COMPLAINT AGAINST AN ELECTED MEMBER FORM

Your details

1.	Please provide us with your name and contact details

Title:		
First name:		
Last name:		
Address:	

Daytime telephone:		
Evening telephone:		
Mobile telephone:		
Email address:		
Sign and Date:		

Your address and contact details will not usually be released unless necessary or to deal with your complaint. 

If you have serious concerns about your name, or details of your complaint being released, please complete section 4 of this form. 

Please tell us which complainant type best describes you:

	Member of the public
	An elected or co-opted member of an authority
	An independent member of the standards committee
	Member of Parliament
	Local authority monitoring officer
	Other council officer or authority employee 
	Other 

After a decision has been made regarding your complaint, you will be told about the decision in writing.
 
Making your complaint against an elected member

2.	If making a complaint against an elected member it should be about the behaviour of that member and why you think they have broken any part of the authority’s Code of Conduct.

A copy of the relevant Code of Conduct is available from the council the member you want to complain about is a member of.

Once received details of the complaint will be provided to the councillor for an initial response. The Council’s Monitoring Officer or one of her deputies will consider your complaint and decide whether or not there should be an investigation or informal resolution or no further action.   .

An acknowledgment of your complaint will be sent and you will be kept informed of progress.

3.	Please provide us with the name of the member(s) you believe have breached the Code of Conduct and the name of their authority:

Title	First name	Last name	Council or authority name	

				

4.	Please explain in this section (or on separate sheets) 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 when a decision is made 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. Continue on a separate sheet if there is not enough space on this form.

Only complete this next section if you are requesting that your identity is kept confidential

5.	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.

Please note that requests for confidentiality or requests for suppression of complaint details will not automatically be granted. Your request will be considered 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 about 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 us with details of why you believe we should withhold your name and/or the details of your complaint:

	

Additional Help

6.	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. 

If you need any support in completing this form, please let us know as soon as possible.  

Once completed please return the form to : 

The Monitoring Officer, c/o Mrs J Martin, Democratic Services, Isle of Wight Council, County Hall, Newport, Isle of Wight, PO30 1UD

or electronically to :   julie.martin@iow.gov.uk