Close Personal Associations and Relationships Guidance - June 2026
In this section
- 1. Introduction
- 2. Scope
- 3. Principals
- 4. Roles and Responsibilities
- 5. Definition of Close Personal Associations / Relationships
- 6. Defining a Relevant Team or Establishment or Work Area
- 7. Recruitment and Appointment of Employees
- 8. Requirement to Disclose a Close Personal Association
- 9. Where there is a Relationship Between Applicant and Manager or Team Colleagues
- 10. Authority to Appoint
- 11. When Issues Cannot be Managed Effectively
- 12. When a Relationship Breaks Down
- 13. Conduct or Performance Issues
- 14. Close Personal Associations between an Employee and a Child / Young Person or Vulnerable Adult
- 15. Colleagues Affected by a Close Personal Association
- 16. Provision of References
- 17. Financial Regulations
- 18. Associations with Contractors or Potential Contractors
- 19. Failure to Disclose a Close Personal Association
- 20. Ensuring Equality of Opportunity
- APPENDIX 1 - Officers' Declaration of Personal Interests
- APPENDIX 2 - Relationship Protocol
3. Principals
To avoid any accusation of bias, employees must not be involved in the recruitment procedure where they are a relative or partner of or have a close personal association / relationship with the individual being considered for appointment. Similarly, employees must not be involved in decisions relating to discipline, dismissal, grievance, and promotion or pay adjustments for that employee.
The aim is to build an organisation that is committed to maintaining high standards of conduct in the area of close personal associations/relationships at work.
This will be achieved by:
Promoting high standards of conduct and integrity amongst the authority’s employees.
Not interfering unduly in employees’ private lives but taking legitimate action when close personal associations / relationships at work have an actual or potential impact on the authority’s services.
Managing issues involving close personal associations / relationships at work promptly, effectively, fairly and lawfully.
Describing the types of close personal associations / relationships at work that the authority considers inappropriate.
This guidance is produced to support the Employee Code of Conduct and Employee Declarations procedure along with the Codes of Practice and professional standards relating to specific occupations.
This guidance is not designed to deal with issues of misconduct or grievance relating to close personal associations / relationships. These should be dealt with in accordance with the Disciplinary Policy and Procedure, and Grievance Policy and Procedure.