Leading up to our investigation
The information on this page is divided into the following sections:
When does an allegation become an investigation?
What is an ethical standards officer?
How will an ethical standards officer conduct the investigation?
What can the ethical standards officer investigate?
When does an allegation become an investigation?
From 8 May 2008, the standards committee of a local authority may refer an allegation for investigation if it is satisfied that the allegation falls within its legal jurisdiction and believes the matter should be investigated.
When a matter is referred for investigation, it does not mean that the standards committee believes the allegation is true. It simply means that the standards committee believes the alleged conduct, if proven, may amount to a failure to comply with the Code of Conduct and therefore should be investigated.
The standards committee may ask us to investigate the matter if it believes that it cannot or should not investigate it locally.
How do you decide whether a case should be investigated by the Standards Board for England or if it should be kept locally?
When considering a standards committee’s request that we investigate a case the Standards Board will be principally concerned with supporting the ethical framework nationally and locally. They will take into account all relevant circumstances.
These may include:
- The status or number of members involved. For example, a group leader, elected mayor or member of the authority’s cabinet or standards committee
- The status of any officers involved. For example, is the complainant the chief executive, the monitoring officer or other senior officer?
- A potential conflict of interest. For example, because so many members of the standards committee are involved that it could not properly monitor the investigation or because the monitoring officer has been involved suitable alternative arrangements cannot be put in place.
- The seriousness or complexity of the case. For example so many members are involved that it cannot be handled locally.
- Substantial amounts of evidence are needed and are beyond that available from the authority’s documents, its members or officers.
- Substantial governance dysfunction in the authority or its standards committee.
- The complaint relates to long-term or systemic member/officer bullying.
- The complaint raises significant or unresolved legal issues on which a national ruling would be helpful.
- The public might perceive the authority to have an interest in the outcome of a case. For example if the authority could be liable to be judicially reviewed if the complaint were upheld.
- Other exceptional circumstances which would make a local investigation particularly difficult. For example if the same facts have given rise to an investigation by another regulator such as the Local Government Ombudsman or the authority’s auditors.
If the Standards Board accepts an allegation from a standards committee it will refer it to an ethical standards officer for investigation.
What is an ethical standards officer?
An ethical standards officer is someone empowered by the Local Government Act 2000 to investigate allegations referred to them by the Standards Board for England that a member or co-opted member of a relevant authority in England has failed to comply with his or her authority's Code of Conduct.
Ethical standards officers conduct each investigation impartially and decide whether the allegation should be referred for a hearing. The ethical standards officer may also decide that there has not been a breach of the Code of Conduct or may ask the authority’s monitoring officer to take some action instead of investigation such as training, reviewing procedures or conflict resolution
How will an ethical standards officer conduct the investigation?
The ethical standards officer decides the appropriate way to investigate an allegation. This depends upon the circumstances of each individual case. However, we conform with good practice in relation to the planning and conduct of investigations and these notes set out our usual practice
What can the ethical standards officer investigate?
The ethical standards officer will specifically investigate the allegations referred to him or her by the Standards Board for England. In addition, Section 59(1)(b) of the Local Government Act 2000 gives the ethical standards officer the power to investigate other matters which may amount to a breach of the Code of Conduct that come to his or her attention during the course of an investigation.
