Complaints about County Councillors and Town/Community Councillors
All County Councillors, Town/Community Councillors and Co-opted Members are required to abide by the Code of Conduct for Councillors adopted by their respective councils, which conform to the mandatory requirements of the Model Code of Conduct issued by the National Assembly for Wales.
Complaints relating to an allegation that a County Councillor has breached the Code should be sent to the Ombudsman directly and/or to the Council’s Monitoring Officer (MO).
The Ombudsman also publishes guidance on the Ombudsman Wales (PSOW) website on how to make a complaint about an elected member and a Factsheet.
The PSOW may decide that the MO should investigate a complaint, or may ask the Councils Ethics & Standards (ES) Committee to make a determination. Options available to the ES Committee include no further action; censure and suspension for up to 6 months.
If the Ombudsman investigates an allegation of a breach of the Code and concludes that a breach has occurred he will forward a report of his findings to the Monitoring officer and to the Councillor concerned.
If the Ombudsman considers that the breach is serious then the matter may be forwarded to the Adjudication Panel for Wales who have the power to disqualify a councillor for up to 5 years.
If you wish to make a complaint to the Ombudsman, please write to The Public Services Ombudsman for Wales, 1 Ffordd yr Hen Gae, Pencoed, Bridgend, CF35 5LJ. Alternatively you can telephone them on 0300 790 0203 (local call rate) or email them at ask@ombudsman.wales. You can also visit their website which is www.ombudsman.wales.
You may also contact the Council’s Monitoring Officer (MO) by writing to Monitoring Officer, Ceredigion County Council, Penmorfa, Aberaeron, Ceredigion, SA46 0PA. You can also email us on monitoringofficer@ceredigion.gov.uk.