Pevensey Parish Councillor, Abigail Sargent, has hidden behind her dog to make what is being regarded as a vile social media comment about a fellow councillor, Bay Life, 4 November 2016
Attention focuses locally today on Pevensey Parish Councillor, Abigail Sargent, who has hidden behind her dog on a social media account to make a vile comment about the mental state of fellow Parish councillor, local community activist, Helen Burton
Writing on a Facebook post (November 2), hiding behind her account holder dog, she comments about her fellow councillor “If you think you were anywhere other than Pevensey Bay yesterday it just shows you are barking”.
Bay Life believes the comment is a reference to the whereabouts of fellow councillor, Helen Burton, following a heated meeting held by Pevensey Parish Council this Tuesday (1 November).
It appears that the roles of a number of councillors were discussed in private session. Whilst we have no knowledge of the nature of the discussions, nonetheless the meeting appears to have left the Council in something of a heightened state of concern about the structure of the body.
Helen Burton, a green candidate on the Council, is known for her forthright views. Her work as a community activist locally also sees her campaigning work featured in the local press, with a weekly column in the Eastbourne Herald, in which she writes in a personal capacity.
Her work in helping to found Pevensey Volunteers has seen her endeavours recognised by the influential Sussex Life magazine as a nominee in their community category for an award in their 2016 ceremony.
Following the Pevensey Parish Council meeting, on her personal Facebook feed, it appears that Helen Burton, who is also mother to an autistic child, took time to retreat to her home after the meeting, posting jokingly that she was on an Indian Reserve.
The response from Councillor Abigail Sargent, hiding behind her dog, with what is clearly a reference to the meeting and the attendance of Helen Burton at the meeting, steps in to question the mental state of her fellow councillor, describing her as ‘barking’.
Of course it could be argued that the comment supposedly coming from a dog is an attempt at a literary slight of some description, but the underhand way in which the comment has been posted, particularly since it was posted, with intent, to question the mental state of a fellow councillor has drawn breath today from a number of local observers.
One local long term resident in the Bay who is a senior citizen and asked not to be named, said “this must clearly be upsetting to Helen Burton, it is underhand and obviously created to cause upset”.
Whether or not a personal attack on social media from Abigail Sargent as a councillor to a fellow councillor is a fitting way in which to conduct the affairs of the Parish Council online is an open question.
Forest Row Parish Council, which is an exemplar of best practice in Sussex is specific in relation to the ways in which the business of councillors should be conducted.
As well as posting their adherence to the 7 Nolan Principles about their work, an additional note directed to councilllors states that, “You must not conduct yourself in a manner which could reasonably be regarded as bringing your office or authority into disrepute”.
Whilst the issue of a councillor hiding behind her dog to post a vile comment about the mental state of a fellow councillor is not covered in any detail in the Forest Row Parish Council note, nonetheless, it is reasonable to assume that such a comment is likely to cause questions to be raised about whether a councillor behaving in this manner online, is bringing the work of a parish council into disrepute.
If Councillor Helen Burton in fighting local causes is barking, what does this say about Councillor Abigail Sargent and the way in which she is conducting her affairs online and talking as if she was a dog?
Bay Life also has a dog on our team. Her name is Lucy. She sniffs out the news and writes enthusiastically whilst she wags her tail about matters such as support for the local library by posting new opening times. Her role seems to have been appreciated by some of the hundreds of local people that browse our platform on a daily basis.
It requires something of a leap of faith to take a dog and instead of asking Connie to fetch a stick, instead to use the stick to beat someone about the head and then walk on as if nothing had happened, does it not?
The post, to say the least, is disappointing. Perhaps a public apology from Councillor Abigail Sargent would not go amiss in the circumstances.
Whether or not the account of Connie Sargent, the dog, will continue to be utiised by her owner to comment in this way about fellow councillors on Pevensey Parish Council remains to be seen.
Pevensey Parish Council has been invited to comment on the matter.
Malcom Lawson, clerk to Pevensey Parish Council told Bay life, (November 3), “It is not possible for me to comment on behalf of Pevensey parish council at this juncture”.
