Torridge councillor's email ban extended

He's written intimidating, abusive messages

A Torridge District councillor’s ban from using his council email address for “intimidating and verbally abusive behaviour” has been extended until next year’s elections.

Councillor Len Ford (Independent, Appledore) has been unable to access his official email since February, nor enter council offices other than for meetings without prior agreement with the chief executive.

The council initially imposed the restrictions after Cllr Ford failed to write apologies to those affected by his behaviour. At an extraordinary meeting held this Monday, councillors voted to extend the measures until the end of the council term in May.

In March 2021, the council’s monitoring officer began receiving complaints against Cllr Ford about “threatening, abusive behaviour” through emails “and other literature that was being put up around the Torridge area.”

Last year the council approached the Local Government Association and an independent investigation took place.

Following the findings of that investigation, in August 2021 the council’s standards committee concluded Cllr Ford had displayed “threatening, intimidating and verbally abusive behaviour both in person and in public places.”

At the August 2021 meeting, which Cllr Ford refused to attend or to submit evidence, he was banned from council offices other than to go to council meetings. He is only allowed to visit at other times if the council’s chief executive agrees.

Cllr Ford refused to write the letters of apology, meaning his case was sent back to the council’s standards committee in January.

At a meeting shortly after, councillors agreed to make the issue public and voted unanimously to suspend Cllr Ford’s official council email address for at least six months – a decision extended this week.

He failed to show up at Monday’s meeting and previously described the standards hearing as a “charade,” claiming he had a file of legitimate complaints large enough “to sink a battleship with.”

A letter signed by the five group leaders of the council when the sanctions were first imposed said they had “deep concerns” that Cllr Ford was “becoming hugely damaging to the reputation and perception of the council, elected members and staff to the outside world.”

The group leaders also expressed concern about the “damaging effect” his conduct was having “on the council’s staff, their moral and, in particular, the health and wellbeing of those staff being indiscriminately targeted by this unacceptable behaviour.”

Speaking at this week’s meeting, council leader Ken James (Independent, Milton & Tamarside) said: “It’s with great sadness that we actually have to do this again, and I genuinely believe that. An awful lot of time is wasted on [this], but Cllr Ford has not complied with the original request.”

He claimed that members continue to receive emails from Mr Ford using another email address.

Councillor Simon Newton (Winkleigh), leader of the Conservative group, said: “It’s not only that he continues to fail to comply with what we have previously required him to do – to apologise – but the trail of abuse of members, elected members and officers continues unabated.”

Cllr Newton said young people would be put off serving on the council if they were subject to emails of the type Mr Ford was sending, one of which has been sent to the monitoring officer and referred to the standards committee.

Mr Ford continues to serve as one of Appledore’s two district councillors.

He was contacted for a response but did not answer.

The next full council elections will be held on Thursday 4 May 2023.