The departures are part of a major restructure
West of England Combined Authority (Weca) headquarters in Redcliff Street, Bristol(Image: LDRS)
The West of England Combined Authority has parted company with two top directors – but is refusing to say how much it has forked out in exit payoffs.
The departure of strategic director of economy and skills Stephen Bashford and director of environment Roger Hoare would have almost certainly come with sizeable payments for compensation for loss of office because their roles have been made redundant under a new structure for the organisation.
But when asked what the amounts were for the two senior officers to leave, a Weca spokesperson declined to comment and instead pointed to the last line of a press release outlining the changes which said: “Details of senior officers’ remuneration are published annually as part of the authority’s accounts.”
The payoffs must be published in those accounts but this will not happen until next summer.
The restructure was agreed behind closed doors at a meeting of Weca’s employment and appointments committee by West of England metro mayor Helen Godwin and the leaders of the three local authorities that comprise Weca – Bristol, South Gloucestershire and Bath & North East Somerset.
Weca chief executive Stephen Peacock said: “Stephen and Roger have played important leadership roles in the combined authority’s improvement journey.
“We are grateful for their commitment and service, and wish them every continued success. They have laid the foundations for our future.
“While there is still work to do, our new operating model will put us on a better footing as we move towards Established Strategic Authority status.”
Ms Godwin said: “I want to thank Stephen and Roger for all of their hard work during their time at the regional authority.
“They have both secured key investment for the West, from the Youth Guarantee to the Western Forest, and much more besides, that will help make a real difference that local people can see and feel for years to come.
“Evolving as an authority will help enable our area to secure the greater powers and funding being devolved to places like West Yorkshire and the West Midlands, to be able to deliver more for people across the West.”
Mr Bashford said: “I would like to thank all my brilliant economy and skills colleagues, and key partners, who have together delivered significant growth in the reach and impact of our services over the last seven years, benefitting thousands of businesses and residents.
“It’s been a privilege to work alongside such talented and passionate people across the region.
“As I close my chapter at the MCA, I will look back with happy memories of what we have achieved together.
“I wish the organisation the very best for the future and every success as it continues to go from strength to strength.”
Mr Hoare said: “It has been a pleasure to have worked on the climate and nature agendas with colleagues and partners across the region. Together, we are making a real difference.
“I am very proud of our achievements, and I will continue to be a champion of the brilliant work you are doing in this area.”
The new structure will see the authority’s activity reorganised under three areas – transport; operational delivery & resources (including clean energy, skills, enterprise support, finance, and legal); and strategy, partnerships, communications, & place (including nature recovery, inward investment, and culture).
It followed previous criticism in reports by auditors and independent experts that Weca was dysfunctional and huge changes were needed.
More recently, a Local Government Association review found that the ‘organisational improvement plan’ and new operating model were ‘essential’ for ‘maintaining momentum’.
The West of England joint committee – made up of the metro mayor and leaders of the three constituent councils as well as North Somerset Council’s leader – approved a raft of further changes for Weca’s future, with the local authority leaders taking on new roles and the launch of the first fundamental constitutional review for the combined authority since its inception in 2017.
The changes agreed by the employment and appointments committee the following week included plans for two new senior roles – director of service delivery, and director of partnerships and stakeholders – who will be recruited over the next few months.