A Ukip councillor is being investigated by the party over alleged comments about minority constituents in her ward.

Carol Sacre, who represents the Folkestone East ward on Shepway District Council, was reported over remarks made during a councillors’ training session at the Civic Centre in Castle Hill Avenue last Tuesday night.

Calls have been made for Cllr Sacre, who was only elected in May, to resign if the accusations turn out to be true.

Ukip Folkestone and Hythe, the party’s local association, has said it is “looking into the allegation”.

Branch chairman Frank McKenna would not elaborate on the details of the investigation but confirmed “it is being dealt with internally”, while the party’s group leader on Shepway District Council, Cllr Mary Lawes, refused to comment.

Cllr Sacre, who is also a Folkestone town councillor, supposedly made the comments during the course in which councillors sat in their ward groups learning about a new system to allocate ward grants for community projects.

Councillors are understood to have been working on an exercise using the recently closed St Saviour’s Church in Canterbury Road as an example, when Cllr Sacre’s comments, regarding use of the church, are alleged to have been made.

She had been due to attend Shepway’s full council meeting last Wednesday, June 17, but sent apologies for her absence.

Cllr Claire Jeffrey (Lab) – who also stands for the three-seat Folkestone East ward alongside Cllrs Sacre and McKenna – told the Express she has reported the incident to Cllr Lawes but was yet to receive a response.

A spokesman for Shepway District Council said: “The council has not received a complaint over member conduct through the council’s complaint procedure.

“It was not in a regular minuted meeting of the council but in an informal training session.”

Cllr Sacre was unavailable for comment this week.