West Somerset Council

West Somerset Council’s ‘Improvement Journey’ helped them to secure their nomination in the Standards and Ethics category. From 2000-2007, says monitoring officer at the authority Bruce Lang, they “struggled with outcomes.”

“Criticism in 2007 indicated that we had a lack of leadership,” Bruce explains, “The officer structure wasn’t really working and there was low staff morale. In the 2007 local elections over 50% new councillors were voted in, and there was a change in political control.”

Measures including the introduction of an ‘Improvement Board’, which now meets regularly, and an ‘Improvement Plan’, helped to set the ball rolling in terms of raising the authority’s game.

“At that point,” says Bruce, “the standards committee seemed to be watching from the sidelines.”

From thereon in, the committee “broadened its terms of reference”, reviewing membership. They organised workshops on the Code of Conduct (the Code) and sent out a message that training was “absolutely important”, says Bruce: ”Training in the Code became compulsory for all members.”

The change in perceptions as a result of the authority’s ‘Improvement Journey’ has been significant, says Bruce: “There was previously mistrust between members and officers, and mistrust among members of the public. Then behaviour in terms of personal respect improved dramatically. The standards committee deserves credit for this. Our Chair has put in a lot of effort, and isn’t afraid to challenge when it’s necessary.”

Bruce says they decided to enter in the Standards and Ethics category because they “really felt (the authority) was improving” and wanted to “draw attention to this”. On hearing the news they had made the shortlist, Bruce says they were “thrilled:”

“We got a round of applause at a council meeting,” he says, “Things like that really help to boost morale across the whole authority, and it shows you can achieve things, even with challenges.”

Bruce advises close links between the corporate team and the standards committee as a way of achieving success. He joins the Executive Director, the Chair and Vice-Chair of the standards committee, and the Leader of the Council for regular meetings where ethical issues are “discussed in a relaxed environment”. Topics of discussion are then fed back to the standards committee and action points are created.

“Ethical governance and corporate issues go hand in hand,” says Bruce.

The authority has also prioritised a commitment to increasing confidence in democracy, Bruce says: “We want to give our elected members credibility and make sure the public have faith in them. People need to believe that things are above board. My view is that as long as you follow the Code, you won’t go far wrong.

“The standards committee has a vital role in raising the profile of promoting good standards. In West Somerset we pride ourselves in dealing with people as individuals by providing advice and guidance on a one-to-one basis where possible. Good ethics means good governance’