The Standards Assessment Board of Durham County Council met on Monday 27 July 2026. The meeting was scheduled to include an update on ongoing complaints received under the Code of Conduct for Members and the consideration of a specific complaint.

Code of Conduct Complaints Update

The Board was scheduled to receive an update on complaints received under the Code of Conduct for Members. This report, prepared by Helen Bradley, Director of Legal and Democratic Services and Monitoring Officer, provided an overview of alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct that were being assessed and those that had been completed. The report detailed that at the time of the previous meeting on 13 July 2026, there were five complaints ongoing. Three of these had been considered by the Board on 3 July 2026, with decision notices issued indicating no further action. Two complaints were considered on 13 July 2026, one resulting in no further action and the other being suitable for informal resolution. One complaint remained to be considered by the Board on 27 July 2026.

The report also covered complaints received between 2 July 2026 and 16 July 2026. Of these, one was treated as withdrawn due to a lack of necessary information from the complainant, and another was rejected as it did not engage the Code of Conduct. A further complaint was at the pre-assessment stage and was scheduled for consideration by the Board at its first meeting following recess on 11 September 2026.

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 and having arrangements to consider allegations of breaches of these codes. The report noted that the new Procedure for Member Code of Conduct Complaints, agreed in October 2025, states that the Standards Assessment Board, in consultation with the Monitoring Officer, should consider complaints and decide on any action within 20 working days of receipt.

Complaint Reference FS-Case-851363724

The Board was scheduled to consider a specific complaint, referenced as FS-Case-851363724. This item was listed under Part B of the agenda, indicating that the public and press would be excluded from this part of the meeting due to the likely disclosure of exempt or confidential information. The report pack indicated that this complaint was scheduled for consideration by the Board on 27 July 2026.