Bullying at the Parish Council
I must also address the serious topic of the Elmbridge hearing in November which found that two Parish Councillors bullied Sally Harman, our former clerk. It is a matter of great regret to me that this happened. We have reported it in this edition (see Page 5) as it is an event that has affected both the former clerk and the Parish Council and cannot be ignored or glossed over.
In addition, I respectfully apologise to Sally for all she was subjected to and wish her every good wish in her new role as Chief County Officer at the Surrey Association of Local Councils. I now hope that the Parish Council can put this difficult matter behind us and move forward in a new spirit of collaboration – which I am already beginning to see.
PARISH CLERK WAS BULLIED, SAYS HEARING
A hearing has ruled that two Claygate Parish Councillors bullied the Parish Clerk, in a case that an experienced independent investigator said was “the most unpleasant” he had worked on.
Sue Grose, who chaired the Parish Council aer last May's elections, and Janet Swift were accused of failing to comply with the Member Code of Conduct. A hearing of the Elmbridge Audit and Standards Sub-Committee (Hearings Panel) on November 15 examined the conduct of the councillors, who have since resigned from the council, and decided it amounted to bullying.
On receipt of the complaint from the Clerk, a Claygate resident, in February 2023, Elmbridge Borough Council appointed the external investigator whose report was referred to the Hearings Panel for determination.
Richard Lingard, the investigator, told the hearing: “This is the 60th or thereabouts investigation that I've carried out. It is also, by a very long way, the most drawn out, most difficult and, it has to be said, the most unpleasant case that I've ever dealt with in 12 years.”
He said the Clerk was subjected to “repeated, unwarranted, disproportionate and very public criticism. She was aggressively questioned and on numerous occasions had her competence, judgment and authority impugned in a most insulting manner.”
He said: “It was more than unpleasant behaviour, it was unprofessional, and conduct unbecoming of two people who occupy very public positions of responsibility as elected representatives.” It was “a very upsetting couple of years” for the clerk, he concluded. She resigned in June last year. The Panel considered, but dismissed, the idea that the clerk might have been oversensitive to the behaviour, saying it felt that this was belittling her ability to cope.
Former Councillors Grose and Swift denied the allegations, challenged the evidence, and called character witnesses on their behalf. They asked the Panel to dismiss the allegations on the grounds that “there was no reason why the Subject Member would want to humiliate or bully the Complainant”.
Chris Sadler, the Elmbridge councillor chairing the Panel, said it considered the investigator’s report to be thorough and objective and concluded that the two had breached the Code of Conduct.
