Agenda item

Further to the previous item, to consider formal appointments to the positions of :

Head of Paid Service;

Returning Officer;

Electoral Registration Officer; and

Deputy Electoral Registration Officer.

(Report to follow)

Members considered a report proposing a number of appointments to various Council functions required as a result of the departure of the former Borough Director and the appointment of a Joint Chief Executive.

Following an initial discussion of the report, Members discussed a matter that necessitated the disclosure of exempt information. It was therefore agreed to move to exclude the press and public prior to any further debate on the grounds that information would be revealed in respect of the financial affairs of particular persons, employment terms and conditions currently under negotiation and information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings.

There was clarification sought over the appropriateness of certain terms and conditions of the secondment agreement given that the Acting Joint Chief Executive would have significantly different lengths of service at Bromsgrove District and Redditch Borough Councils. Officers undertook to enter into further discussions with their counterparts at Bromsgrove over the details of this arrangement. The other significant proposal to arise from discussions was the agreement that the Leaders of all parties on the Council be invited to enter into negotiations regarding the terms of the secondment arrangement.

RESOLVED that

1.         authority be delegated to the Head of Legal, Democratic & Property Services, in consultation with the Leaders of all groups on the Council, to agree the terms of and enter into a secondment agreement with Bromsgrove District Council for the secondment of Kevin Dicks to Redditch Borough Council to enable him to perform the role of Acting Joint Chief Executive;

2)         subject to the signing of the secondment agreement referred to at 1) above, Kevin Dicks, Acting Joint Chief Executive,  be appointed as the Council’s Head of Paid Service for the duration of his secondment to Redditch Borough Council;

3)         all references in the Council’s Constitution to the “Borough Director” be construed as referring to the Acting Joint Chief Executive;

4)         Sue Hanley, Deputy Borough Director, be re-titled asActing Deputy Chief Executive and appointed as the Council’s Returning Officer;

5)         Sue Hanley be appointed as the Council’s Electoral Registration Officer;  and

6)         authority be delegated to the Council’s Monitoring Officer, in consultation with the Leader of the Council, to determine appropriate arrangements to resolve any issue that may arise from a conflict of interest during the arrangements for the Acting Joint Chief Executive in respect of matters that relate to Redditch Borough Council.

(In view of the fact that the report contained information in respect of the financial affairs of particular persons, employment terms and conditions currently under negotiation and information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings, disclosure of which was not considered to be in the public’s best interest, part of this discussion took place after the exclusion of the press and public. There is nothing exempt, however, in this record of the proceedings.)

(Prior to consideration of this item, and in accordance with the requirements of Section 81 of the Local Government Act 2000, both Kevin Dicks and Sue Hanley declared a prejudicial interest, in view of the fact that the terms and conditions of their employment were under discussion, and left the room during consideration of this item.)