The Standards Committee of Stockport Council met on Monday 14 September 2026, where they noted the annual report on councillor conduct for the 2025/26 municipal year. The meeting was chaired by Mr Stephen Clarke, Independent Member.

Annual Report Regarding Councillor Conduct

The committee considered the annual report from the Chief Governance Officer & Monitoring Officer, Vicki Bates, detailing complaints received about the conduct of councillors during the 2025/26 municipal year. The report indicated that three complaints were received concerning four councillors. Of these, one complaint was partially upheld, and two were not upheld.

The complaint that was partially upheld related to a councillor's comments on social media, which were found to have brought the office of councillor or the council into disrepute. The Monitoring Officer recommended that the councillor provide an apology to the resident, which they did. The other two complaints, one concerning alleged breaches of the code of conduct when making decisions and another alleging bullying and intimidation, were not upheld after initial investigations.

The report also noted that no complaints received during the 2025/26 municipal year progressed beyond the initial assessment stage to be referred to the Standards Committee for consideration or to the Standards Committee Hearing Panel for a formal hearing. The committee resolved to note the report.

The meeting also approved the minutes from the previous meeting held on 22 June 2026. No declarations of interest were made by members, and no urgent decisions were reported. There were no public questions submitted for this meeting.