Kirklees Council took a practical approach to dealing with abuse and intimidation of candidates and councillors focusing on engaging more with the police on these issues.
Kirklees Council has taken steps to assist councillors dealing with abuse, harassment and intimidation by establishing a named police contact and involving the police in members' induction.
The challenge:
Abuse and intimidation are issues that many councillors and candidates encounter when engaging with the public either through ward work or while campaigning. Kirklees Council recognised these issues were affecting their elected members and campaigners locally and wanted to take steps to insure this didn’t create a chilling effect on people coming forward to engage in local politics.
The solution:
Kirklees Council took a practical approach to dealing with abuse and intimidation of candidates and councillors focusing on engaging more with the police on these issues.
First, the council established a specific named point of contact within the local police force. Ongoing contact with this officer meant they developed a good understand needs and concerns of councillors. This helps to streamline the reporting process for councillors who experience harassment or abuse.
Second, they now involve discussion of the role of the police in members' induction. This allows the council to proactively approach the issue of harassment and intimidation by setting out a clear understanding of the enforcement role of police and the role of the council in the early induction of new councillors. This can help to ensure that councillors are aware of the support and resources available to them and where to access support if they experience any form of abuse or harassment.
The impact:
This package of changes is by no means the end of work on this topic. However, these first steps have allowed the council to be more proactive with dealing with these issues. Members who have a greater understanding early on are better able to manage these issues if they occur and know when and how to access support because they’ve been prepared by the proactive approach to talking about these challenges before they become a significant issue.
How is the new approach being sustained?
It will sit with the Monitoring Officer ultimately, along with her staff
Lessons learned:
- Not all councillor and candidates will experience abuse and intimidation, but it’s key for them to be aware of these issues so they can be properly prepared to manage them if they do happen.
- Engaging with the police regularly can help to develop a long-term sustainable relationship.