Who decides dismissals and senior appointments?

The Council Constitution delegates authority to named officers and committees such as the Chief Executive, corporate directors and the Appointments or Staffing Committee; see the Council's Scheme of Delegation.

Are there fixed fines for employment breaches under the scheme?

No fixed municipal fines are specified for internal employment breaches on the cited Council pages; sanctions are disciplinary and contractual, while monetary awards come via employment tribunals under national law.

Where do I find forms and how do I submit an appeal?

Forms and procedural guidance are available from the Council's HR pages; if no public form is shown contact HR or the Monitoring Officer for submission instructions.

Scheme of Delegation for Employment - Cardiff

Labor and Employment Wales 4 Minutes Read · published February 12, 2026

Cardiff, Wales councils allocate authority for employment decisions through a Scheme of Delegation that sets who can hire, discipline and dismiss staff and how appeals operate. This guide summarises how delegation commonly works in Cardiff Council, identifies the enforcing departments, explains penalties and non-monetary sanctions, and lists the practical steps to apply, appeal or report suspected breaches of procedure. Where specific fees, fine amounts or numeric limits are not published on the cited official pages we state that fact and point to the controlling documents so you can follow up with the responsible officer.

Check the Council Constitution for the formal officer delegations before taking action.

How the scheme typically operates

The Scheme of Delegation vests employment decision-making in named officers and committees rather than individual councillors; typical delegations include the Head of Paid Service, Chief Executive, corporate directors, heads of service and the Appointments or Staffing Committee for senior posts. For the formal text see the Council's published constitution and Part 3 delegations online Cardiff Council Constitution - Part 3^[1]. Employment policies, disciplinary and grievance procedures that implement delegation are published by the Council's HR service Working for Cardiff - policies^[2].

Penalties & Enforcement

Employment decisions rarely impose statutory fines; instead sanctions are administrative or contractual. Where monetary penalties might arise (for example, unlawful deductions or tribunal awards), these derive from national employment law rather than a city bylaw. The Council's constitution and HR pages do not set fixed fine amounts for internal employment sanctions and therefore the pages are cited as "not specified on the cited page" below. For formal delegation to take disciplinary or dismissal action, the enforcing officers are within HR, the relevant directorate and the Monitoring Officer or Head of Paid Service depending on the issue. Contact points are listed on the Council site Contact Cardiff Council^[3].

Monetary fines: not specified on the cited page; employment sanctions are principally disciplinary outcomes set out in HR policy and, where applicable, employment tribunal awards are governed by national law.
Escalation: first offences typically follow a formal warning and investigation; repeated or serious misconduct can lead to final warnings or dismissal—exact stepwise ranges are set in the Council's disciplinary procedure (not specified with fixed fines on the cited page).
Non-monetary sanctions: written warnings, final written warnings, suspension (with or without pay), redeployment, loss of benefits, dismissal and referral to professional regulators where applicable.
Enforcers and complaint routes: HR service, line managers, Monitoring Officer and the Appointments/Staffing Committee; use the Council contact page to locate the correct officer and complaints form.
Appeals and review: appeal rights are included in disciplinary and grievance procedures; time limits for lodging appeals are set in those procedures (not specified on the cited page—see HR policy). Tribunal claims follow national time limits, such as ACAS early conciliation and tribunal claim timeframes under UK employment law.

If you face dismissal or a formal sanction, start internal appeal and ACAS early conciliation promptly.

Applications & Forms

The Council publishes templates and guidance for disciplinary, grievance and appeal processes within its HR pages; some matters may use internal casework forms or manager checklists. If a specific public form number is required this is not specified on the cited pages and you should contact HR or the Monitoring Officer for the current form and submission route.

Common violations and typical outcomes

Gross misconduct (e.g., fraud, violence): investigation, potential summary dismissal, referral to police or regulator where relevant.
Poor performance: performance improvement plan, reassignment or capability proceedings.
Attendance breaches: warnings, occupational health referral, possible dismissal for long-term incapacity.
Procedural breaches (failure to follow procurement, conflicts of interest): management action, possible disciplinary sanction.

Document every step of an investigation to preserve appeal rights and evidence for tribunals.

Action steps

To raise a complaint: follow the Council's internal grievance or complaints process and use HR contact points to lodge your case.
To appeal a decision: use the appeal form/notice in the disciplinary procedure and submit within the stated time limit in that procedure.
To request a review or external remedy: seek ACAS early conciliation and, if necessary, lodge an employment tribunal claim within statutory time limits.

FAQ

Who decides dismissals and senior appointments?: The Council Constitution delegates authority to named officers and committees such as the Chief Executive, corporate directors and the Appointments or Staffing Committee; see the Council's Scheme of Delegation.^[1]
Are there fixed fines for employment breaches under the scheme?: No fixed municipal fines are specified for internal employment breaches on the cited Council pages; sanctions are disciplinary and contractual, while monetary awards come via employment tribunals under national law.
Where do I find forms and how do I submit an appeal?: Forms and procedural guidance are available from the Council's HR pages; if no public form is shown contact HR or the Monitoring Officer for submission instructions.^[2]

How-To

Identify the decision letter and check the stated grounds and appeal time limit in that letter.
Gather evidence: emails, witness names, records of meetings and any relevant policies.
File an internal appeal using the procedure in the disciplinary or grievance policy and submit any evidence by the deadline.
If internal appeal fails, contact ACAS for early conciliation and consider tribunal options within statutory time limits.

Key Takeaways

The Council Constitution and HR procedures govern who can make employment decisions in Cardiff.
Contact HR or the Monitoring Officer for forms, submission routes and officer names.