A SHAKE-UP to make a council more accountable has been given the go-ahead by councillors - despite criticism that it does not go far enough.

Darlington Borough Council is to become more accessible to the public and accountable after councillors approved plans to increase community involvement and set up a group to look at the council's constitution.

But opposition councillors say the measures don't go far enough and have renewed calls for all the scrutiny committees to be chaired by opposition councillors.

Councillors hope to foster closer relationships with community groups through the new arrangements.

Methods of opening up the council's work to scrutiny include publicising the right of members of the public to question council members at cabinet meetings.

Four times a year, the council will hold events where residents can learn about the council's history and have a tour of the town hall.

An effort to increase communication with the borough's different geographical areas will also be made through quarterly drop-in sessions held at different locations in the borough, which may take a question time-style format.

The council will also hold an annual conference to consult the public and bodies it works with on its corporate plan, which lays down proposals for long-term development.

A task and finish review group - consisting of two councillors from the ruling Labour group, one Liberal Democrat, one Conservative and an independent councillor - has been set up to look at the council's governing arrangements.

At Thursday's full council meeting, Councillor Heather Scott, leader of the opposition, renewed the request for an overhaul of scrutiny.

There are five scrutiny committees monitoring the council's work, four of which are chaired by Labour councillors.

She said: "If you actually say that scrutiny is non-political and democratic, why do you have to have control of it?"

She said that most of the other North-East councils' scrutiny committees were chaired by opposition councillors.

Council leader John Williams said it was more democratic for most scrutiny chairmen to be Labour councillors, as this was the majority group.

"How many Conservative councils have opposition chairs for scrutiny committees?" he said.

"I would say this is for the working group to look at."