Decision details

Decision:

1.        To approve the creation of a permanent new role of Joint Chief of Staff reporting directly to the Joint Chief Executive, subject to budget approval by full Council, and subject to the deletion of the Head of Business Improvement post.

2.        To delegate authority to the Joint Chief Executive to make any changes to the role, following the outcome of consultation with staff and the Union.

3.        To agree that the post of Joint Chief of Staff will be a shared post with Waverley Borough Council and will be governed by the existing principles of the Inter-Authority Agreement.

Reasons:

1.        To respond to the need to better align the current role of GBC Head of Business Improvement created in May 2024, which reports directly to the Joint Chief Executive, with the work that Waverley will need to do as we move towards a review of their business by SOLACE, and to support wider improvement between both Councils.

2.        To recognise that the current GBC Head of Business Improvement postholder is already undertaking tasks more aligned to a Chief of Staff post and this will clarify responsibilities for postholders and the Council as a whole. This would mean the current GBC Head of Business Improvement post would be deleted in the light of this new joint post being created.

3.        To ensure that the Joint Chief Executive has additional capacity in liaison with the Corporate Leadership Board and Joint Leadership Team given the additional work associated with undertaking Head of Paid Services responsibilities for two sovereign councils.

Other options considered and rejected by the Executive:

Option 1 – do nothing.

Details of any conflict of interest declared by the Leader or lead councillors and any dispensation granted:

None.