Strong local government demands high standards of conduct and a solid ethical framework. It falls upon the Standards Committee to ensure that this is in place. The Council has adopted a Code of Conduct for Members which covers individual behaviour, and includes rules about members' disclosure of interests.
The Code and its preamble are available on the Constitution pages of the website: This also contains the Council’s employee code of conduct including the whistleblowing policy. Other legislation requires that councils seek continuous improvement, provide fair treatment, promote equality and do not discriminate. The Committee makes the links between these issues and the Code of Conduct.
The Committee consists of five Councillors, two Parish Councillors and six independent Members one of whom acts as Chair of the Committee.
The current membership of the Standards Committee is:
Parish Councillor Hazel Gloster
Parish Councillor William Cullen
Alan Moran (C) - Independent Member
Ian Hargreaves(VC) - Independent Member
Elisabeth Bailey - Independent Member
Dr Franklyn Baker - Independent Member
Mark Iveson - Independent Member
Isabel Lunn - Independent Member
The Committee meets regularly throughout the year, and you are very welcome to attend. You will find the Agenda and Minutes at (Link to the executive decision making system (EDRS) for Agenda and Minutes.)
The Terms of Reference for the Committee can be found in the Council’s Constitution.
An Independent Member is a person who has no connection with the Council and is not a member of any political party.
He/she is appointed for a four year term of office, and the term of office of one of the Independent Members will expire each year. A recruitment process takes place to select Independent Members which starts with an advert in our local newspapers.
The Committee's key roles are to promote and maintain high standards of conduct by Borough Councillors, Parish Councillors and Co-opted Members and to assist them in observing the Council's Code of Conduct. The Committee also has responsibility for considering complaints that a member may have breached the Code of Conduct. The Code of Conduct is underpinned by its preamble which covers the following principles:
1.Selflessness
2.Honesty and integrity
3.Objectivity
4.Accountability
5.Openness
6.Personal judgement
7.Respect for others
8.Duty to uphold the law
9.Stewardship
10.Leadership
The Code informs Members of their obligations in carrying out their duties when conducting council business and provides advice on what action they should take if they have a personal or prejudicial interest in a matter which is under discussion.
The Councillor's Code of Conduct can be viewed as part of the Council’s Constitution.
If you would like to submit a question, comments or suggestions regarding a Standards related issue please email the Head of Constitutional Services, Karen Mellor.
For further information on standards within Local Government visit The Standards Board for England website or should you wish to raise any standards related matter confidentially you can also email the Council’s Director of Legal & Democratic Services and Monitoring Officer, Aileen Johnson or telephone on 0161 770 4811.