New complaints procedure

Members of the public concerned about councillors' conduct can now make complaints directly to the council.

Previously, anyone wishing to complain about the conduct of councillors had to report their allegations to the Standards Board for England, who would decide whether or not to investigate.  This responsibility has now been taken over by local authorities, with the Standards Board's role moving towards one of advice and support.

All councillors have to keep to a code of conduct to ensure that they maintain the high ethical standards the public expect from them.  Complaints will be referred to an assessment sub-committee of the Standards Committee.  It can only deal with complaints about the behaviour of a member so complainants will need to explain why they think the councillor has not followed the code of conduct.  The sub-committee will not deal with complaints about things that are not covered in the councillors' code of conduct. 

If a complainant reports that a potential breach of this code has taken place, we may refer the allegation for investigation or decide to take other action.  Investigations themselves will also be managed by the council, except in cases where a conflict of interest or other unusual circumstances mean that it would be more appropriate for the Standards Board to do it.

Once cases have been investigated, the authority's independently chaired Standards Committee will decide what action, if any, should be taken against the councillor.  On rare occasions this responsibility will be given to the Adjudication Panel for England, an independent judicial tribunal.

The Standards Board will continue to provide guidance to authority standards committees and will monitor their effectiveness to ensure that results are consistent.

Jill Coule, Head of Legal and Democratic Services and Monitoring Officer for the council, said: "Handling and investigating complaints at a local level will give us the opportunity to take control of our ethical standards.  This should streamline the process for both the complainant and the councillor under investigation.

"Naturally, we expect high standards of behaviour among our councillors and we will continue to make every effort to ensure that such standards are maintained.  The majority of members will never find themselves subject to an investigation, but for the small number of cases where there is cause for concern, we will aim to deal with the allegations quickly and efficiently."

To make a complaint about the conduct of a ward councillor or a member of one of the five parish/town councils in the borough, write to:

• Standards Committee
  c/o Democratic Services
  Hertsmere Borough Council
  Civic Offices
  Borehamwood
  Herts
  WD6 1WA 

Alternatively complaints can be submitted by email to standardscommittee@hertsmere.gov.uk or by fax to 020 8207 7482. 

View the Councillors' Code of Conduct