The Council of Hackney Council held an extraordinary meeting on Wednesday, 24 January 2024. The primary item scheduled for discussion was an Independent Governance Review, commissioned following the conviction and sentencing of a former councillor and the subsequent resignation of a former Mayor.

Independent Governance Review

The meeting was scheduled to consider the findings of an Independent Governance Review, commissioned by the Interim Chief Executive, Dawn Carter-McDonald. The review was undertaken by Mr John Henderson, a former Chief Executive of Staffordshire County Council and a Major General in the Army, who was appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 2014 New Year Honours List.

The report was commissioned following the conviction and sentencing of former Councillor Tom Dewey and the subsequent resignation of former Mayor Philip Glanville. The review focused on the formal aspects of governance and safeguarding, examining decisions and actions taken by the Council after being notified by the National Crime Agency (NCA) of Mr Dewey's arrest. It also reviewed the processes and guidance in place for both officers and members at the time, with the aim of making recommendations for improvement.

The report's executive summary noted that the Council's Constitution and Governance processes worked as they should in dealing with a very difficult, rapidly evolving, situation. It highlighted that the primary causes of the events were individual failings rather than policy issues. The review suggested that the Council review its Politically Restricted Posts (PRPs) list and the culture around the political impartiality of its officers. It also recommended that political groups re-examine their candidate selection processes.

The report detailed a timeline of events, beginning with Tom Dewey's appointment as a Support Officer in the Mayor's Office in October 2015. It noted his arrest on 29 April 2022, his election as a Labour councillor for De Beauvoir ward on 5 May 2022, and his resignation on 16 May 2022, after the NCA formally referred the matter to the Council. The report also covered his conviction and sentencing in July and August 2023, and the subsequent resignation of former Mayor Philip Glanville in September 2023.

The analysis within the report concluded that Hackney Council's safeguarding systems and processes worked perfectly in a very testing situation. It commended Ms Dawn Carter-McDonald, then Director of Legal, Democratic and Electoral Services and Monitoring Officer, for her leadership. The report discussed the tension between an individual's right to privacy and the expectations of transparency in public life, stating that Mr Dewey had the right to privacy and was presumed innocent until proven guilty. It also addressed the possibility of Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) checks for candidates, concluding that while beneficial, they were not a complete solution and would need to be a national decision. The report noted that the events had been reputationally damaging for Hackney Council and had resulted in significant expense and distraction for members and officers.

The report recommended that Full Council note the report on the Independent Governance Review and its recommendations. The costs of the review were stated to be met from existing budgets, with any subsequent reviews also needing to be funded from existing budgets. There were no legal implications arising directly from the content of the report.