To enable the committee to be assured that high standards of conduct continue to be promoted and maintained. To provide an overview of how the arrangements for dealing with complaints are working together.

Committee members were informed that over the six?month review period 29 complaints were received. A long?term trend showed complaints had generally fallen since 2013, although this period (since April 2025) had seen numbers similar to the whole of the previous year because several complaints related to the same incidents and multiple councillors.

None of the complaints concerned Herefordshire Council members. Around 40% were parish or town councillors complaining about other parish or town councillors. Over the past three years, 34 such complaints were made, but only three progressed to investigation; the rest required no further action. Although most cases are dismissed early, they still required significant council resources to assess.

During this period, only one case was referred for investigation; two older cases remain on hold due to other statutory processes. 28 complaints were closed at initial assessment.

Sanctions recommended by the Monitoring Officer were generally followed, except in two cases involving Ledbury Town Council. Decision notices are published on the council’s website.

The report noted efforts to promote an informal resolution, as agreed in July, aimed at reducing formal hearings. Feedback so far from parish and town councils had been mostly negative, with many saying the approach would not work for them. Thanks were given to the officer team managing and dealing with code of conduct complaints. 

Committee members and attending participants drew attention to the effectiveness of the current standards complaints process and whether the system truly serves the electorate.   Some examples were offered to contextualise this view – notably around the external frameworks that interplay with code of conduct issues:

• Delays caused by external processes – some complaints cannot be progressed because they are tied up in criminal proceedings that may not conclude until after the next council elections.
• Limited enforceability of sanctions – in some cases, recommended sanctions cannot be applied, weakening public confidence in the standards system.
• Some parish councils are unable to operate effectively due to internal disputes, with no mechanism for the council to intervene under current rules or legislation.

There was a good degree of interest about the current government review of the standards regime where some of these issues would be explored and may be addressed.

It was noted that the review would consider reforms to the Localism Act, noting that a mandatory code of conduct and new powers such as suspension are being considered.  Further updates are expected from national government around September/October 2026, although timings remain uncertain.

Members considered the proposal for informal resolutions of code of conduct complaints. The potential of this approach could reduce the current resource?intensive and costly resolution process.  Following consultation, however, there had been limited interest from Parish Councils, and at least one recent case could have been resolved informally but was forced to proceed formally.

Members discussed whether it was the right time to take a formal proposal on informal resolution to full Council. The general view was that more work was needed. Members would like to see and understand the views from the consultation feedback from parish and town councils to inform their proposals going forward. 

Resolved, that the Committee: 

a)         notes the update on the Code of Conduct complaints arrangements in respect to the first six months of 2025/26 to end of September 2025;

b)         notes the initial response from Parish and Town Councils (PTCs) in relation to the concept of an Informal Resolution Protocol (IRP); and

c)         on the basis that IRP is optional, to not recommend to full Council to adopt the change to the Code of Conduct arrangements at the current time.

Actions

2025/26-10 Informal resolution process to be brought back to the next meeting of Audit and Governance for consideration; this in turn to inform whether there is scope to update the code of conduct to include an informal resolution option. Consideration to be given, also, as to whether an informal resolution proposal be included in the constitutional updates being considered at the next AGM Council meeting.

2025/26-11 Full analysis of the consultation with Town and Parish Council on their views around the informal resolution process would be provided to committee members.