A payout to the former chief executive of Caerphilly County Borough Council totalled more than £280,000 – according to the local authority’s statement of accounts.

Christina Harrhy left the top officer job in October 2024 after elected councillors were asked to approve a settlement arrangement at a behind-closed-doors meeting.

It was understood at the time that a deal worth £209,000 was backed by a majority of councillors rather than pursue a potentially costlier or lengthier arbitration process.

The council’s opposition leader, Plaid Cymru’s Cllr Charlotte Bishop, called the payout of £280,654 “a revelation” and “a shock… because we as councillors were not informed of the final total cost”.

“Given the public interest, I would have expected to be informed rather than having to rummage through the council’s lengthy statement of accounts,” she added.

Senedd Member Lindsay Whittle, who led the Plaid opposition group at the time of Ms Harrhy’s departure, added he was “staggered” by the deal which he likened to “a lottery win”.

“People struggling with cost of living and higher council taxes will rightly be shocked”, he said, noting Ms Harrhy “was the second chief executive to leave Caerphilly with a massive pay-off”.

In response, a Caerphilly Council spokesperson said it “would not be appropriate to comment on employment matters relating to individuals, but we can confirm this matter was agreed by full council and the costs are clearly detailed in the council’s accounts”.

Responding to the Plaid claims, a spokesperson for the Labour group – which controls the council – said they “completely understand residents’ frustrations” but added “nothing is being hidden” and the council had handled the matter in line with national rules.

“Plaid lobbied for more Senedd Members to better scrutinise legislation, so perhaps they should get on with their day jobs and explore amending current legislation instead of trying to score cheap political points,” the Labour spokesperson added.

Following her departure from Caerphilly, Ms Harrhy was a senior officer at Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen councils.

Earlier this year, she was appointed chief executive of the newly-formed Disused Tips Authority for Wales by the then Labour Welsh Government – a role with a £120,000 salary.

Speaking at the time, then-deputy first minister Huw Irranca-Davies said the chief executive’s job would be to “establish the authority as a trusted, expert body dedicated to ensuring that disused [industrial] tips do not pose a risk to human welfare, now or in the future”.

Caerphilly councillors agreed her departure after Ms Harrhy had been on special long-term leave for 11 months with full pay.

During her absence she missed out on becoming chief fire officer at South Wales Fire and Rescue Service, after being shortlisted.

Elected members were warned at the October 2024 meeting to not disclose details of the settlement, or they would risk breaching the council’s code of conduct.

The then-council leader, Cllr Sean Morgan, later referred himself to Wales’ public services ombudsman “in the interests of transparency”, after it was understood he had discussed the matter with a resident.

The ombudsman’s office later said it had decided not to investigate Cllr Morgan over the matter.

Richard Edmunds was appointed the new chief executive of Caerphilly Council in February 2025.