Complain about a councillor

The Standards Committee can only deal with complaints about the behaviour of a Member. It can’t deal with complaints about things that are not covered by the Members Code of Conduct.

If you make a complaint to the Standards Committee it must be about why you think a Member has not followed the Code of Conduct.

To make a complaint, download and complete the complaint form. It can either be:

• completed by hand and posted to the Council’s Monitoring Officer
• completed on a computer and emailed to the Standards Committee
• printed and then posted

Contact details are provided on the form. To request a paper copy, contact the Monitoring Officer.

Behaviour covered by the Members Code of Conduct:

• failing to treat people with respect
• doing something to prevent those who work for the authority from being unbiased
• revealing information that was given to them in confidence, or stopping someone getting information they are entitled to by law
• damaging the reputation of their office or authority
• using their position improperly, to their own or someone else’s advantage or disadvantage
• misusing their authority’s resources
• allowing their authority’s resources to be misused for the activities of a registered political party
• failing to register disclosable pecuniary interests
• taking part in a meeting or making a decision where they have an interest that is so significant that it is likely to affect their judgement
• failing to register any gifts or hospitality that they have received in their role as a member worth over £50

Following the receipt and acknowledgement of a complaint, the authority’s Monitoring Officer will decide within 28 working days:

1. whether the allegation if proven would constitute a failure to observe the Code of Conduct for Members
2. if it would constitute such a failure, whether the allegation is to be investigated. This decision will be guided by the authority’s assessment criteria. The assessment criteria is set out in the Local Arrangements document above.  
3. where the decision is not to investigate the allegation, the Monitoring Officer can pursue an alternative course of action such as training for the Member concerned or conciliation between the complainant and the Member

The Monitoring Officer is required to produce a summary of their decision, and to send it to the complainant and to the Member concerned unless to do so would in the opinion of the Monitoring Officer prejudice a subsequent investigation.

If an allegation is considered to require investigation, the Monitoring Officer will arrange for the local investigation of the allegation.

If the allegation is upheld and a breach of the Code of Conduct is found, the Standards Committee (or its sub-committee) have a range of sanctions available to them.

Any queries regarding the complaints process should be directed to:

The Monitoring Officer
North Tyneside Council
Quadrant
The Silverlink North
Cobalt Business Park
North Tyneside
NE27 0BY

Email: standards@northtyneside.gov.uk