Agenda item

Considered –

The report of the Assistant Chief Executive Legal and Democratic Services and  Monitoring Officer presenting to the Committee, for information and consideration, statistical information regarding standards complaints received.

During the period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024, the Council received 174 complaints that members may have breached the relevant authority’s Code of Conduct for Members.

During the period 1 April 2024 to 6 June 2024, a further 49 complaints have been received.

Since Vesting Day on 1 April 2023 to 6 June 2024, a total of 223 standards complaints have therefore been received.

The Committee noted from the Complaints Update report that;

·       In total, 179 assessments have been completed by the Monitoring Officer and Deputy Monitoring Officer in consultation with the Independent Persons for Standards.

·       A high proportion of these complaints were connected complaints in respect of Members of three Town/Parish Councils.

·       Of the 179 complaints which have so far been assessed, 145 complaints did not merit any further action,  5 complaints were recommended for informal resolution, 28 complaints were referred for investigation and 1 complaint was closed as the subject Member was no longer a Councillor.

The Committee further noted that:

• One of the investigations (covering 11 connected complaints) has been completed and the complaint determined. The Investigation Report was referred to, and considered by, the Standards and Governance Committee Hearings Panel, in consultation with the Independent Person and an independent parish council representative, on 11 June 2024, when the Panel determined the complaint in private, given the sensitive personal data involved. The Panel concluded that the subject Members had not breached the relevant authority’s Code of Conduct for Members. It made some recommendations back to the relevant authority. At the end of the hearing, the Panel again considered the issue of the privacy of the documentation and concluded that the exempt nature of the documentation should be maintained and that there should be no publicity regarding the outcome of the complaints.

·       After the Panel had completed its determination of the complaints, the Deputy Monitoring Officer consulted the Panel under the Standards and Governance Committee’s Protocol for dealing with Unreasonably Persistent/Vexatious Complainants. The Panel agreed that the allegations by the complainant had been investigated and determined and that any further complaints by the complainant on essentially the same issues as have already been assessed by the Monitoring Officer and/or then investigated and determined by the Panel do not need to be considered by the Monitoring Officer through the assessment process in the usual way.

Thanks were noted to the Independent Persons for their involvement and time in the assessment, consideration and determination of standards complaints.

A discussion followed with the following to note;

A Member asked if a complainant is allowed to share the details of a case. It was confirmed that standards complaints are treated as strictly confidential unless and until a Hearings Panel orders otherwise.  If a complainant wished to waive their own confidentiality then that was a matter for them, however they would need to be careful not share any third party personal information.

It was noted that changing culture and the increased media coverage that is in place today would suggest that the number of future complaints would perhaps not be likely to reduce and this, in turn, would give rise to the continued increased workload that this is currently creating for the Council.

The Monitoring Officer agreed and quoted the following national figures to the Committee:

·       86.6 % of Councils had less than 100 Parish and Town Councils

·       97.5 % had less than 200 Parish and Town Councils

·       The next highest figure is Somerset Council with 327

·       North Yorkshire Council has 664.

It was acknowledged that resource needs to match the number of complaints accordingly.

It was asked how these figures compared to previously recorded numbers from the District and Borough Councils. The Monitoring Officer confirmed that figures were higher than previously and at an exceptional level.

The time taken to assess and handle all the complaints was substantial.

It was asked what the cost to the Council, in terms of hours,  this work would be and could it be reported back to the Committee, along with complaint rates and figures comparisons from other authorities.  

It was noted that the cost would differentiate for each case and the stage of the process it reached,  but the spend in hours on officer time would provide a meaningful comparator.

Resolved –

That the report be noted and some potential comparator complaint figures and costings be brought to the next Committee meeting for information.