Portfolio Knowledgebase
Structured, up-to-date reference material for each councillor's portfolio area
The problem
Good decisions depend on understanding what has come before—what has been tried, what was agreed, what the debates were, and how performance has tracked over time. That information exists, spread across years of meetings, reports, and agenda packs. But it is not structured or easy to draw on, and surfacing it reliably takes more time than members typically have.
The result is that decision-makers are often working from an incomplete picture—not because the record doesn't exist, but because it isn't accessible. This affects all members, and it is sharpest for those who are new to a portfolio, where there is no accumulated experience to fall back on. The shortfall is typically made up by Democratic Services officers fielding repeated ad hoc requests for background and context.
What we're building
A continually updated knowledgebase for each portfolio area, drawing on the structured meeting and decision data OCN already collects. Rather than one-off briefing documents that quickly become out of date, the knowledgebase is always current and organised around the questions councillors and officers actually need to answer.
📊 Recent decisions and activity
What has been decided in this portfolio area, when, and by whom—clearly summarised and searchable.
📈 Trends and key themes
Patterns across time—recurring issues, evolving debates, and the direction of travel on key topics.
🔍 Authoritative reference material
Structured summaries of meetings, reports, and decisions—always linked to the original source for verification.
🔄 Continually updated
As new meetings happen and decisions are made, the knowledgebase updates automatically—no manual maintenance required.
Who it's for
🏛️ New councillors
Get up to speed on your portfolio area quickly, without depending entirely on officer briefings.
📋 Existing members
A reliable reference when preparing for meetings, scrutiny sessions, or public questions.
🗂️ Democratic Services officers
Reduce the volume of ad hoc briefing requests and point members to a consistent, authoritative source.
🧭 Scrutiny and policy teams
Quickly surface the history of a topic to support robust, evidence-based scrutiny.
We're developing this with councils
The Portfolio Knowledgebase is in active development. We're working with a small group of councils to shape what it covers, how it's structured, and how it fits into existing workflows.
If this addresses a real need for your Democratic Services team, members, or scrutiny officers, we'd welcome a conversation. Early participants can help shape the product and will benefit from priority access.
Help shape the Portfolio Knowledgebase
Tell us about the briefing burden your team faces and how a knowledgebase could help.