Caerphilly council approves officer-only appeals panel

Plans to replace councillors with an all-officer appeals panel at Caerphilly County Borough Council have divided opinion, with critics warning the move is less democratic.

The council’s appeals panel hears challenges from local authority staff facing dismissal or disciplinary action.

At a meeting on Tuesday, November 10, councillors were asked to approve constitutional changes, including a new appeals panel made up of two non-elected members.

Cllr Brenda Miles led the opposition, saying an elected councillor should also sit on the panel.

She said a third member would prevent a split decision on an appeal.

Cllr Kevin Etheridge called removing councillors from the panel a “backwards step”, while Cllr Gary Enright said “there has to be an element of democratic oversight”.

“I don’t quite see how removing members is improving democracy,” said Cllr Colin Mann.

Cllr Teresa Parry said a two-person panel could “cause problems” if members had a “difference of opinion” and no deciding vote.

“If it’s not broken, why are we changing it?” she asked.

But Cllr Gary Johnston backed the changes, saying employers, not councillors, should make employment decisions.

“I didn’t want to become a councillor so I could dismiss people,” he said.

Senior officer Mark S Williams said most other Welsh councils used officer-led panels.

“I think we felt officers have the expertise and the experience, in terms of making what is a very difficult decision,” he said.

“It can be an emotional decision for members – generally we felt that to protect members from that, and also to allow people with more experience in this field, being advised by HR as well, would be much better for the persons appealing,” he explained.

Most councillors rejected Cllr Miles’ call for a third, elected member on the appeals panel.

In a separate vote, councillors rejected Cllr Enright’s calls for a third member and more say over senior officers’ severance packages.

Under the changes, councillors will have the final say on packages worth £100,000 or more.

Other approved changes covered the format and deadlines for scrutiny committee reports, and the membership of the council’s governance and audit committee.

Earlier in 2026, Cllr Miles said her separate appeal against losing the Labour whip and committee positions had remained unheard for ten months.