You can find out more about how we work from our annual delivery plan, delegated authority and our roles, responsibilities and governance. We are committed to being transparent, so we also publish our meeting minutes as well as our board decisions.
How we work – roles, responsibilities and governance
We are required by the Rural Payments Agency to set out adequate governance arrangements which are reviewed annually. The Accountable Body (Hampshire County Council) puts this together on behalf of the Local Action Group. It will cover the roles and responsibilities of the Accountable Body and the Local Action Group (LAG), the composition of the LAG and how it conducts its business, and in particular how decisions are taken.
The Accountable body will put together a Terms of Reference document. This document will set out the composition of the LAG, how members are appointed and whether there are any sub-groups. It will also set out the conduct of business and the Decision Making Process. It sets out the spread of representation across sectors, taking into account the requirement that no more than 49% of the members of any group awarding funding may be from the public sector or from any interest group e.g. farming or tourism. For a full copy of the Loddon and Test Terms of Reference please click on the following link: Loddon and Test LAG Terms of Reference
Delegated authority
The Delegated Authority Agreement and Division of Responsibilities sets out the formal delegation of certain tasks from the Rural Payments Agency to the Accountable Body (Hampshire County Council). The detail of each task is laid out in the Division of Responsibilities.
Click here to see a copy of the Delegated Authority Agreement
Our Delivery Plan
Each year, we write our delivery plan which sets out our aims and objectives for the coming financial year. We base this on last years performance and evaluation and it demonstrates how our Local Action Group will meet the requirements of the funding agreement with the Rural Payments Agency. The Delivery Plan sets out our research and evaluations, progress against intended delivery in the previous plan and any investment plans. It also sets out any changes to the budget profile and the rationale for this.
We will also set out our separation of duties, ensuring that there is no conflict of interest, a staff organogram and staff changes if any. We identify training requirements, risk management and the structure and members of the LAG. We will look at what publicity is required and how we intend to engage the community. Finally we set out our monitoring and evaluation methods and our milestones for achieving the delivery plan objectives.
Click here to see a copy of our Delivery Plan.
Conflict of Interest Policy
The Accountable Body (Hampshire County Council) must ensure that the operation of the LEADER programme is not affected by any conflicts of interest. It must devise and implement a written Conflict of Interest Policy setting out its approach to dealing with any potential conflicts of interest that may arise in the course of the LEADER programme.
A conflict of interest arises when an individual’s other interests could give rise to real or perceived bias in relation to a decision they are asked to take on the LEADER programme.
Conflicts of interest exist when either:
- There is a potential financial or measurable benefit either directly to the individual, or indirectly through a connected individual or organisation; or
- A person’s duty to the LAG may compete with a duty or loyalty they owe to another organisation or person.
Conflicts of interest can arise at any stage in the life-cycle of an application or project, not simply in the decision to award public funds. Accountable bodies must ensure that the risk of conflicts of interest is addressed at all stages, including:
- Assessing an application for eligibility for programme funds
- Approving a project application
- Supporting or sponsoring a project through the application process
- Appraising a project application
- Making a decision on an application, whether or not grant is awarded
- Recommending payment of a project claim
- Authorising payment of a project claim
- Agreeing any variations to an approved project
- Conducting project inspections, and
- Quality controlling, quality assuring or monitoring checks on any of the above functions
It is the responsibility of the Accountable Body to ensure that anyone involved in the programme is fully conversant with the Conflict of Interest Policy and understands their role and responsibilities in putting it into practice. Each member of the Local Action Group must register their interests before the programme commences and this must be updated as and when any potential conflict of interest arises. We want to ensure that our grants are awarded in a fair and non-biased way, and that our operational procedures are open and accessible to all.
Please click on the following link to see a copy of the Conflict of Interest Policy