Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies for absence.

To receive from Members, declarations of interest in relation to any items included on the agenda for this meeting in accordance with the Guildford and Waverley’s respective Codes of Conduct for Councillors.

There were no disclosures of interest.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the last meeting of the Joint Appointments Committee held on 5 April 2022.

The Joint Appointments Committee

RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting held on 5 April 2022 be approved as a correct record.

The Joint Appointments Committee to consider passing the following resolution:

“That pursuant to Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the content of the exempt Appendices 1 and 2 to Item 4 above, on the grounds that it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the public were present during the consideration of the matter, there would be disclosure to them of exempt information (as defined by Section 100I of the Act) of the description specified in Paragraphs 1 and 4 of the revised Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act, namely:

(1)   Information relating to any individual.

(4)   Information relating to any consultations or negotiations, or contemplated consultations or negotiations, in connection with any labour relations matters arising between the authority or a Minister of the Crown and employees of, or officer-holders under, the authority.”

The Joint Appointments Committee

RESOLVED: That pursuant to Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the content of the exempt Appendices 1 and 2 to Item 4 above, on the grounds that it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the public were present during the consideration of the matter, there would be disclosure to them of exempt information (as defined by Section 100I of the Act) of the description specified in Paragraphs 1 and 4 of the revised Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act, namely:

(1) Information relating to any individual.

(4) Information relating to any consultations or negotiations, or contemplated consultations or negotiations, in connection with any labour relations matters arising between the authority or a Minister of the Crown and employees of, or officer-holders under, the authority.

Following the candidate assessment process held earlier in the day with regard to the appointment of Joint Strategic Directors, the Joint Appointments Committee (JAC) was now invited to consider formally making a recommendation to both councils in respect of those appointments. 

The JAC agreed to take separate votes on each element of the resolution below, including in respect of each recommended Joint Strategic Director appointment.

The JAC

RESOLVED:

(1) To recommend to both Councils that:

(a)  Annie Righton;

(b)  Ian Doyle; and

(c)  Dawn Hudd

be appointed to the new roles of Joint Strategic Director, subject to no material or well-founded objection being made by either of the Council Leaders on behalf of their respective Executives.

(2)  To note that the Joint Chief Executive will provisionally offer the roles to the candidates accordingly and progress HR procedures in line with the Councils’ relevant policies. 

The JAC noted that its terms of reference included the consideration of any financial settlement of an affected employee who was unsuccessful in respect of the selection and appointment of any Joint Directors, and where necessary to make recommendations as appropriate for formal approval by each council.

The JAC then discussed the financial implications for each authority, in terms of possible redundancy payments and pension strain costs, if

(i)    a material or well-founded objection to an appointment was made by either Council Leader, or

(ii)   a successful candidate turned down an offer

noting that under the terms of the Inter Authority Agreement, redundancy costs would be shared equally between the two councils, but pension strain was borne by the employing council.

Any settlement in excess of £95,000 affecting a Guildford Borough Council employee would require approval of Guildford’s full Council. Any settlement in excess of £100,000 affecting a Waverley Borough Council employee would require approval of Waverley’s full Council.

It was noted that, should the circumstances in (i) or (ii) above occur and these amounts were exceeded, the JAC would need to reconvene to make a formal recommendation to the relevant full Council to approve the settlement.

The JAC therefore further

RESOLVED: To note that the Joint Appointments Committee has considered the financial settlements of affected employees who are unsuccessful in respect of selection or who may decline an offer, and that further employment processes will follow before any recommendations to both Councils are made if required.