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Full Council meetings: public questions, statements and petitions

At Full Council meetings, you have the opportunity to ask questions or submit a statement or petition. 

This applies to all meeting except for the Annual meeting and Extraordinary meetings.

You have the option to:

  • attend the meeting in person
  • join remotely through hybrid link
  • request that a nominated person or Council officer read your submission on your behalf or request a written response
Participation

A period of up to one hour is allocated for all questions, statements and petitions.

The Lord Mayor decides how questions, petitions, and statements are shown at the meeting. They also choose if you can present your contribution yourself or if it is read out at the meeting.

You will receive a response to your question or petition from the Leader of the Council or the appropriate Committee Chair.

If you are not able to attend the meeting, your question or petition may be referred to the appropriate Member. A written response will then be provided to you. 

Order of participation

The order for receiving public participations within the allocated time is:

  • Petitions
  • Questions relating to the agenda of the specific Full Council meeting
  • Supplementary questions to written questions relating to the remit of the Full Council
  • Statements

If time runs out or a Member opts to respond in writing:

  • you’ll receive a reply within 10 working days
  • responses will be published online
Submission rules

You can have a maximum of two participations in any meeting, such as a written question and a statement, or a verbal question and a statement.

The following arrangements apply to all types of question and statements:

  • your written question, supplementary question, verbal question or statement must not exceed 200 words
  • a question may have multiple linked parts, which will be considered as one question (as long as it is within the 200-word limit)
  • any pre-amble or introductory remarks must be included in the 200-word limit

Details of how we will use and keep your information can be found on our privacy notice.

Submission exclusions

Petitions, questions or statements will not be permitted if they relate to:

  • judicial or quasi-judicial matters
  • individual planning/licence/grant applications or appeals
  • identifiable officers or Members of the Council
  • confidential matters of the type referred to in Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972
  • matters which are repetitious, including questions which are substantially the same as questions asked at other meetings of the Council or Committees within
  • the previous six months
  • matters of an irrelevant, defamatory, frivolous or offensive nature or a general misuse of the opportunity
Submission deadlines

Participations must be submitted within a number of clear working days before the meeting. A clear working day does not count bank holidays. 

If you do not meet these deadlines, your question or statement will be deferred to the next meeting of the Full Council, unless you withdraw your submission.

The submission deadlines for meetings of the Full Council can be found on our Dates of Meetings and Deadlines webpage.

Dates of Meetings and Deadlines

Deadlines for questions, statements and petitions

Written questions relating to the remit of the Full Council

You must submit your question in writing by 9 am and six clear working days before the meeting.

 

Supplementary questions

If you have submitted a remit written question, you can submit a supplementary question that arises directly from your original written question and/or the response.

You must submit your supplementary question in writing by 9 am on the working day before the relevant meeting. 

 

Questions relevant to items on a published agenda

You must submit your question in writing by 9 am and two clear working days before the scheduled meeting.

Statements

Statements relevant to the remit of the Full Council must be received in writing by 9 am and 6 clear working days before the scheduled meeting.

Statements relevant to items on the published agenda for the specific Full Council meeting must be received in writing by 9 am, two clear working days before the scheduled meeting.

Petitions

You must submit your petition in writing by 9 am at least 2 working days in advance of the date of the meeting.

Submission responses

Written questions relating to the remit of the Full Council

Written questions will only receive a written response and will not be read out in the meeting. There is no requirement for you to attend the meeting, however you can if you wish to do so.

A response to your written question will be sent to you and published one clear day before the relevant meeting.

Supplementary questions

A verbal response may be provided in the meeting, however, if this is not possible due to lead times, you will receive a response within 10 clear working days.

Questions relevant to items on a published agenda

A verbal response may be provided in the meeting, however, if this is not possible due to lead times, you will receive a response within 10 clear working days.

Statements

All statements will be published online the working day before the relevant meeting and circulated to all Members of the Council.  

Statements can be read out at the relevant meeting and there is no commitment to responding to a statement.

 

How to submit a question, statement or petiton

Submitting a question or statement

All questions and statements must be sent by email to publicquestions@sheffield.gov.uk by the submission deadlines. 

Submitting a petition

Email your petition to committee@sheffield.gov.uk or through the e-petition facility on our Current ePetitions web page.

Contact Democratic Services

Town Hall
Pinstone Street
Sheffield
S1 2HH

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