The Standards Committee consists of Councillors chosen by Milton Keynes City Council to ensure high ethical standards. It includes both City Councillors and representatives from Parish Councils.
Link to Standards Committee meetings
Read more information about the Milton Keynes City Council Standards Committee.
The Standards Committee also agrees the Council’s arrangements for how complaints about Councillors are handled.
MKCC Arrangements for Dealing with Complaints
If a hearing about a Councillor's Conduct is required, a sub-committee will be formed, which must also take into account the views of an Independent Person (who cannot be a Councillor or employee of the Council) when making their decision.
Standards Committee Hearing Procedure
The Standards Committee has three co-opted Parish Councillors, whose job it is to provide the perspective of Parish Councillors - Councillor Phil Winsor (Newport Pagnell Town Council), Councillor Richard Pryor (Haversham-cum-Little Linford Parish Council) and Councillor Kiran Kanwar (Wolverton and Greenleys Town Council).
Independent Persons are appointed by the Council to provide an independent view on the merits of complaints made about Councillors. Independent Persons are not members of the Standards Committee but are invited to meetings as observers and will also attend any sub-committees to explain their opinion.
The following individuals were re-appointed at a meeting of Milton Keynes City Council on 20 November 2024 to serve as Independent Persons for a period of 4 years:
Currently an Independent Person for Buckinghamshire Council, Sarah has been a practising solicitor since 1996 and a Law Society Council Member since 2010.
A specialist in complex probate, Sarah is also a member of the Judicial Appointments Commission Advisory Group and Chair of Lexcel (Excellence in Legal Practice Management), a technical panel for accreditation with responsibility for development of standards.
Currently an Independent Person for Luton, and Central Bedfordshire Councils, Dr Fernandes is a retired Consultant Physician with extensive experience at a senior clinical and management level in Public Health and Substance Misuse and was Associate Medical Director of the MK NHS Community Health Services from 2001 -2007.
Dr Fernandes is currently a Vice President of the MK Community Foundation and served as the Honorary President of the MK Equality Council From 1993 to 2010.
Currently an Independent Person for Luton and Central Bedfordshire Councils, Chris was also the Independent Chair of MK Council’s Standards Committee for 12 years.
A former Magistrate with 24 years’ experience and 20 years’ service as an Independent Town Councillor (including three years as Mayor of Buckingham), Chris currently is also a lay member of Buckingham University Medical School’s Fitness to Practice Hearing Panel.
Currently an Independent Person for Luton, and Central Bedfordshire Councils, John was involved in setting up a forum of Independent Persons, to share experience and expertise during the transition to the current standards regime. John also serves as an Independent Panel Member for 6 police forces in the eastern region, dealing with gross misconduct allegations against police officers.
A retired company director, John served as a magistrate for over 20 years and is now Lead Governor of a large mental health Foundation Trust, serving Essex, Suffolk and Bedfordshire. John is also an Independent Chair of Stage 3 Reviews for complaints in Children’s Services and a Member of the NHS Providers Governor Advisory Committee representing mental health.
Currently an Independent Person for Bedford Borough Council and previously at Central Bedfordshire Council, Deborah is currently working as a language teacher at Henlow Academy. With 30 years’ service at the Home Office, Deborah has experience of developing governance processes and had responsibility for leading on Parliamentary relations on EU matters.
A Magistrate with 25 years’ experience and trained mediator, Deborah is also currently the Chair of the Trustees of Bedfordshire YMCA.