Search begins for council’s new chief executive on £156k a year

The search for a new chief executive of Caerphilly County Borough Council has begun.

The local authority said it is “seeking a forward-thinking strategic leader” to take the top job, following the departure of Christina Harrhy.

Her replacement will be expected to work with councillors “to provide strategic leadership, advice and direction” and help the council “deliver its strategic direction, vision and values”.

Caerphilly Council started advertising the chief executive vacancy this week, and is seeking candidates with “experience of senior management and leadership at a corporate level”.

The salary offered is £156,939 a year.

A new chief executive is unlikely to take up the post until at least February 2025, however.

The job advert on the council website shows the closing date for applications is midday on Friday November 29.

Candidates will then be expected to attend various assessments and interviews over the following two months, culminating in a final interview on January 30.

Ms Harrhy left the authority last month following a long period of absence.

Her departure was confirmed at a behind closed doors meeting on October 7, during which councillors reportedly agreed a settlement worth £209,000.

But the fallout from that reported payoff continues, and council leader Sean Morgan has since referred himself to Wales’ public services ombudsman “in the interests of transparency” over “recent correspondence” with a resident, reportedly concerning the settlement.

On Wednesday November 6, Natasha Asghar, MS for the South Wales East region, made the latest reference in the Senedd to the settlement deal, telling a minister she was “appalled” to hear “the recent revelation that Caerphilly County Borough Council has awarded their ex-CEO a £209,000 payoff in a deal drawn up behind closed doors”.

“I’m sure my constituents in Caerphilly would rather that this money was, in fact, spent on more nurses or doctors or, in fact, anything else that would, indeed, be to the local authority’s benefit”, Ms Asghar said, before calling for councils to be “as open and transparent as possible with the people that they serve”.

Jayne Bryant, Wales’ local government secretary, replied that “local authorities make those decisions and are accountable for them”.

Speaking in the wake of the October 7 meeting, a Caerphilly Council spokesman confirmed councillors had met privately to discuss a “confidential employment issue”.

“It would not be appropriate to disclose the details of the meeting,” he added. “We can confirm that Christina Harrhy has left the authority and that the deputy chief executive, Dave Street, will act as interim chief executive while the council considers the next steps in terms of appointing a permanent chief executive.”