Agenda item

Councillor J Nicholson, Chair of the Standards Committee presented the annual report of the Standards Committee for the period 2022/23.

Councillor Nicholson informed Council that the report set out the Membership of the committee for the period, including the two new Parish and Town Council Co-opted Members who were appointed by Council in March 2023.  The report also referred to the interim appointment of Karen Milburn as Independent Person who had provided invaluable support whilst recruiting new Independent Persons.  Councillor Nicholson had written to Ms Milburn on behalf of the Committee to thank her for her support to the Committee and the Monitoring Officer during her short tenure.  The recruitment exercise for Independent Persons was conducted during the last quarter of the period and Councillor Nicholson was pleased to report that at the start of the new Municipal year there were three new Independent Persons alongside Alan Fletcher who was appointed in 2021.

The Committee’s Work Programme, which was consistent with the terms of reference was set out in the report at paragraph 14, and attached at Appendix 2.  The Committee had continued to monitor standards and governance issues nationally.  Council would recall that in December 2022 it had agreed to sign up to the LGA ‘Debate not Hate’ campaign.  Since then the Committee had continued to receive regular updates in relation to the campaign and had supported the Monitoring Officer to provide case studies to the LGA on the support available to councillors who encountered abuse and intimidation.

In respect of complaints there had been an increase in the number of complaints received during the year when compared with 2021/22.  The majority of complaints continued to relate to Town and Parish Councils, however there had been a slight increase in the number of complaints against County Councillors.  Whilst the number of complaints had increased, there was a decrease in the number of complaints where local resolution was recommended and an increase in the number of complaints where the outcome was ‘no further action’.  There had been no requirement to convene a Standards Committee Hearing Panel during the period. 

Looking ahead the Committee had agreed a Work Programme for 2023/24 which would continue to be a living document, which could be updated to reflect any developments within the Committee’s remit throughout the year.  The Committee looked forward to welcoming the new Independent Persons to their meetings following their recent induction training.

Finally, Councillor Nicholson thanked the Monitoring Officer and her team for their continued work with the Committee in assisting to ensure that high standards were achieved by all locally elected members, and she asked the Council to note the report.

Resolved:

That the report be noted.