‘ARBITRARY, UNFOUNDED & UNLAWFUL’
Campaigners hit out at the continued closure of hospital’s minor injuries unit.
A NEW chief executive has been appointed for the alliance authorities of Staffordshire Moorlands District Council and High Peak Borough Council.
Andrew Stokes will take over the position following the sudden departure of chief executive Simon Baker and assistant chief executive Mary Walker, who both left the council without explaination in March this year.
Mr Stokes has worked at Staffordshire Moorlands for 21 years, and for High Peak since 2008 when the two councils formed their strategic alliance.
He has served as executive director and chief finance officer.
Councillor Sybil Ralphs, above, leader of Staffordshire
Moorlands District Council, said: “We are delighted to welcome Andrew as our new chief executive.
“He has dedicated his working life to public service in local government, and his experience is invaluable.
“These are extraordinary times as councils everywhere support residents and business through the Covid pandemic while continuing to provide the essential everyday services people rely on. “We need a chief executive who can anticipate and respond to the changing requirements and demands of the people and places we serve, and who can offer leadership and support to our staff who provide these services, so we are fortunate that Andrew will be at the helm.”
Councillor Anthony Mckeown, leader of High Peak Borough Council, said: “Andrew’s longstanding experience with both councils means he knows the communities, the opportunities and the challenges that we face in the High Peak and the Moorlands very well and is ideally placed to steer us through the months and weeks to come.
“None of us underestimates the scale of the task, but with Andrew now in post, we can look to the future with the confidence that we all – councillors, our chief executive and directors and our staff – share the same desire to provide the very best services to all our residents, businesses and visitors.”
Meanwhile mystery still surrounds the sudden departure of the two senior officers at Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, who left the authority with immediate effect and without serving any notice period at the beginning of March.
Figures show that during the last financial year of 2018/19, Mr Baker received a financial package of £205,167.
This was made up of a basic salary of £164,116; an expenses allowance of £13,749, and a pension contribution of £27,252.
Following their sudden departure, calls were made at the time by several senior councillors for an urgent extraordinary meeting of the council to take place so that members could be fully appraised of the situation, and that the people of the Staffordshire Moorlands were informed of the reasons why both senior officers had suddenly left and what had gone wrong.
However, no announcement has been made during the last seven months.