Content

Resolved:
 

1.           
That the manner in
which Councillor Kamala Kugan raised concerns with officers, in the
course of a number of emails relating to a family whose children
are in Council care, amounted to a failure to show respect to those
officers, and, even taking into account her rights to freedom of
expression protected by Article 10 of the European Convention on
Human Rights, amounted to a breach of the paragraph 7 of the Code
of Conduct for Members;

2.           
That in sharing
confidential information provided to her about the family by the
Executive Director of Children’s Services, Councillor Kugan
was in breach of paragraph 10 of the Code of Conduct;

3.           
Councillor Kamala
Kugan should write a letter of apology to the Executive Director
for Children’s Services apologising to him and his Achieving
for Children colleagues for her insulting tone and unwarranted
criticism of him and his service. This apology must be sent one
month from the date of this report (14 November 2025) and copied to
the Chief Executive;

4.           
Councillor Kugan must
attend appropriate mandatory Code of Conduct training, specifically
covering member conduct and communication with officers. This
training is to be arranged by the Monitoring Officer and completed
before the end of the calendar year. Councillor Kamala Kugan will
also be offered coaching support to help her manage her
behaviour;

5.           
The Chair of the
Sub-committee hearing will write to Cllr Kugan’s Group Leader
to convey the hearing's outcome and request his support in ensuring
Councillor Kugan’s adherence to the Code of Conduct in the
future;

6.           
Councillor Kamala
Kugan’s access to the all-member email distribution list will
be reinstated, subject to the understanding that the behaviour
which led to the Standards hearing will not be repeated.