Absent Reform UK councillor’s seat saved after not turning up for months and being paid thousands

Reform UK Doncaster appointed an absentee councillor to a little-known City of Doncaster Council committee, which he appeared at less than a week before he would have lost his seat over his poor attendance, it can be revealed.

Councillor Jason Charity, who represents Conisbrough for Reform UK, has been paid at least £11,000 in allowances since he last attended a meeting on May 11, 2026.

Doncaster councillors lose their seats if they fail to attend any meetings they are appointed to for six months, leaving their seat vacant with the possibility of a by-election to replace them.

However, with no more meetings for Coun Charity to attend before his six-months was up on November 11, 2026, Reform UK Doncaster appointed him to the little-known Parish Council Joint Consultative Committee (PCJCC), which he attended remotely on November 5, restarting his six-month attendance clock.

A spokesperson for Reform UK Doncaster defended the decision which saved Coun Charity, with group secretary and fellow Conisbrough ward councillor, Rachel Reed, stating: “Councillor Charity was nominated to a long-standing council committee through the same process every political group uses, and he attended its meeting on 5 November.”

Coun Reed said the council’s monitoring officer, Scott Fawcus, had confirmed his position as councillor after his PCJCC attendance.

“He remains the councillor Conisbrough residents elected,” she added.

Coun Charity declined to comment beyond the statement issued by his party.

The appointment of Coun Charity to the PCJCC meant he kept his seat, despite being paid thousands in publicly-funded allowances for the nearly six months he did not turn up.

It is estimated that Coun Charity received at least £11,115 in pre-tax allowances during the period he did not attend any council meetings.

His allowances from May to the end of August included both the £15,880-a-year basic allowance, paid to all councillors, as well as a ‘Special Responsibility Allowance’ for his appointed role as chair of the audit committee – worth an additional £9,528 per year.

Coun Charity resigned as audit committee chair in mid-September.

The PCJCC has been a committee of the City of Doncaster Council since 2007, however, its only public reference by the council is in a document from 2019 and is largely unknown to people outside of the authority.

The committee is not listed on the council website as part of the authority’s current committee structure, nor as an outside body. However, the council confirmed Coun Charity’s virtual attendance did count towards his record.