Summary: This complaint is about the Council’s decision not to investigate his complaint about a councillor. The Ombudsman does not intend to investigate the complaint because we are unlikely to find fault in the Council’s actions.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mr X, complains the Council failed to seek further information or clarification from him about his complaint that a parish councillor had breached the code of conduct.
2. He says the stress caused by the councillor’s actions led him to resign his post as parish clerk.
3. Mr X wants the Ombudsman to:
• review the Council’s complaints procedure
• require the Council to reopen the complaint against the parish councillor; and
• pay him compensation for the stress, anxiety and loss of income caused by its failure to carry out an investigation.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A (6), as amended)

5. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered the information provided by Mr X and the Council. Mr X can commented on the draft version of this decision.

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What I found

7. Mr X was the clerk to a parish council. He complained to the Council that one of the parish councillors (the councillor) had breached the code of conduct by:
• Bullying and intimidating him
• Intimidating complainants or witnesses; and
• Failing to declare a personal interest
8. The Council considered his complaint according to its procedure for dealing with complaints about councillors.
9. The procedure says the Council’s Monitoring Officer may, at any time during the process, seek further information from the complainant, the councillor, or the parish clerk.
10. Having established the code of conduct was in force during the event Mr X complains about, the Council says it considered:
• Mr X’s complaint and supporting information
• The parish council code of conduct
• The councillor’s response to the complaint
• The views of the Independent Person; and
• The process for dealing with code of conduct complaints
11. Having considered the above the Council decided there was no evidence in the correspondence between Mr X and the councillor to support the allegation of bullying or intimidation.
12. It also confirmed that, although there was an initial delay in declaring a personal interest, once he had received advice that he should do so, the councillor declared a personal interest. As this is within the agreed protocol, the Council decided the council had not breached the code of conduct.
13. Dissatisfied with the Council’s response, Mr X complained to the Ombudsman.

Assessment

14. In accordance with its procedures, the Council considered Mr X’s complaint against the councillor, consulted with the Independent Person, and sought a response from the councillor.
15. Mr X believes it incorrect for the Council to decide that no bullying or intimidation has occurred when it has not sought information from the personal who suffered from the alleged bullying and intimidation.
16. The Council’s procedure does not require it to make specific enquiries of the complainant. In response to my enquiries, the Council provided copies of the information it considered before responding to Mr X’s complaint. I have cross referenced this with information from Mr X. I confirm the Council has considered the emails provided to me by Mr X, having received them from the councillor.
17. The Ombudsman does not offer a right of appeal against a council’s decision on member conduct complaints, but we can consider if there was fault in the way the council considered the complaint.
18. The Council has decided there is no breach of the code of conduct. I have seen no evidence to show it has not followed its published procedure for dealing with such complaints.

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Final decision

19. I will not investigate this complaint. We are unlikely to find fault in the way the Council considered Mr X’s complaint.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman