Agenda and draft minutes

There were no apologies.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 7 January 2026 and to receive information arising from them.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 7 January 2026 be approved and signed as an accurate record of the proceedings.

Members of the public who wish to speak at this meeting can attend the meeting in person or ‘virtually’ through an online connection. 

Requests to speak must be submitted by no later than 9am three working days before the meeting.  Requests to speak should be sent to committeesdemocraticservices@oxfordshire.gov.uk .

If you are speaking ‘virtually’, you may submit a written statement of your presentation to ensure that your views are taken into account. A written copy of your statement can be provided no later than 9am 2 working days before the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than 1 A4 sheet.

There were no requests.

Report of the Director of Human Resources and Cultural Change 

The pay policy statement sets out the council’s approach to pay in accordance with the requirements of Section 38-43 of the Localism Act 2011. It has been drafted with due regard to the associated statutory guidance, including the supplementary statutory guidance issued in February 2013, the Local Government Transparency Code 2015, and the statutory guidance on special severance payments issued in May 2022 under section 26 of the Local Government Act 1999.  

The Committee is RECOMMENDED to: 

a)            Take note of the Pay Policy Statement 2026-27;

b)           Recommend Council to note and approve the council’s statutory Pay Policy Statement for updating on the council’s public website.

The Committee considered the statutory Pay Policy Statement for 2026/27.

Officers summarised the report as follows:

• The Pay Policy Statement was a statutory requirement under the Localism Act and has to be published annually by 1 April.
• The statement set out pay ratios between the highest?paid officer, the Chief Executive, and the lowest?paid roles, together with senior salary bands.
• The statement reflected current salary levels and did not anticipate future pay awards.
• The statement focused on basic pay only and did not include the wider total reward offer, such as flexible working arrangements.

Members welcomed the report and identified other information that they would like to see in a further report about pay arrangements at the Council to assist understanding:

• An explanation of how the pay for jobs is decided.
• Explaining the differences in terms and conditions.
• The number of employees within different pay bands.
• Examples of roles at the lower end of the pay scale.
• Comparability with other similar local authorities.
• The financial implications of adopting the Oxford Living Wage.

Officers confirmed that a report will be brought to a future meeting.

RESOLVED to:

a)    Take note of the Pay Policy Statement 2026-27;

b)    Recommend Council to note and approve the council’s statutory Pay Policy Statement 2026-27 for updating on the council’s public website.

The information in this case is exempt in that it falls within the following prescribed categories: 

2. Information which is likely to reveal the identity of an individual. 

and since it is considered that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information. 

To approve the exempt minutes of the meeting held on 7 January 2026 and to receive information arising from them.

It was agreed that the public be excluded during the consideration of items 6 and 7 since it was likely that if they were present during that discussion there would be a disclosure of "exempt" information as described in Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act, 1972 and specified below the item in the Agenda.

RESOLVED:

That the exempt minutes of the meeting held on 7 January 2025 be approved and signed as an accurate record of the proceedings.

Report by Director of HR and Cultural Change

The information in this case is exempt in that it falls within the following prescribed categories: 

3. Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information). 

and since it is considered that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information. 

Members considered the exempt report in private.  A decision was deferred with a request for more information and consultation.