Venue: By Microsoft Teams
Contact: Fiona McCallum Tel: 01546 604392
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APPOINTMENT OF CHAIR Minutes: The Governance Manager welcomed everyone to the meeting and invited the Panel to nominate a Chair for the proceedings. It was unanimously agreed to appoint Councillor Graham Hardie as Chair of this Conduct Review Panel. |
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APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Minutes: There were no apologies for absence. |
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DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST Minutes: There were no declarations of interest. |
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TARBERT AND SKIPNESS COMMUNITY COUNCIL - COMPLAINT REFERRAL Report by Committee Manager, Legal and Regulatory Support Minutes: Having assumed the role
of Chair, Councillor Hardie invited the Governance Manager to outline the
procedure that would be followed. He
then advised that the first task was to establish whether members of the Panel
had sufficient information before them to discuss and determine the subject of
the complaint. The Panel agreed that
they had sufficient information to determine the complaint referral before
them. The Council received a
detailed complaint on behalf of two local residents which related to the
conduct of Tarbert and Skipness Community Council. As the complaint referred to the Community
Council as a whole they have been referred to the Conduct Review Panel for
consideration. There were 3 core
complaints for consideration by the Panel as detailed below: 1. Tarbert
and Skipness Community Council has a culture of bullying and secrecy, and
engaged in persistent bullying behaviour following our legitimate, continual
refusal to reinstate a public notice board on our private property, 2. Tarbert
and Skipness Community Council is fundamentally, dysfunctional and does not
adhere to the governance framework which it is obligated to operate within,
specifically the Scheme of Establishment and Code of Conduct. 3. Tarbert
and Skipness Community Council does not engage constructively with, or fairly
represent, the community that it serves. The Chair invited the
Panel to consider the terms of the complaint referral and after discussion the
Panel agreed to consider the 3 aspects of the referral in turn. In considering the
evidence as presented by the Complainant and the response presented by the
Community Council, the Independent Adviser reminded the Panel of the temporary
departures from the Scheme for the Establishment of Community Councils which
had been approved in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and specifically the
departures in terms of the arrangements for meetings. Decision Having considered the
evidence as presented the Panel reached the view that the terms of the
complaint should be upheld and consequently that the Community Council had
failed to adhere to the obligations set out in the Scheme for the Establishment
of Community Councils, the Code of Conduct and their Constitution. The Panel agreed to issue a written warning
in this regard. The Panel also agreed to
recommend that both parties to the complaint be invited to participate in
mediation and asked that the Community Council inform the Council, via the
Community Council Liaison Officer, of actions they will take to address the
issues raised. The Governance Manager
noted the decision to those in attendance and confirmed that the decision would
be communicated in writing to the parties concerned within 7 days. (Reference: Report by Committee Manager dated 29 November 2021, submitted) |