The Standards Assessment Sub-Committee of Wiltshire Council met on Thursday 5 March 2026 to consider a complaint. The committee resolved to refer the complaint for investigation.

Assessment of Complaint: COC54073

The Sub-Committee considered a complaint, reference COC54073, regarding the conduct of a member of Chippenham Town Council. After reviewing the complaint, supporting information, the response from the Subject Member, and the report from the Monitoring Officer, the committee decided to refer the matter for investigation. This decision was made after the Sub-Committee was satisfied that the initial assessment criteria had been met, including that the Subject Member was acting in their official capacity and that a Code of Conduct was in place. The Sub-Committee also heard a verbal statement from the Complainant and a written statement from the Subject Member. The Independent Person's views were also taken into account before the decision was made.

The meeting was attended by Cllr Ruth Hopkinson, Cllr Dave Lumsden, Cllr Sam Pearce-Kearney (Portfolio Holder for Safeguarding and Young People), and Cllr Stuart Wheeler. Apologies were received from Cllr Ernie Clark (Independent Group Leader). Ian Brown and David Thomson attended as non-voting members. The meeting was held in the Kennet Room at County Hall, Trowbridge. The minutes of the previous meeting, held on 4 December 2025, were approved. The Sub-Committee resolved to exclude the public from the remainder of the meeting, as it was likely that exempt information relating to an individual would be disclosed. This decision was made in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972.