CONTENTS
1.0 Standards
2.0 Disclosure of Information
3.0 Political Neutrality
4.0 Relationships
5.0 Appointment and Other Employment Matters
6.0 Additional employment
7.0 Personal Interests
8.0 Equality Issues
9.0 Separation of Roles during tendering
10.0 Corruption
11.0 Use of Council Resources
12.0 Gifts and Hospitality
13.0 Sponsorship - Giving and Receiving
14.0 Use of Internet, Intranet and e-mail facilities
15.0 Application of the Code of Conduct
16.0 Failure to declare
Introduction
The public is entitled to demand conduct of the highest standard from employees of the Council. Council employees have an obligation to avoid conflicts between their private interests and their duty to the Council, particularly where this could adversely affect the Council's interests or in any way weaken public confidence in the conduct of the Council's business.
Aim of the Code of Conduct
The Code will:
- Enable employees to manage appropriate external, social, professional and community contacts;
- Set standards of conduct expected of public service employees regarding their relationship with individuals and external organisations; and
- Protect staff and the Council from allegations of impropriety.
Scope of the Code
The Code has been adopted by the Council and applies to all employees. Inevitably some of the issues covered by the Code will affect senior, managerial and professional employees more than it will affect others.
1.0 STANDARDS
Employees are expected to give the highest possible standard of service to the public, and to provide appropriate advice to councillors and fellow employees with impartiality. Employees will be expected to raise matters without fear of recrimination to their manager or senior manager or if they do not wish to do that, to bring it to the attention of the Chief Executive. In the event that the matter relates to the Chief Executive it should be raised with the Council's Monitoring Officer.
2.0 DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION
2.1 It is generally accepted that open government is best. The law requires that certain types of information must be available to members, auditors, government departments, service users and the public. The authority itself may decide to be open about other types of information. Employees must be aware of which information this authority is and is not open about. If in doubt guidance should be sought from management before information is disclosed.
2.2 Employees should not use any information obtained in the course of their employment for personal gain or benefit, nor should they pass it on to others who might use it in such a way. Any particular information received by an employee from a councillor which is personal to that councillor and does not belong to the Authority should not be divulged by the employee without prior approval of that councillor, except where such disclosure is required or sanctioned by the law.
3.0 POLITICAL NEUTRALITY
3.1 Employees must serve the Authority as a whole. They must serve all councillors and not just those of the controlling group, and must ensure that the individual rights of all councillors are respected.
3.2 Subject to the authority's conventions, employees may also be required to advise political groups, in ways which do not compromise their political neutrality.
3.3 Employees, whether or not politically restricted, must follow every lawful expressed policy of the authority, regardless of their personal or political opinions.
4.0 RELATIONSHIPS
4.1 Councillors
Employees are responsible to the authority through its senior managers. For some, their role is to give advice to councillors and senior managers and all are there to carry out the authority's work. Mutual respect between employees and councillors is essential to good local government. Close personal familiarity between employees and individual councillors can damage the relationship and prove embarrassing to other employees and councillors and should therefore be avoided. The Protocol on Officer/Member Relationships provides more detail. See Part 5, Section 3 of the Constitution.
4.2 The Local Community and Service Users
Employees should always remember their responsibilities to the community they serve and ensure courteous, efficient and impartial service delivery and fair and equitable treatment to all groups and individuals within that community.
4.3 Contractors
All relationships of a business or private nature with external contractors, or potential contractors, should be made known to the appropriate line manager. Orders and contracts must be awarded on merit, by fair competition against other tenders and no special favour should be shown to businesses run by, for example, friends, former employees, partners or relatives in the tendering process. No part of the local community should be discriminated against.
4.4 Employees who engage or supervise contractors or have any other official relationship with contractors and have previously had or currently have a relationship in a private or domestic capacity with contractors, should declare that relationship to the appropriate line manager.
4.5 Relatives and Close Personal Relationships
All employees are required to declare to the Organisation Development Manager (Operational) any relationships which they believe may give rise to conflict (e.g. Relatives or close personal relationships between two members of staff or a member of staff and a councillor). Any declarations will be treated in confidence.
5.0 APPOINTMENT AND OTHER EMPLOYMENT MATTERS
5.1 Employees involved in the recruitment of staff should ensure that selection is made on the basis of merit. It would be unlawful for an employee to make an appointment which was based on anything other than the ability of the candidate to undertake the duties of the post. To avoid any possible accusation of bias, employees should not be involved in an appointment where they are related to an applicant, or have a close personal relationship with him or her.
5.2 Similarly, employees should not be involved in decisions relating to discipline, promotion or pay adjustments for any other employee who is a relative, partner etc.
6.0 ADDITIONAL EMPLOYMENT
6.1 All employees should be clear about their contractual obligations and should not take outside employment or engage in any business which conflicts with the authority's interests.
6.2 Employees occupying posts at Grade F (spinal column point 27) or above, must not take up any other employment or engage in any business without the written consent of their Head of Service/Chief Executive. (See paragraphs 6.4 & 6.5)
6.3 Approval to undertake additional employment or engage in any business will depend on the circumstances of the Officer's particular situation. Any additional employment however must not in the view of the authority be likely to conflict with or react detrimentally to the authority's interests or in any way weaken public confidence in the conduct of the authority's business. Failure to seek permission and disclose details of additional employment will be dealt with under the Council's Disciplinary Rules and Procedure and could result in the employee's dismissal for gross misconduct. Consent will not be unreasonably withheld.
6.4 Heads of Service are empowered to decide whether 4th tier officers and below down to Grade F posts should be permitted to take up part-time employment or engage in any business in addition to their full time appointment with the Council. The Head of Service's decision in this respect should be communicated in writing to the employee concerned and reported to the OD Operational Team for a copy of the approval letter to be retained on the employees personal file.
6.5 Requests from Directors & Heads of Service should be referred to the Chief Executive for decision. The Chief Executive's decision in this respect should be communicated in writing to the OD Operational Team for a copy of the approval letter to be retained on the employees personal file.
6.6 Employees should follow the rules stated below on the ownership of intellectual property or copyright created during their employment.
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a generic term that includes inventions, creative writings and drawings. If these are created by the employee during the course of employment, then as a general rule they belong to the employer. However, various Acts of Parliament cover different types of intellectual property.
Inventions and Patents
Inventions made before 1st June 1978 are the property of the employer if made in the course of that employer's employment. However, the Patents Act 1977 states that after the 1st June 1978 inventions are only the property of the employer if:
- they have been made in the course of the employee's normal duties; or
- they have been made in the course of duties specifically assigned to the employee and where invention might reasonably be expected; or
- it was made in the course of the employee's duties and at the time the employee had (because of the nature of his or her duties and particular responsibilities arising from them) a special obligation to further the interests of the employer.
7.0 PERSONAL INTERESTS
7.1 Employees must declare, to the Monitoring Officer, any non-financial interests that they consider could bring about conflict with the authority's interests.
7.2 Employees must declare, to the Monitoring Officer, any financial interests which could conflict with the authority's interests.
7.3 Employees should declare, to the Monitoring Officer, membership of any organisation which might give rise to concern from reasonable members of the public of conflict of interest (for example Freemasonry).
8.0 EQUALITY ISSUES
8.1 All local government employees should ensure that policies relating to equality issues as agreed by the authority are complied with, in addition to the requirements of the law. All members of the local community, customers and other employees have a right to be treated with fairness and equity.
9.0 SEPARATION OF ROLES DURING TENDERING
9.1 Employees involved in the tendering process and dealing with contractors should be clear on the separation of client and contractor roles within the authority. Senior employees who have both a client and contractor responsibility must be aware of the need for accountability and openness.
9.2 Employees in contractor or client units must exercise fairness and impartiality when dealing with all customers, suppliers, other contractors and sub-contractors.
9.3 Employees who are privy to confidential information on tenders or costs for either internal or external contractors, should not disclose that information to any unauthorised party or organisation.
9.4 Employees contemplating a management buyout should, as soon as they have formed a definite intent, inform the appropriate manager and withdraw from the contract awarding processes.
9.5 Employees should ensure that no special favour is shown to current or recent former employees or their partners, close relatives or associates in awarding contracts to businesses run by them or employing them in a senior or relevant managerial capacity.
10.0 CORRUPTION
10.1 Employees must be aware that it is a serious criminal offence for them to corruptly receive or give any gift, loan, fee, reward or advantage for doing, or not doing, anything or showing favour, or disfavour, to any person in their official capacity. If an allegation is made it is for the employee to demonstrate that any such rewards have not been corruptly obtained.
11.0 USE OF COUNCIL RESOURCES
11.1 Employees must ensure that they use public funds entrusted to them in a responsible and lawful manner. They must strive to ensure value for money to the local community and to avoid legal challenge to the authority.
11.2 Employees are prohibited from making private use of, or hiring the Council's plant and equipment and materials for private work, business or personal purposes. Also, they will be ill-advised to employ other employees to do private work for them. This is not intended to deny employees access to Council services on offer to the general public which may be used or commissioned through the appropriate official channels.
12.0 GIFTS AND HOSPITALITY
12.1 In the course of their work employees may occasionally be offered gifts or hospitality by contractors, consultants, clients or other members of the public. In some instances, accepting such gifts could place employees in a serious predicament, open to allegations of corruption, and to disciplinary proceedings. In order to know what is acceptable, and to protect employees from such allegations, the Council has adopted the following policy. Where a series of gift or hospitality is given regard should be had to the cumulative value of these:
(i) It is essential that all employees are open, and not secretive in their relationships with outside agencies.
(ii) Subject to (iii) below, all gifts and hospitality and offers of gifts and hospitality even where not accepted, must be recorded in writing, immediately on receipt/offer, in a book or register kept for this purpose by the Monitoring Officer.
(iii) Minor gifts up to the value of £5 , e.g. Calendars, diaries, stationery items, need not be recorded.
(iv) Where small gifts up to the value of £25 such as a bottle of wine, food, confectionery, etc. are offered, these can be accepted, provided they are recorded as above, and not kept for personal use, but shared with colleagues or residents of sheltered housing accommodation or donated to other appropriate causes (e.g. Chairman's Charity).
(v) Gifts of higher value, e.g. cases of spirits, clothes, holiday discounts, electrical equipment, must not be accepted and, if received, should be returned to the sender. This must be recorded.
(vi) Cash must on no account be accepted.
(vii) Employees must not, on a personal basis, take advantage of discounts which have been negotiated by the Council with its suppliers for the purchase of goods, materials or services, unless the discount has been negotiated specifically as a benefit available to all employees.
(viii) Hospitality in the form of drinks and meals can be accepted when provided in the course of normal business - e.g. lunch at a contractor's expense during a business meeting or function, provided that they are recorded in writing as above. Employees must be aware of the need to take care when alcohol is offered to ensure that their ability to take decisions and to drive vehicles is not impaired.
(ix) Invitations to sporting events, such as Wimbledon, horse racing, football matches and other occasions such as theatre, opera or weekend breaks must not be accepted.
(x) No gifts or hospitality are to be accepted from contractors who are submitting a tender during a tendering period.
(xi) Records may be inspected by members, and will be subject to check by Internal Audit.
(xii) Employees providing personal care, such as wardens of sheltered housing accommodation can sometimes be offered jewellery, money or other gifts, or bequests of substantial value by clients. When dealing with elderly or confused clients, employees - if they accept such gifts - are placing themselves in a particularly vulnerable position. Any offers of such gifts or bequests from clients, or other members of the public, must be reported immediately in writing to the Head of Service (or an officer nominated to act on his/her behalf) for instruction.
(xiii) There are certain groups of employees (e.g. Enforcement Officers, Purchasing Officers) for whom it would be inappropriate to receive any gifts or hospitality in view of the nature of their work. Any such employees will be notified in writing by the Head of Service of the rules which apply.
(xiv) Failure to adhere to the above will be regarded as gross misconduct and could lead to dismissal.
(xv) Nothing in this section shall prevent employees attending events and functions where there is a clear benefit to the Council and provided that attendance has been approved by the Head of Service. Nevertheless, the basic convention relating to openness and recording of details shall apply.
13.0 SPONSORSHIP - GIVING AND RECEIVING
13.1 Where an outside organisation wishes to sponsor or is seeking to sponsor a local government activity or event, whether by invitation, tender, negotiation or voluntarily, the basic conventions concerning acceptance of gifts or hospitality apply (i.e. relating to openness, recording of details etc.) Particular care must be taken when dealing with contractors or potential contractors.
13.2. Where the authority wishes to sponsor an event or service neither an employee nor any partner, spouse or relative must benefit from such sponsorship in a direct way without there being full disclosure to an appropriate manager of any such interest. Similarly, where the authority through sponsorship, grant aid, financial or other means, gives support in the community, employees should ensure that impartial advice is given and that there is no conflict of interest involved.
14.0 USE OF INTERNET, INTRANET AND E-MAIL FACILITIES
14.1 The Council's email, Internet web access and Intranet facilities are provided to assist Council business. Use of these facilities should be in accordance with the Council's Information Security Policy.
15.0 APPLICATION OF THE CODE OF CONDUCT
15.1 There will be specific mention of the Code of Conduct in the contract of employment for new starters and that they could be required to declare interests after the selection process but before taking up their posts.
15.2 Any apparent breaches of this Code of Conduct will be fully investigated by the appropriate manager and any proceedings would follow the normal disciplinary procedures of the Council.
16.0 FAILURE TO DECLARE
16.1 Failure to follow the Code in any aspect may be raised in disciplinary action taken against you for a breach of the Council's rules or procedures. Criminal sanctions may apply where an abuse of position has occurred as a result of a Council contract or where an employee or his/her relatives have gained pecuniary advantages.
16.2 If you fail to make any declaration required by this Code, it will not, in itself, constitute a disciplinary offence. However, should a relationship emerge which was relevant to the employee's duties and this has not been declared as set out in this Code, non-declaration might be taken as evidence of mis-conduct or gross mis-conduct.
