The Local Access Forums (England) Regulations 2002

Proceedings of a local access forum

6.—(1) Subject to the following paragraphs of this regulation and to regulations 7, 8 and 9, the proceedings (including the quorum) relating to the meetings of a local access forum shall be such as it may determine.

(2) A local access forum shall hold no fewer than two meetings every year.

(3) A local access forum shall have a chairman and a vice-chairman, who shall be appointed by election from amongst the members of the forum.

(4) The first chairman and vice-chairman of a local access forum shall be appointed at the first meeting of the forum.

(5) The period of appointment of the chairman and vice-chairman shall be determined by the local access forum, but in each case it may not exceed the period of appointment as a member of the forum.

(6) With a view to maintaining a reasonable balance between the interests of which the chairman and vice-chairman are respectively representative, a local access forum shall take such steps (as regards the selection of candidates for election as chairman and vice-chairman, determining the order in which they are appointed or the duration of their appointments as such, any combination of these or otherwise) as may be necessary to ensure that so far as practicable the chairman or the vice-chairman or each of them is a person who on his appointment as a member of the forum was eligible to be so appointed—

(a) on any basis mentioned in regulation 4(3) other than any on which the other was eligible to be so appointed, or

(b) (where each was appointed in accordance with regulation 4(3)(c)) on the basis of an interest other than any which was the basis on which the other was eligible to be so appointed.

(7) A member of a local access forum who is directly or indirectly interested in any matter brought up for consideration at a meeting of the forum shall disclose the nature of his interest to the meeting.