seat.
The council currently has two seats on the education committee for members who represent education and primary education. Neither of these appointed members are allowed to vote.
Get in touch
An upcoming Press and Journal series investigates the history of religious representatives and their roles on our councils.
If you have served in one of these positions, or would like to share your thoughts, we want to hear from you. Get in touch with us in the comments below or email us at schoolsandfamily@ajl.co.uk.
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