Agenda item

Schedule prepared by the Monitoring Officer, attached

The Monitoring Officer will report verbally on the latest position with regard to the complaints listed and any issues arising from them and will present a proposal to change to reporting complaints to Standards Committee annually utilising a statistical approach, rather than presenting them to each meeting. This would provide the option to keep the same number of scheduled meetings and cancel Standards Committee meetings where there was no other business to transact.

The MO had reported on the first three complaints listed on the schedule at the November 2020 Standards Committee meeting. Those had been progressed since that meeting and that there were six new complaints.

2020/02

This complaint had been ongoing for some time and the IP, MO and Subject Member (SM) had held a number of meetings in an attempt to deal with the matter informally. Those meetings had been unsuccessful and the procedure had moved to the next stage. There was a possibility that a formal hearing would be necessary, however this would not happen until after the elections in May 2021.Complaint ongoing.

2020/05

Following an interview with the SM, the IP and MO had concluded that no breach of the code had occurred. No further action.

2020/06

The MO had reported at the November meeting that she had requested further information about this complaint. The MO had now received this and the IP and MO had concluded that the SM was not acting in their capacity as a Councillor and therefore no breach of the code had occurred. No further action.

2020/07

A member of the public had submitted a complaint against a Town/Parish Councillor alleging inappropriate behaviour and disrespect at a Wyre Council meeting that the SM had attended. On reviewing the recording and the minutes from the meeting, the IP and MO concluded that the SM was attending as a member of the public and therefore no breach of the code had occurred. No further action.

2020/08

Two complaints had been received about a Wyre Councillor and their activity on social media. The IP and MO had reviewed the postings and concluded no breach of the code had occurred. No further action.

2020/09

Although initially registered as a complaint, the MO had resolved the matter informally by providing advice to the Town/Parish council on how to deal with the matter that had occurred. No further action.

2020/10

A member of the public had complained about a Town/Parish Councillor. Since the publishing of the papers for this meeting, a meeting with the SM has taken place. The MO had requested further information from the complainant to support the allegations. Complaint on-going.

2021/01
Complaint from two Wyre Councillors about another Wyre Councillor’s behaviour at a Council meeting. The IP and MO had viewed the recordings of the meetings and interviewed the SM. In the process of being concluded.

2021/02

Complaint from a Wyre Councillor about the behaviour of a number of Wyre Councillors at a Council meeting, with allegations of a number of principles having been breached. The IP and MO had viewed the recordings, held discussions with Members and had dealt with the matter informally. In the process of being concluded.

Behaviour at virtual meetings

One of the complainants had also passed comment on the behaviour of some of the Wyre Councillors at a meeting stating that some members were not paying attention or looked disinterested, etc. The MO explained that although that might not specifically breach the Code, it could give a negative impression to the public about how the council carries out its business and asked that Members remember that, during webcast meetings, the public could observe every move and facial expression.

The MO also made a general point ,stating that having access to the recordings of meetings has been beneficial when reviewing complaints and that going forward, as long as meetings were being streamed, the recordings would be retained for 6 months online. The MO would retain the recordings for a further 12 months in an archive to assist with the process of dealing with complaints.

Future Reporting

The MO said by members of the committee and had raised the issue of reporting of complaints previously and that she was conscious of having to maintain a balance, when going through the schedule, between updating members fully and withholding any information that might compromise any future formal process. She had therefore considered whether it could be done differently at future meetings. Discussions with the Democratic Services team had taken place and they had undertaken research to determine what process other councils were following regarding the reporting of complaints.

She suggested that at future meetings the reporting of complaints the MO might provide the data in a more statistical manner. This could provide members with a breakdown of complaints that were occurring and whether they are Borough or Town/Parish and the types of allegations being reported. This could assist with future development and training for members as a whole. For example, if social media was generating a high number of complaints, we could support members with this.

The MO also suggested that the complaints only be reported twice yearly.

Decision

The committee agreed that the complaints summary would be provided biannually rather than to each meeting of the committee, that three Standard Committee meetings would be scheduled each year and that any meeting where there was no business to transact would, in consultation with the Chairman, be cancelled.

Mrs Hadgraft informed the committee that she had decided to finish working at Wyre and that it would be her last attendance at a Standards Committee meeting. The Chairman wished her the very best in her retirement and the committee expressed their gratitude for her contribution whilst in the MO role.