Lewisham Council is seeking to bolster its ethical oversight by appointing two Independent Persons to its Standards Committee. The move comes after a vacancy arose following the resignation of the previous Independent Person in 2024. According to the Appointment of Independent Persons report, the last serving Independent Person formally stepped down from the role, creating a vacancy within the Council's governance framework.
The Standards Committee is scheduled to meet on Wednesday, 24 September 2025, to recommend the appointment of Katy Prestedge and Kalwant Grewal to the council. According to the Public Reports Pack, these appointments are in line with the Localism Act 2011, which requires councils to have at least one Independent Person to provide impartial advice on councillor conduct.
The Appointment of Independent Persons report outlines the importance of the role, stating that without an Independent Person, any decision made on a standards complaint may be procedurally flawed. The report also notes that the absence of an Independent Person undermines the council's ability to comply with its own Code of Conduct procedures, potentially invalidating decisions or exposing the council to legal challenge.
The council advertised the vacancies on its website and on the Guardian jobs portal, receiving 23 applications. Shortlisting was carried out by the Head of Governance and Committee Services and the Deputy Monitoring Officer. Four candidates were interviewed by a panel comprising Councillor Hilary Moore (Chair Standards Committee), an independent co-opted Member of the Standards Committee, and the Deputy Monitoring officer.
Katy Prestedge is described in the Public Reports Pack as a lawyer with over 15 years' experience across central government, criminal justice, and regulatory environments. Kalwant Grewal is an experienced governance professional with over 30 years' senior leadership experience in finance, risk and assurance across the public, charitable and regulatory sectors.
The Independent Person role attracts an allowance of £639 per annum, funded from the Governance budget.
