A MEETING of a Cowbridge Town Council committee this coming week will be looking through issues that brought a troubled end to 2023 for the authority.

There were a number of exchanges between councillors and officers, many of which were played out behind closed doors – though other exchanges were shared on social media.

The subject matter surrounds allegations of bullying and poor behaviour. The recent co-option of a new council member was also the subject of a degree of acrimony.

Some matters came to a head at a meeting of the council's staff committee on 12 December – the minutes of which are likely to be discussed at next week's meeting of the same committee – due to take place on Wednesday, 10 January.

Minutes of the December meeting report a discussion focusing on an informal meeting held with the Town Council's HR Advisor on 6 December 2023.

The focus of the informal meeting centered around allegations made by the former Deputy Town Clerk against both the current Town Clerk, Cathy Kennedy, and the Town Council.

The minutes:

It was reported that on two separate occasions that the Committee are aware of, the former Deputy Town Clerk had posted allegations and slanderous comments on Facebook's public forum and had sent a similar email to all Councillors, Members of Parliament, Mayors of other Councils, the Vale of Glamorgan Monitoring Officer, among others.

Concerns were raised by the Town Council HR Advisor about GDPR compliance, as personal emails of the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Town Clerk were utilised.

The Town Clerk emphasised the severe impact of these allegations on her mental and physical well-being, highlighting the Town Council's Duty of Care to protect staff members. The Town Clerk reminded the Committee that during the informal meeting she had requested they instruct a Solicitor to write to the former Deputy Town Clerk, requesting she cease and desist harassment of the Town Clerk.

The Town Clerk also reminded the Committee that during the informal meeting she as Town Clerk had requested a full and thorough investigation, expressing her willingness to cooperate fully.

The Town Clerk then noted that the Committee had agreed to the investigation, however, opted for the Mayor to write to the former Deputy Town Clerk, requesting she cease and desist harassment of the Town Clerk and the Town Council.

The Committee had agreed that if this approach proved unsuccessful, they would then instruct a Solicitor to address the matter.

The Town Clerk reported that the most recent comments by the former Deputy Town Clerk on Facebook followed the email sent by the Mayor, therefore, this approach had indeed been unsuccessful.

The Mayor then reported that he and the Deputy Mayor had attended a meeting with the former Deputy Town Clerk via Microsoft Teams on 11 December 2023. He said that the former Deputy Town Clerk welcomed the investigation but refused to cease posting about the Town Clerk and the Town Council on Facebook

It was decided the mayor would Mayor to direct a Solicitor, approved by the Staffing Committee, to draft a letter addressed to the former Deputy Town Clerk. The letter will reiterate the request for her to cease and desist posting comments of harassment and slander directed towards the Town Clerk and the Town Council.

It is likely that Wednesday's meeting will also be held behind closed doors.

In December the council agreed the selection of a new member for the Llanblethian East ward and Biga John was successful in being co-opted.

The meeting that ended with her selection had been preceded by acrimony and allegations.

Former councillor Andrew Pritchard has thrown his hat into the ring to be selected but his candidacy was subject to some conditions related to the council's code of conduct.

Mr Pritchard was advised of the conditions in a letter from mayor Cllr Malcom Wilson.

Mr Pritchard, who had previously resigned from the council, believed that he was a victim of unfair treatment and alleged a conspiracy against him was manipulated by some council members and the town clerk - a matter fervently denied by the authority and Ms Kennedy.

Matters surrounding Mr Pritchard's resignation are linked to the debate in the staffing committee about a history of bullying and poor behaviour.

In the end, Mr Pritchard withdrew his application for the Llanblethian East ward.