Standards Committee minutes

Decided · A decision has been taken.

The Standards Committee met on 8 October 2025. p1

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Edwards and Kean, and no declarations of interest were made. p2p3

The committee resolved that the minutes of the meeting held on 26 June 2025 be approved as a true record. p4

The committee's Working Arrangements Group reviewed the Local Government Association's Model Code of Conduct and put forward recommendations on which parts to adopt. p5

The committee resolved unanimously to recommend to Full Council that the Council adopt parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 and 9 of the LGA Model Code of Conduct, and adopt explanatory guidance from parts 6, 7 and 10 of the Model Code. p8

Show the 6 passages this is based on

• p1Standards Committee — minutes of the meeting on 08/10/2025
• p26. Apologies for absence Apologies received from Councillors Edwards and Kean.
• p37. Declarations of Interest None received.
• p48. Minutes of the previous meeting RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting held on 26 th June 2025 be approved as a true record. The Chair welcomed the Independent Persons Amanda McIntyre and John Baker and noted that their reappointed for a further term was approved unanimously at Full Council.
• p59. Code of Conduct Review At the annual meeting, the Standards Committee agreed to review the LGA Model Code of Conduct to identify any potential improvements that could be incorporated into the existing Code. At that time, it was noted that the government had announced plans to introduce a mandatory national code for all councillors, although no timeline for its implementation has been provided. In the interim, the Working Arrangements Group (WAG) reviewed the Model Code and following a detailed report from officers, put forward a series of recommendations for the Standards Committee to consider. The Working Arrangements Group recommended that the Council adopt parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 8 of the LGA Model Code, noting that they offer greater clarity than the current provisions and include explicit references to social media and other forms of communication. However, it was observed that part 7 of the Model Code, which addresses the use of local authority resources and facilities, lacks the clarity of the existing Code and is open to interpretation. WAG therefore felt it would be preferable to retain the relevant section of the existing Code, as it is clearer. The Committee considered the proposals put forward by the Working Arrangements Group and sought clarification from officers on specific points. It was confirmed that the recommendation not to adopt part 7 of the Model Code was due to concerns about its wording, particularly a caveat regarding the use of council resources for political purposes, which WAG found to be ambiguous and open to interpretation. Instead, there was a preference to retain part 6 of the existing Code of Conduct, which they considered to provide clearer and more robust guidance in relation to appropriate use of resources. John Baker suggested that, even if the Council retains part 6 of the existing Code, it would be helpful to incorporate the advisory text from the Model Code relating to the use of council resources.
• p8RESOLVED (unanimously): Standards Committee recommends to Full Council: The Council adopts parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 and 9 of the LGA Model Code of Conduct The Council adopts the explanatory guidance from parts 6, 7 and 10 of the LGA Model Code Reasons: 1. The existing Code of Conduct has not been reviewed for some time and the Council has not yet considered the LGA Model Code of Conduct. 2. To ensure the Council maintains the highest standards of conduct (The Chair declared the meeting closed at 6.45pm)