Councillor Complaint Form

This form can be submitted online. If you would prefer to send by post, once completed click printable version, print off, and post to The Monitoring Officer, Council Offices, St Peter's Hill, Grantham NG31 6PZ.

Section 1 - Your details

Please provide us with your name and contact details

Title *

First name *

Last name *

Address *

Postcode *

Daytime telephone *

Evening telephone

Mobile telephone

Email address

Your address and contact details will not usually be released unless necessary or to deal with your complaint. However, we will tell the following people that you have made this complaint:

the member(s) you are complaining about
the monitoring officer of the authority
the parish or town clerk (if applicable)

We will tell them your name and give them a summary of your complaint. We will give them full details of your complaint where necessary or appropriate to be able to deal with it. If you have serious concerns about your name and a summary, or details of your complaint being released, please complete section 6 of this form.

Section 2

Please tell us which complainant type best describes you: *

Section 3 - Making your complaint

On receipt of your complaint, we will acknowledge receipt to you and inform the people mentioned at section 1 above unless there is an appropriate reason for not doing so. You will be told if your complaint is not a matter for consideration of the Standards assessment sub-committee. If the complaint is a matter for the assessment sub-committee, it should be referred to that committee for consideration within 20 working days of receipt of the complaint at this office. To enable the sub-committee to consider your complaint, you should provide as much information as possible to assist. The sub-committee can:

refer the complaint to the Monitoring Officer of South Kesteven District Council for investigation.
In exceptional cases, refer the allegation to the Standards Board for England.
Decide that no action should be taken in respect of the allegation.

Section 4

Please provide us with the name(s) of the member(s) you believe has breached the Code of Conduct and the name of their authority

Title *
First name *
Last name *
Council or authority name *
Please click Add below to add another name

Section 5

Please explain in this section what the member has done that you believe breaches the Code of Conduct. If you are complaining about more than one member you should clearly explain what each individual person has done that you believe breaches the Code of Conduct.

It is important that you provide all the information you wish to have taken into account by the assessment sub-committee when it decides whether to take any action on your complaint. For example

You should be specific, wherever possible, about exactly what you are alleging the member said or did. For instance, instead of writing that the member insulted you, you should state what it was they said.
You should provide the dates of the alleged incidents wherever possible. If you cannot provide exact dates it is important to give a general timeframe.
You should confirm whether there are any witnesses to the alleged conduct and provide their names and contact details if possible.
You should provide any relevant background information.

Please provide us with the details of your complaint *

Please attach here any relevant documentation

Section 6 - Only complete this section if you are requesting that your identity is kept confidential

In the interests of fairness and natural justice, we believe members who are complained about have a right to know who has made the complaint. We also believe they have a right to be provided with a summary of the complaint. We are unlikely to withhold your identity or the details of your complaint unless you have good reason to believe that:

you will be at risk of physical harm if your identity is disclosed;
you suffer from a serious health condition and there are medical risks associated with your identity being disclosed;
you are an officer working closely with the member concerned and are afraid of the consequences for your employment prospects if your identity is disclosed, notwithstanding the District's Whistleblowing Policy.

Please note that requests for confidentiality or requests for suppression of the complaint details will not automatically be granted. The assessment sub-committee will consider the request alongside the substance of your complaint. We will then contact you with the decision. If your request for confidentiality is not granted, we will usually allow you the option of withdrawing your complaint.

However, it is important to understand that in certain exceptional circumstances where the matter complained abut is very serious, we can proceed with an investigation or other action and disclose your name even if you have expressly asked us not to.

Please provide details of why you believe we should withhold your name and/or the details of your complaint

Section 7 - Additional help

Complaints must be submitted in writing. This includes fax and electronic submissions. However, in line with the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act 2000, we can make reasonable adjustments to assist you if you have a disability that prevents you from making your complaint in writing.

We can also help if English is not your first language.

If you need any support in completing this form, please let us know as soon as possible. If you have any queries could you please contact the Monitoring Officer, South Kesteven District Council, Council Offices, St Peter's Hill, Grantham, Lincs NG31 6PZ. Tel: 01476 406105 e-mail - l.youles@southkesteven.gov.uk

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