Three 'independent persons' to oversee complaints about BCP members

At the first meeting of the new unitary authority on Tuesday, councillors will be asked to formally approve the recommended trio.

Ian Sibley, Paul Cashmore and Jonathan Storey are being recommended for the roles, having been chosen from a five-person shortlist.

Local authorities are required to have independent persons to provide advice and input during the consideration of complaints against councillors.

A report to the council says that having three people, who will all receive a £1,000-a-year allowance, will “aid resilience”, give a range of experience and provide cover in case of conflicts of interest.

Mr Sibley had held the position within Christchurch and East Dorset councils before their abolition and was temporarily appointed to the position on Bournemouth council shortly before the new council was formed.

Foster parent Mr Cashmore has worked with the police, offenders, the military and vulnerable children and adults.

Mr Storey, a barrister, has previously worked as a civil servant.

The report, written by the council’s director of law and governance and its monitoring officer, Tanya Coulter said interviews of the five shortlisted candidates were carried out by her, deputy monitoring officer Sian Ballingall and deputy head of democratic services Karen Tompkins.

“The recommendation from the interview panel is to appoint the three independent persons all of whom demonstrated an extremely high level of commitment to the role and an understanding of the independent and commitment necessary,” it says.

“All expressed a strong desire to undertake the role and an understanding of the public sector context and the role of local government and the importance of good governance and standards for those in public service.”

It adds that all three “have a connection to the local area”.

The appointments will be one of the first decisions made by the new council when it holds its first full meeting on Tuesday.