The Statutory Officer Development Programme bursary recognises the importance of developing the statutory role of Monitoring Officers and the need for equality of opportunity, regardless of the type of Council they are employed by, or its financial standing. 

The programme has received an amount of funding through the LGA Improvement Support Grant 24/25 to commit to a bursary scheme for local government Monitoring Officers. 

Seven bursaries of £1430 will be available each year within the overall cohort of paid participants on each programme. Bursary applications will be assessed on a case-by-case basis based on ability to pay, and places allocated to those legally qualified and those not legally qualified undertaking the role of Monitoring officer, subject to meeting the bursary requirements, on a first come first served basis. Reasons for decisions will be given but no correspondence will be entered into following the determination letter. 

To apply for an LGA Inspire bursary, you must meet the following criteria: 

• Be a newly appointed or experienced Section 151 Officer or Monitoring Officer employed by a best value authority as defined by Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1999 in England. 
• Complete an application form in which you confirm that without the bursary, you  would not be able to attend the training due to prevailing financial constraints at your place of work with a supporting statement authorised by your Local Authority Chief Executive. 
• Set out clearly how the programme would meet your development needs and support you in your statutory role. 
• Provide evidence of the need for partial support to join the programme,  
• Be capable of taking up a place and be committed to participating fully in all elements of the programme.  
• To apply:  Download and complete the application form in the 'bursary application' tab below.

The LLG Inspire bursary scheme applies to aspiring monitoring officers who are lawyers and members of LLG. 

Five bursaries of £1430 will be available each year within the overall cohort of paid participants on each programme.  

Bursary applications will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, and places allocated’ on a first come first served basis. Reasons for decisions will be given but no correspondence will be entered into following the determination letter. 

To apply for an LLG Inspire bursary, you must meet the following criteria: 

• Aspire to become a Monitoring Officer employed in a local authority in England. 
• Set out clearly how the programme would meet your development needs and support you in your statutory role. 
• Provide evidence of the need for partial support to join the programme. 
• Be capable of taking up a place and be committed to participating fully in all elements of the programme.  
• To apply:  Download and complete the application form in the 'bursary application' tab below.

The ADSO Inspire bursary scheme applies to Monitoring Officers, Deputies and aspiring Monitoring Officers who are democratic services / governance officers and members of ADSO. 

Five bursaries (up to 100% of cost) of will be available each year within the overall cohort of paid participants on each programme.  

Bursary applications will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, and places allocated’ on a first come first served basis. Reasons for decisions will be given but no correspondence will be entered into following the determination letter. 

To apply for an ADSO Inspire bursary, you must meet the following criteria: 

• Be an ADSO member 
• Be a Monitoring Officer, Deputy MO or aspire to be so and employed in a local authority in England. 
• Set out clearly how the programme would meet your development needs and support you in your statutory role. 
• Provide evidence of the need for full or partial support to join the programme. 
• Be capable of taking up a place and be committed to participating fully in all elements of the programme. 
• To apply:  Download and complete the application form in the 'bursary application' tab below.

Following receipt of a bursary award, the applicant is required to attend the whole course for which the monies have been provided unless there are exceptional circumstances which preclude attendance, or the course has been cancelled. 

Where the course, or an event within the course has been cancelled and reorganised to another date and time, the applicant is expected to use their best endeavours to attend the course.  

In any case where an applicant does not complete the course for which bursary monies have been paid, they must notify LLG / ADSO and repay the bursary amount within 28 days of non-attendance/cancellation. 

Where an applicant does not complete the course, LLG / ADSO may waive repayment of bursary amount in exceptional circumstances. The applicant must notify LLG of the reasons within 14 days of the date of the course/event having not been attended. LLG will determine any waive at its own discretion having considered the facts presented with evidence where appropriate. 

Please complete your statement in the form attachment below and submit to: training@llg.org.uk 

For general enquiries please contact: membership@llg.org.uk

Application form

Training will begin 30 September 2024. The in-person introduction to the programme will be held at the LLG Governance Conference.  All Inspire delegates will join the Governance Conference for the full day programme, an ideal opportunity to meet your Inspire colleagues along with senior leaders, Monitoring Officers and Deputy Monitoring Officers attending the conference.

The cost is £2750 + Vat for the 9-month programme and includes access to webinars, online training, the Governance Conference, and a number of in person and online events, along with mentoring.  

Three types of bursaries are available for this programme, for delegates employed by a best value authority as defined by  Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1999 in England. 

Delegates must complete an application form in which they confirm that without the bursary, they would not be able to attend the training due to prevailing financial constraints at their place of work. Evidence or third party confirmation may be requested. 

Only one bursary per programme and per candidate can be applied for and will be awarded on a first come first served basis. 

Bursary options are as follows: 

• LGA Sector-led Improvement Support Programme bursary, UK Government Funded for existing monitoring officers to be able to access the training.  A 50% bursary is available to both lawyers and democratic services officers.  
• LLG members who aspire to be monitoring officers can apply for 50% bursary funding from LLG. 
• ADSO members who are monitoring officers, deputies and aspiring to those positions can apply for 50% bursary funding from ADSO.   
• Information about the LLG Inspire Bursary Schemes and the application form is available in the Bursaries section above

The programme will offer c60 hours of training over a 9-month period, the equivalent of 1 full day training a month. Delegates will begin by undertaking self-assessment to establish their current skills, any gaps, and identify development needs. Delegates also have access to the Inspire Hub offering useful documents including the Code of Practice on Good Governance for Statutory Officers, the Core Competencies for Monitoring Officers, and optional online learning.  

For all enquiries about LLG’s Inspire programme and to reserve your place for the September 2024 start date contact the LLG Team by email on training@llg.org.uk or click here to book now.