Council in turmoil as councillor voices ‘no confidence’ in staff leadership

MELKSHAM Town Council has been surrounded in controversy once again following a call of no confidence in the council staff leadership by councillor Jon Hubbard.

Speaking at a meeting of the asset management and amenities committee on Monday 7th August, cllr Hubbard criticised the leadership staff at the council saying that there were decisions made by councillors that had not been implemented, while other actions had been undertaken without authorisation by councillors.

He said, “It is councillors who make the decisions about what should be done at this council and it’s about time that what councillors ask for, is what gets done. This is not acceptable. I am at the point where I have no confidence in the officers who are leading this council to undertake their jobs.”

Concerns

While some councillors expressed solidarity with cllr Hubbard’s stance privately to the Melksham News, echoing concerns regarding effectiveness of the council staff leadership, cllr Jennie Westbrook spoke in response at the meeting to criticise his approach.

She said, “I understand your frustrations and I take them on board. Like it or not, they are our officers. So, you can either work with them to get things done or you can speak to them the way you did and, let’s be honest, you aren’t going to get anything done that way. It’s just not how you speak to people.”

Low morale

Earlier this year the council devised a 17-point plan in order to address internal team issues and prioritise staff wellbeing following reports of high resignation levels, low staff morale and unfinished projects. 60% of staff have resigned from the council in the last 18 months, with reasons given such as lack of leadership and lack of action following the submission of a grievance claim of bullying and harassment. Melksham News understands that there are currently three open employment tribunal cases against the council.

In April, councillor Louisa Lewis resigned from the council citing, “persistent bullying from some councillors and staff members of the Town Council, causing me significant distress.”

More recently, officers were criticised again for failing to move quickly enough on projects. The Friends of the Assembly Hall group were unhappy at the amount of time it took to set up a critical meeting to progress discussions on the former Blue Pool site. Some councillors have told the Melksham News that there is grave concern about the time projects are taking to complete such as mobile CCTV provision in the town and the proposed sensory garden for King George V park.

The council was asked to comment on the allegations made by cllr Hubbard. Town clerk, Linda Roberts, whose role is to manage staff and resources of the town council, said, “The Town Council has a Code of Conduct which obliges all councillors to adhere to the 7 Nolan Principles, the Town Council has also taken the Civility and Respect Pledge. Both the Code of Conduct and the Civility & Respect Pledge guide all councillors in how they conduct themselves in public office. As an organisation the Town Council expects all councillors and officers to be mindful of the principles and the pledge.”