Christchurch Town Council on 'Dignity At Work Policy'

Members of the town council have considered the adoption and publication of the Dignity At Work Policy.

The policy is described as a “proactive policy” which “guides and promotes good governance”, with the town council’s existing policies dealing with matters once they have occurred.

At a town council meeting, acting town clerk James Atkinson said the Dignity At Work Policy was being proposed “due to growing concerns about bullying, harassment, and mistreatment within town and parish councils.”

Mr Atkinson told members the policy had been developed by the National Association of Local Councils.

He said it was considered easy for councils to sign up for and can enable councils to “demonstrate their commitment to standing up to poor behaviour across the sector and to drive through positive changes which support civil and respectful conduct”.

A report shared with members said: “Christchurch Town Council is committed to creating a working environment where all council employees, councillors, contractors and others who come into contact with us in the course of our work, are treated with dignity, respect and courtesy. We aim to create a workplace where there is zero tolerance for harassment and bullying.”

The new policy is detailed in the report: “We recognise that there is a continuum where unaddressed issues have the potential to escalate and become larger, more complex issues and this policy sets out how concerns will be managed however the emphasis of this policy is on resolution and mediation where appropriate, rather than an adversarial process.”

Christchurch Town Council has also signed up to the Civility and Respect Pledge’ as part of this policy.

The meeting heard how more than 1,400 councils had already signed up to the Civility and Respect Pledge.

It was agreed that further and thorough discussion would be held over the Dignity At Work policy, ahead of its possible adoption at the annual council meeting.