Complaints and Investigations

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How does the Standards Board respond to press enquiries?

Local newspapers have an important role to play in maintaining the transparency of local administration. We are as helpful as possible to journalists who enquire about our work without doing anything that may unfairly prejudice the outcome of an investigation or hearing.

We do not comment on, or even acknowledge, allegations that have not yet been considered, and will not publicise the existence of an investigation while it is underway.

We will confirm, when prompted by a journalist, the name and authority of a member involved in an ongoing or past investigation, and will provide the following additional information:

• the type of person who made the allegation — whether they are a member or officer of the same authority, or a member of the public
• the parts of the Code potentially breached
• whether the allegation was referred for investigation, and if not, why not
• when the allegation was received and when we decided whether or not to investigate
• if the allegation was referred, whether it is being investigated by an ethical standards officer or was referred to the local authority
• if a direction in the case has been issued, the nature of that direction
• for allegations investigated by an ethical standards officer, the outcome of the investigation once it is known (journalists will be referred to the local authority for more information on allegations being investigated locally)

We always make the point that just because an investigation is taking place, no one should presume that a breach of the Code has occurred.

Once the case has been concluded, including any hearing of the Adjudication Panel for England or local standards committee where appropriate, the summary of the case, which is published on our website, is also made available to the press on request.

Where can I go for further details?

This guide is only intended to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about investigations. For more information about our work, please explore the rest of this website, www.standardsboard.gov.uk

If you have any specific questions or concerns, you can contact us at:

The Standards Board for England
Fourth Floor
Griffin House
40 Lever Street
Manchester
M1 1BB

Telephone: 0161 817 5300
Email: enquiries@standardsboard.gov.uk

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