Councillor / Co-opted Member Complaint Form

Please use this form if you believe that a councillor or co-opted member of the Council has failed to comply with the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames Member Code of Conduct and would like the matter investigated.

Before completing this form please read the guidance on our website, including the information on how we handle complaints and investigations found in the Member Code of Conduct at Part 5A of the Council's Constitution.

Please provide your name and contact details. We will give a copy of your complaint to the member(s) you are complaining about but your address and contact details will not be released without your permission.

If you have serious concerns about your name and/or details of your complaint being released, please complete Section 4.

Once you have submitted your complaint you will be contacted within 5 working days, explaining what will happen to your complaint and the anticipated timeframe within which it will be considered. For more details please see the procedure for handling complaints made against elected or co-opted members at Part 5A of the Council's Constitution.

This process cannot deal with complaints about any of the Council’s departments, services or matters not covered by the Council’s Member Code of Conduct. Concerns regarding matters other than the conduct of a Member should be raised with the Council through the Council’s established complaints procedure (details of which are available on the Council’s website).

Please explain what the member has done that you believe breaches the Code of Conduct. If you are complaining about more than one member you should clearly explain what each individual person has done that you believe breaches the Code of Conduct. 

It is important you provide all the information you wish to have taken into account. For example:

• be specific, wherever possible, about exactly what you are alleging the member said or did. For instance, instead of writing that the member insulted you, you should state what it was they said. 
• provide the dates of the alleged incidents wherever possible. If you cannot provide exact dates it is important to give a general timeframe. 
• confirm whether there are any witnesses to the alleged conduct and provide their names and contact details if possible. 
• provide any relevant background information. 

Only complete this next section if you are requesting that your identity is kept confidential.

In the interests of fairness and natural justice, we believe members who are complained about have a right to know who has made the complaint. We also believe they have a right to be provided with a summary of the complaint. We are unlikely to withhold your identity or the details of your complaint unless there are exceptional circumstances.  Please note that requests for confidentiality or requests for suppression of complaint details will not automatically be granted.

The Monitoring Officer will consider the request alongside the substance of your complaint. We will then contact you with the decision. If your request for confidentiality is not granted, we will usually allow you the option of withdrawing your complaint.

However, it is important to understand that in certain exceptional circumstances where the matter complained about is very serious, we can proceed with an investigation or other action and disclose your name even if you have expressly asked us not to.

It is helpful to understand what outcome is being sought and whether there is scope for an informal resolution. Please refer to the Procedure for handling complaints against elected or co-opted members for information.

Complaints must be submitted in writing. This includes submissions by email. However, we can make reasonable adjustments to assist you if you have a disability that prevents you from making your complaint in writing. Please let us know if this is the case by calling 0208 547 6374.

By submitting this form, you confirm you have read and agree to the guidance information on our website and in this form.