Complaints - Council Members

Complaints about Member Conduct

On 8 May 2008, responsibility for dealing with complaints that a Borough, Town or Parish Councillor may have breached the Code of Conduct passed from the Standards Board for England to Stafford Borough Council's Standards Committee.

The Code sets out a number of general principles which Councillors must follow when undertaking their public duties and covers issues such as:-

• standards of personal behaviour;
• relationships with members of the public, paid council officials and other councillors;
• procedures for registering and declaring personal interests;
• procedures for dealing with any offers of gifts or hospitality.

What is the Code of Conduct?

As part of the ethical framework for local government set out in the Local Government Act 2000, every Councillor when elected, and before they take up office, has to sign a declaration agreeing to abide by their Council's Code of Conduct.

A full copy of the Borough Council's Code of Conduct is included in Part 5 of the Council's Constitution and is available to download - Code of Conduct for Members.  Alternatively, a hard copy is available on request from the Council's Monitoring Officer.

Copies of Parish/Town Council Codes of Conduct are available directly from the relevant Council.  Contact details for each Council can be found on the following link - Parish Clerks/Councils.

How do I make a Complaint?

Complaints must be made in writing, preferably using the Council's standard complaint form, and addressed to the Council's Monitoring Officer:

Alistair Welch
Head of Law and Administration
Stafford Borough Council
Civic Centre
Riverside
Stafford  ST16 3AQ

Tel No:   01785 619204
Fax No:  01785 619619
email:     legalservices@staffordbc.gov.uk

The relevant complaint form, together with additional guidance, can be found using the following link - Additional Guidance on Submitting Complaints.  Use of the complaints form should ensure that you provide all information that will be required by the Standards Committee in assessing your complaint.