The Standards Assessment Board of Durham County Council was scheduled to consider updates on ongoing complaints received under the Code of Conduct for Members. The meeting's agenda included the review of several specific complaint cases.

Code of Conduct Complaints Updates

The Board was scheduled to receive an update on complaints lodged under the Code of Conduct for Members of Durham County Council. This report, prepared by Helen Bradley, Director of Legal and Democratic Services and Monitoring Officer, aimed to provide the Board with information on the status of these complaints, in accordance with the Council's Procedure for Member Code of Conduct Complaints.

The report indicated that since the previous meeting on 1 December 2025, a number of new complaints had been received. Between 1 November and 19 December 2025, twenty Code of Conduct Complaints were received. Of these, fourteen were rejected as they did not engage the Code of Conduct, and one remained at the pre-assessment stage.

The Board was scheduled to consider two specific complaints that were to be presented on 8 January 2026:

• Complaint Reference FS-Case-761820285: This complaint was scheduled for consideration by the Board on this date.
• Complaint Reference FS-Case-769334220: This complaint was also scheduled for consideration by the Board on 8 January 2026.

Additionally, several complaints received prior to 20 November 2025 were noted. One of these was considered at the 1 December 2025 meeting, with the outcome being no further action. Another complaint from this period was scheduled for the 8 January 2026 meeting, as it could not be heard earlier due to the appointment of Co-Opted Members. Two other complaints from this earlier period were deferred to the 17 February 2026 meeting due to the complexity of the cases and the need for officers to have more time to prepare reports, particularly in light of the Christmas break.

The report also detailed complaints received between 20 November and 19 December 2025. Three of these were deferred to the 17 February 2026 meeting for similar reasons of complexity and officer preparation time. One remaining complaint from this period was scheduled for assessment on 17 February 2026.

The report highlighted that the Council has a duty under section 27 of the Localism Act 2011¹ to promote and maintain high standards of conduct by its members. This includes adopting a Code of Conduct consistent with the Nolan Principles². The Council is also required to have arrangements in place to consider allegations of breaches of the Code of Conduct by its own members and by members of town and parish councils for which Durham County Council is the principal authority. The report recommended that the Standards Assessment Board note its contents.