Southend taxpayers kept 'in the dark' after chief executive leaves

Taxpayers have been kept "in the dark" after the departure of a council chief executive, a councillor said.

Rob Polkinghorne left Tory-run Southend Council in June after eight months into the job, which pays £185,000 a year.

Matt Dent, Labour councillor, told a committee: "It all looks impenetrable to the public... discussing it should be a public matter."

The council's head of internal audit said the departure was confidential and could not be discussed in public.

Southend's audit committee heard the chief executive left just a few weeks after the Conservatives took control of the council as a minority administration following the May 2023 local elections.

The council said a non-disclosure agreement had been agreed with Mr Polkinghorne.

Andrew Barnes, head of internal audit and counter-fraud, carried out a review of the processes used during the negotiations around Mr Polkinghorne's departure, reported the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

This included reviewing an informal meeting of the appointments and disciplinary committee in June when Mr Polkinghorne's future was discussed.

Mr Barnes' review concluded that discussions took place after a committee meeting ended and was not formally on the agenda.

That committee could not formally make any decisions on Mr Polkinghorne, councillors on the audit committee heard on Wednesday.

At that meeting, Mr Barnes said: "We cannot discuss the circumstances leading to the chief executive stepping down - that is confidential as are all matters relating to the personal circumstances of a former employee.

"I've been asked to consider whether the process undertaken was robust. We've reviewed the processes and given assurances regarding those processes."

Mr Dent, councillor for Kursaal ward, said: "I think one of the abiding problems in all this is that so much of it has been conducted in the dark.

"This is a public report therefore I think discussing it should be a public matter."

Mr Dent asked at the meeting if a "request to suspend the chief executive" was put to the other committee.

Mr Barnes replied that it was not.

Mr Dent, who was then told to ask any further questions in a private session, replied: "What is the point of an investigation report if we are not able to ask questions about it and examine the contents?"

Mr Polkinghorne has since been appointed chief executive of Cheshire East Council.

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