AN INDEPENDENT councillor from Bridgend has been disqualified from standing on the local town council for 21 months due to “systematic harassment” and breaches to the code of conduct.
The ruling was given by the Adjudication Panel for Wales on February 6, and said that former Bridgend town councillor Freya Bletsoe had made a total of 10 breaches to the code of conduct following claims of bullying, harassment, and making frivolous complaints.
A tribunal was convened after the panel received a report from the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales over allegations made against Mrs Bletsoe and her behaviour towards Bridgend Town Council’s clerk.
The investigation focused on six reported incidents which included a dispute over the unveiling of blue plaques in the town, and another where she was said to have left a meeting “without an apology or explanation” after being “dissatisfied” with the clerk’s approach.
After interviewing a number of witnesses and reviewing the incidents that dated back to 2021, the panel found that Mrs Bletsoe had behaved “either intentionally or recklessly and the clerk had been caused significant upset”.
Some witnesses said that Mrs Bletsoe had been the victim of bullying by others on the council, particularly on social media, though the panel felt that there was “very little material” to support this claim.
Even though Mrs Bletsoe has already stood down from her role as a Bridgend town councillor, the panel decided that she should now be disqualified from standing as a town or community councillor for a period of 21 months.
They also added that the sanction would not impact her role as a member of Bridgend County Borough Council, where she currently represents the Oldcastle ward.
The report read: “The Case Tribunal unanimously concluded that the appropriate sanction in all of the circumstances was for the Respondent to be disqualified for a period of 21 months from being or becoming a member of the Authority on all allegations concurrently.
“The Tribunal did not consider that there was any further adjustment appropriate at the fourth stage of the sanctions process. In particular, we did not consider it appropriate to apply the disqualification to her role as a councillor within Bridgend County Borough Council in the absence of any evidence to suggest that she was not fulfilling that role appropriately and professionally.”
