The majority of complaints made to the Press Complaints Commission, which raise a possible breach of the Code of Practice, are resolved directly between the Commission’s staff, editors and complainants.

These are either settled to the express satisfaction of the complainant following some remedial action by the editor or are not pursued by complainants following an explanation or other response from the publication.

Below are summaries of the latest complaints involving the regional press which fall into the first category.

Gloucester Citizen
Dr Warden of South Gloucester Mental Health Centre complained that an article had inaccurately set out that on the day that she committed suicide Nicola Fuller had seen a student nurse who had told her to “go away and pull herself together”. (Clause 1)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published the following correction and apology: The Editor wishes to apologise to the medical staff involved for the incorrect information given in the article headlined “Suicide Verdict of Gay Army Girl” which was carried in The Citizen on June 23, 2006. The article suggested that Nicola Fuller saw a student nurse, on the day of the suicide, who told her to “pull herself together”. This is not true. Ms Fuller did see a student nurse on that day, but was not told to pull herself together. The Citizen would like the public to know that the suicide was in no way related to the contact with the student nurse.

Basingstoke Gazette
Debra Sells of Salisbury, mother of Jolene Colpus, complained that the newspaper had published photographs of her daughter’s funeral without her knowledge or permission. She was particularly concerned over photographs of the coffin which had appeared on the front page. (Clauses 3, 5)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper undertook to interview the complainant at the conclusion of the trial of a man for Jolene’s murder.

Rugby Advertiser
Teresa Saunders of Coventry complained that the newspaper had published an article that misleadingly suggested that she and her husband had harassed and intimidated their son’s school. (Clause 1)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved after the complainant expressed her satisfaction with the editor’s response and the follow up article which he had written.

Evening Standard
Sandra Yardon-Pinder, headteacher of Geoffrey Chaucer Technology College, complained through Equal Justice Solicitors that two articles which related to the school contained inaccuracies. The complainant also raised concerns under Clause 4 (Harassment) and Clause 12 (Discrimination). (Clauses 1, 2, 4, 12)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published the following clarification: We have been asked to confirm that the headteacher, Ms Sandra Yardon-Pinder, was not suspended from Geoffrey Chaucer Technology School as we reported in our article in March 2006. An Interim Executive Board was appointed at the school in November 2005 by the Southwark LEA. She was placed on garden leave on 10 February 2006. We are happy to clarify this matter.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough)
Debbie Robertson of Stockton on Tees complained that an article about her brother Ivor Jones – who was imprisoned for manslaughter following the killing of his wife – was inaccurate when it referred to the existence of a “family feud”. The complainant was also concerned that a series of articles on the case intruded into the grief of Mr Jones’ children and raised a breach of Clause 6 (Children). Finally, the complainant raised concerns, with signed authorisation, that correspondence from her friend had been passed to a third party without permission. (Clauses 1, 5, 6, 14)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper and the complainant met privately to discuss the coverage of the case.

Wales on Sunday
Chad Noble, founder of the website UKIPHome, complained that an article had reported the inaccurate comments of Richard Suchorzewski. Contrary to Mr Suchorzewski’s contentions, the complainant explained that UKIPHome was a fully independent site which sought to help UKIP grow as a party and had no affiliation with any leadership candidate. (Clause 1)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published the following clarification: An article in Wales on Sunday, August 13, headlined “Wrapped in a web of intrigue” reported comments by the UK Independence Party candidate, Richard Suchorzewski, about the website UKIPHome.
UKIPHome’s founder, Chad Noble, has asked us to point out that, contrary to Mr Suchorzewski’s comments, the website is not linked to the Conservative Party in any way, and that Mr Noble has left the Conservatives.
He also wishes us to clarify that the site is fully independent of any leadership candidate and was established as a forum for all UKIP members. Wales on Sunday is happy to do so.

Leamington Spa Courier
A woman complained that an article had inaccurately set out that her son was still in prison. She also contended that, despite a court order that he should not be identified in the press, the newspaper had included a blacked out silhouette of her son. (Clause 1)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper apologised for the error regarding the issue of whether the complainant’s son was still serving a sentence, and offered to publish a clarification. It also contended that the silhouette had been used for illustrative purposes, and was not taken from the complainant’s son’s file. The complainant accepted the apology and explained that she did not wish anything further to be published.

Falkirk Herald
A former member of the Special Boat Squadron complained that an article had revealed details about his former military service and published his full address. The complainant said that, in times of heightened security, revealing such information could have serious consequences for the person named and their family. (Clause 3)
Resolution: The newspaper wrote to the complainant and apologised if his safety had been compromised by the article. The editor said he had spoken to his staff to ensure that they were aware of the sensitivities regarding military personnel. The editor also annotated the newspaper’s records with a note of the complainant’s concerns so that anyone accessing the article in future would be aware of the matters raised.

Faversham Times
Trevor Fentiman, Mayor of Faversham, complained that an article had inaccurately suggested that he had referred to a piece of land as ‘ripe for development’ and was involved in the manipulation of the political agenda to benefit a businessman to whom he was close. (Clause 1)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published a follow-up article which made clear that the complainant had been cleared of all charges against him.

South Wales Argus
Andrew Slocombe of Newport complained that a front page article reporting the claims made by his ex-wife were not clearly distinguished as the allegations which she had made in court. (Clause 1)
Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published the following clarification: Mr A Slocombe. Further to a report published on July 19th 2006 headlined “£30,000 Theft: Mum Jailed” in which we reported the sentencing of Emma Slocombe, we would like to make clear that the headlines and text of the article reflected the claims that were made in court. We apologise for any misunderstanding in the way this story was reported.