Latest on complaints against South Tyneside councillors after reports hit 'very, very high' levels

The latest meeting of South Tyneside Council’s standards committee heard there were currently 18 open complaints under the elected members’ code of conduct.

A report to the panel when they previously met in September had noted there had been 51 open complaints at the time – meaning more than 30 have been closed over the past three months.

Additionally no new code of conduct complaints have been received during this time.

Of the 18 open complaints against councillors, 11 are at the “formal investigation” stage, while the remaining seven have seen “complaints received with evidence.”

The overall number of complaints since recording started in January 2020 therefore remains at 328.

Council officers previously admitted South Tyneside had seen a “very, very high” number of complaints compared to neighbouring councils, as well as noting the resource implications of investigating such complaints.

A report from local authority chiefs stressed “every effort is being made to process complaints quickly, and specifically to conclude formal investigations” – while informal resolution “must always be considered at each stage” of the process.

Where an investigator’s final report concludes there has been a failure by a councillor to comply with the Code of Conduct, it is referred to the standards committee for a “formal hearing.”

The officer report noted there are “many factors that can affect the time it takes to complete both informal and formal investigations” – including capacity, complexity, competing priorities and the responsiveness of those involved.

It comes as the committee has “previously been made aware of the significant delays in the time it has or continues to take to complete several outstanding formal investigations.”

At a previous meeting council legal and governance chiefs highlighted how a new timescale has been introduced which requires action to be taken with respect to a complaint within 21 working days of it being received.

The measures introduced also mean complaints will be rejected if evidence and additional information has been requested from the complainant and it isn’t provided within 21 days.

The report from officers did note however that there are “formal investigations that have and are taking longer than six months to conclude”.

Officers noted “external investigators” have been appointed to carry out independent investigations against several complaints that have been referred for formal investigation.

Their report added: “It is hoped that draft reports will be provided as soon as all concerned are able to.”

Documents also noted where external investigators have been or are being used and appointed to conduct and report on formal investigations, the “costs of such appointments are in the region of £20,000 per investigation.”

Of the total 328 complaints against councillors received since January 2020, 171 complaints were from members of the public, 137 were from councillors, 11 were from officers and nine were from other individuals.

Of the cases which have been closed to date, around 70% were rejected by the monitoring officer, while just 3% have had to be closed after a hearing, a total of nine.

Recorded council data on complaints is anonymised unless the complaint is escalated to this formal hearing stage, where an investigating officer’s report outlines the context of the complaint, findings and recommended sanctions.