Scrutiny
Every council has a scrutiny process in place, which involves a committee or a number of committees made up of councillors. These committees hold the council's decision-makers to account publicly.
The Lambeth scrutiny system explained, including scrutiny committees and sub-committees, and how you can get involved.
Lambeth has six scrutiny committees: the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, which oversees and co-ordinates the work of the sub-committees and the scrutiny function in general; and five cross-cutting sub-committees, which cover issues arising from all the council's services.
Every year the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and sub-committees agree on areas for in depth investigation and review. For each of these topics an individual commission (a working group) with between three and five non-Cabinet councillors is set up.