The Chief Officers' Employment Panel of Harrow Council was scheduled to discuss employment arrangements for the Head of Paid Service (Managing Director). The panel was also due to review the minutes from a previous meeting.

Employment Arrangements for the Head of Paid Service (Managing Director)

The panel was scheduled to consider options for the future employment arrangements of the Head of Paid Service (Managing Director). This role is a statutory position within the council, responsible for the effective management of staff and the delivery of services. The current postholder has been in the role since 1 June 2023, initially on a six-month fixed-term contract, which was subsequently extended for a further three years until 30 November 2026. The report presented to the panel outlined three potential options for filling the permanent post:

• Option 1: Recommend permanent appointment of the current postholder without a competitive recruitment process. This option would involve recommending to Full Council that the current postholder be appointed on a permanent basis without a new recruitment process. The report noted that the council generally appoints staff on merit, typically demonstrated through an external recruitment process, and this approach has been used for other chief officer roles.
• Option 2: Recommend to Council that the fixed-term contract is extended for a further period. This option was not recommended for consideration in the report.
• Option 3: Advertise externally and run a competitive recruitment process. This option involves advertising the role externally. The report highlighted that external recruitment was the process followed for other chief officer roles, which were all filled by internal candidates, suggesting that internal candidates can be appointed on merit when subject to external competition.

The report also detailed legal implications, including the requirement for local authorities to appoint on merit under section 7 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989. It outlined the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) Regulations 1993, which specify requirements for advertising and interviewing candidates for chief officer positions. The council's recruitment and selection policy, which aims for open, fair, effective, and efficient recruitment, was also referenced. The report noted that any recruitment process must be objectively fair and that unlawful discrimination must be avoided. The financial implications of an external recruitment campaign, should a recruitment agency be used, were also mentioned.

The report included a role profile for the Head of Paid Service (Managing Director), detailing key accountabilities in leadership, partnership, service delivery, performance and resource management, and diversity, equality, and inclusion. The role's purpose is to oversee the strategic and general management of the council, lead strategic partnerships, and sustain the democratic process to ensure effective delivery of the council's goals and the administration's priorities.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting

The panel was also scheduled to take as read and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 5 November 2025. The minutes from that meeting indicated that there were no nominee Members in attendance and no declarations of interest made by Members. A previous resolution was made to take the minutes of the meeting held on 12 June 2025 as read and signed as a correct record. The minutes also detailed the exclusion of the press and public for an item concerning the appointment of the Strategic Director of Corporate Resources and Innovation, citing information relating to an individual and financial or business affairs. In that previous meeting, the post of Strategic Director of Corporate Resources and Innovation was offered to Richard Brooks, currently the Executive Director, City Operations at Birmingham City Council, on a specified salary.