02 02 2006

Membership:

 

 

Councillors Cully, Davis (P), Gill, Hayward (P), Kimber P) and Smith (P).

 

 

Independent Members:  Mr M J Heritage-Owen (P)

                                       Mr R V Perry (P)

 

 

It was reported that, in accordance with Standing Orders, notice had been received that Councillor Wright (P) would replace Councillor Cully for this meeting of the Committee.

 

 

 

 

Apologies for inability to attend the meeting were received from Councillor Cully.

 

 

 

 

There were no declarations of interest.

 

 

 

 

RESOLVED: That, subject to a minor typographical amendment, the Minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 14 July 2005 be approved and signed by the Chairman as a true and correct record.

 

 

 

 

There were no deputations.

 

 

 

 

There were no public questions.

 

 

 

Consideration was given to a report by the Borough Solicitor and Monitoring Officer advising the Committee on the progress being made on the Council’s customer complaints procedure and providing an update on complaints against the Council made to the Local Government Ombudsman.

 

It was noted that the Corporate Services Manager was now responsible for the administration of the Council’s procedure for dealing corporately with customer complaints and that the Monitoring Officer remained responsible for any complaints that had been referred to the Ombudsman.  The Corporate Services Manager was in the process of reviewing the procedure for corporate complaints as it was considered to be more efficient and effective to have customer focus under one manager.

 

The Chief Executive outlined the current practice and procedure of the various stages for dealing with a complaint, which were required before an issue could be referred to the Ombudsman.  In most cases, complaints were resolved before being referred as an issue for consideration by the Ombudsman.

 

The Borough Solicitor and Monitoring Officer reported that since July 2005, two complaints had been received by the Ombudsman, only one of which was being pursued.  In the other case, the Ombudsman decided to exercise his discretion not to investigate.

 

The Committee noted that a sum of £750 had been paid as compensation in a local settlement, in respect of a complaint about service provision.  Local settlements were usually made following recommendations from the Ombudsman.

 

In answer to a question about personal injury, the Committee were informed that claims of this nature against the Council would be dealt with through the Council’s insurers.

 

The Committee discussed the determination of complaints, how Members could be made aware of issues and settlements and whether decisions should be referred to and/or made by relevant Boards of the Council.  As part of the review of the Council’s complaints procedure, the Corporate Services Manager would be considering how evaluation of complaints could be assessed, monitored and recorded.

 

The Committee were assured that all the points made at the meeting would be taken into account as part of the review of the complaints procedure.

 

RESOLVED:  That the report of the Borough Solicitor and Monitoring Officer be noted.

 

 

Consideration was given to the report of the Borough Solicitor and Monitoring Officer, advising the Committee of progress in a number of areas of work.

 

The process of reviewing the Council’s democratic arrangements had begun, concentrating on the Council’s decision-making and scrutiny structures.  A Member Working Group was assisting in the process and, in addition, all Councillors and Service Units had been asked to comment on the present arrangements and invited to make suggestions for improvements.

 

The Borough Solicitor and Monitoring Officer would welcome any further comments and suggestions from Members by the end of February.  Feedback on the review would be provided for the Committee and it was proposed to submit a report to full Council on 6 April 2006 for approval to proposed changes to the democratic arrangements.

 

The Committee were informed that the review of Contract Standing Orders, Financial Regulations and Codes of Conduct/protocols might not be concluded by April, as there were a number of Bodies currently proposing changes to the model documents.  A summary of the proposed changes to the Model Code of Conduct, following a review by The Standards Board for England, was included within the report.

 

In answer to a question, it was confirmed that the Code of Conduct for employees would constitute part of their terms and conditions and would be contained within the contracts of employment.

 

With reference to training and development for Members, the Committee were advised that it was proposed to hold a number of induction sessions, following this year’s Borough Council Election.  The Chairman referred to a DVD ‘Going Local: Investigations and Hearings’, available from The Standards Board, which it was felt would be a useful tool as part of the Members’ induction programme.

 

The Chief Executive informed the Committee that the Head of Personnel had produced a brochure, based on the training needs identified by Members, which would used as part of the induction and form a rolling programme of training over the next two years.

 

RESOLVED:  That the report of the Borough Solicitor and Monitoring Officer be noted.

 

 

 

The Vice-Chairman referred to meetings of the forum for independent members of conduct and standards committees and enquired whether Gosport Borough Council would be willing to host one of the six-monthly meetings.  The Chief Executive confirmed that it was good practice to share venues and was agreeable to the suggestion provided that a room at the Town Hall could accommodate the numbers expected to attend the meeting.

 

 

The Borough Solicitor and Monitoring Officer confirmed that the ethical audit was partly completed and on completion a report would be presented to the Committee at a future meeting.