St Helens Council paying £930 a day for temporary senior officer

Keith Ireland joined the council in April as an interim assistant chief executive in response to recommendations by the Local Government Association.

The role was initially seen as a temporary position to help with the modernisation of the council.

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Last week the council unveiled its modernisation plans and agreed to make the role permanent, at a salary of up to £110,000, with the recruitment process starting as soon as possible.

A Freedom of Information request by the Local Democracy Reporting Service has revealed that St Helens Council is paying a consultancy fee of £930 a day for Mr Ireland’s services.

This is the total consultancy fee however, and not what Mr Ireland is paid per day.

St Helens Council said the fee is “in line” with fees paid by councils and other public sector organisations nationally.

Mr Ireland’s contract is due to end on July 31, but St Helens Council has confirmed his contract will be extended while it seeks to fill the post permanently.

A St Helens Council spokesman said: “Findings from the Local Government Association (LGA) review on the council earlier this year highlighted the need for the organisation to modernise.

“One of the recommendations made was to increase capacity for that modernisation with the recruitment of an assistant chief executive to help the council deliver the modernisation required.

“Mr Ireland was recruited on an interim basis to support that work.

“The figure quoted is the cost to the council with recruitment costs added, not the salary received by Mr Ireland. This cost is in line with fees paid by councils and other public sector organisations nationally when bringing in external expertise.

“A council the size of St Helens could not in practice deliver such a complex and challenging transformation programme without the help of an experienced and highly skilled professional.

“Mr Ireland’s contract will be extended while a process to recruit in to the post permanently takes place.”

Prior to coming to St Helens, Mr Ireland was the chief executive of Lincolnshire County Council, although he left the role last November after just four months at the helm.

Lincolnshire County Council’s legally required statement of accounts revealed that Mr Ireland was paid £292,263 by the authority during his short stint – around £1,234 a day.

At the time, Lincolnshire County Council said the decision to part with Mr Ireland was a mutual decision.

Council leader Martin Hill said: “During Keith’s time with the council, it became clear that there was a difference of opinion on a number of important issues, and we both decided that a parting of ways was for the best.”

St Helens town hall

Mr Ireland was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s New Year honours list for his services to local government in relation to his work at City of Wolverhampton Council, where he was managing director from 2014 until 2018.

The former chief executive joined St Helens Council in April, working four days per week as he still lives in Wolverhampton.

It is understood that question marks were raised within the ruling Labour group around the recruitment process undertaken for Mr Ireland.

A Freedom of Information request said a “number of providers of interim capacity” were contacted regarding the position.

The council said a “number of candidates” were considered and further discussions were held with two candidates, which included availability and experience, prior to Mr Ireland being selected.

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Though tasked with developing a modernisation programme, Mr Ireland does not have a formal job description.

The local authority said Mr Ireland’s role is “is not a post at the council and therefore there is no formal job description".

It is unclear at this stage whether Mr Ireland will continue in the role on a permanent basis.