The Appointments Sub-Committee met to discuss shortlisting candidates for the position of Director of Public Protection and Integrated Enforcement. The meeting was scheduled to begin with several procedural items, before moving into a closed session to discuss the candidates. Councillor Maium Talukdar was scheduled to chair the meeting.

Shortlisting for Director of Public Protection and Integrated Enforcement

The main item on the agenda was the shortlisting of candidates for the role of Director of Public Protection and Integrated Enforcement. A report prepared by Penna, the recruitment consultants, was to be considered, with recommendations of which candidates to progress to the next stage of the recruitment. The Sub-Committee was asked to agree on a shortlist of candidates to be invited for final interviews.

The report pack noted that the position had been advertised in June 2025 on the council's website, the Penna Exec Search website, the Municipal Journal, Guardian Jobs and social media. A targeted executive search was also undertaken by Penna.

The report pack also noted the reasons for the recommendations:

The Appointments Sub Committee (ASC) is established with the following terms of reference: 'To make appointments to Chief Officer and Deputy Chief Officer posts in accordance with the council's Constitution and the agreed Recruitment and Selection procedure.'

The report noted that an alternative option would be not to recruit to the post and continue with the interim arrangement, but that this would not create the necessary stability that is required by filling a Director role on a permanent basis.

Exclusion of Press and Public

The agenda included a recommendation to exclude the press and public from the meeting, citing Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972 ¹ as the reason, because the remaining items on the agenda contained information defined as Exempt in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 ². This related to commercially, legally or personally sensitive information.

Other Business

The agenda also included the following standard items:

• Apologies for absence.
• Declarations of interest from members, including those restricting members from voting under Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 ³. Guidance on declaring interests from the Interim Monitoring Officer was included in the Public Reports Pack.
• Confirmation of the minutes of the previous meeting of the Appointments Sub-Committee held on 29 July 2025.
• Confirmation of the exempt minutes of the previous meeting of the Appointments Sub-Committee held on 29 July 2025.