Protesters claim they were barred from attending Staffordshire County Council meeting
A number of protesters have said they were barred from attending a Staffordshire County Council meeting after proceedings were disrupted at a previous session in December.
Five people were escorted by police from County Buildings in Stafford at the full council meeting on December 11 after repeated chanting in the public gallery.
Security has since been beefed up at the council building. Members of the media and public were required to sign in and enter County Buildings via a separate door for Thursday’s full council meeting (February 12) and were not permitted to take coats or bags into the public gallery.
Up to six security staff at a time were present in the council chamber during Thursday’s meeting. But protestors who attended the December meeting said that five people were not permitted inside the building.
The letter given to one of the protesters by name, on behalf of the county council, said: “When you attended the meeting on 11th December 2025 it became necessary for the meeting to be adjourned. This was because you refused to comply with the requests of the Chairman to allow the meeting to progress.
“Your conduct led to a prolonged disruption of a public meeting and Staffordshire Police had to attend before you agreed to leave the chamber. We therefore have no confidence that you will follow any Chairman direction today.
“Staffordshire County Council wholly supports the right of any person to engage in peaceful and lawful protest. There are allegations that your protest was not peaceful or lawful that have yet to be investigated and determined.
“We must ensure that the important business of the council can be conducted and that our members feel safe in the conduct of their role. You can view a live broadcast of the council meeting.”
Those not permitted to attend Thursday’s meeting included Gillian Pardesi, a current serving member of Stafford Borough Council and a former county councillor who represented the county town on the authority before she stood down last May. Damon Hoppe, who was present at the December 11 meeting, was also denied entry .
He said: “I wasn’t surprised they didn’t want to let us in. This is democracy denied, it is an absolute farce.
“They don’t want people to know what is going on in there. They think they can get away with it behind closed doors but that’s not how local democracy works.”
Before the start of Thursday’s meeting, protesters held banners outside two entrances to County Buildings calling for the departure of Councillors Chris Large, Peter Mason and Ian Cooper, who have all come under fire from anti-racism campaigners for alleged activity on social media.
Councillor Large was due to be the council’s new leader. But he stepped down just seven days after being appointed due to a family bereavement. Previous council leader Ian Cooper was expelled from Reform UK after he failed to disclose a social media account and now sits as an independent member.
Councillor Martin Murray has been acting council leader since Councillor Cooper’s expulsion from the party. Councillors Cooper, Large and Mason were all absent from Thursday’s meeting.
