Introducing the Civility and Respect Pledge
NALC, SLCC, and OVW believe now is the time to put civility and respect at the top of the agenda and start a culture change for the local council sector.
Civility means politeness and courtesy in behaviour, speech, and in the written word. Showing respect can be by listening and paying attention to others, having consideration for other people’s feelings, following protocols and rules, showing appreciation and thanks, and being kind.
We are delighted to announce the launch of ‘The Civility and Respect Pledge’, it’s easy to sign up to and is designed to help define the right behaviours within your council, to prevent bullying and to support councils demonstrating high standards of conduct. We are inviting all councils to please take the pledge.
We’re asking all councils to add an item to your next meeting agenda to discuss civility and respect and sign up to pledge that your council will:
- Treat other councillors, clerks, employees, members of the public, and representatives of partner organisations and volunteers with civility and respect in their roles
- Commit to training councillors and staff
- Sign up to the code of conduct for councillors
- Have good governance arrangements in place
- Commit to seeking professional help at early stages should civility and respect issues arise
- Call out bullying and harassment if and when it happens
- Continue to learn from best practice in the sector and aspire to being a role model/champion council
- Support the continued lobbying for the change in legislation to support the civility and respect pledge including sanctions for elected members where appropriate
Visit the SLCC and NALC Civility and Respect webpages for suggested wording for this as an agenda item.
Find out more details and sign up here
