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West of England Combined Authority (Weca) headquarters in Redcliff Street, Bristol(Image: LDRS)<\/p>\nThe departures are part of a major restructureWest of England Combined Authority (Weca) headquarters in Redcliff Street, Bristol(Image: LDRS)<\/p>\n
The West of England Combined Authority has parted company with two top directors \u2013 but is refusing to say how much it has forked out in exit payoffs<\/a>.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n But when asked what the amounts were for the two senior officers to leave, a Weca<\/a> spokesperson declined to comment and instead pointed to the last line of a press release outlining the changes which said: \u201cDetails of senior officers\u2019 remuneration are published annually<\/a> as part of the authority\u2019s accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n The payoffs must be published in those accounts but this will not happen until next summer.<\/p>\n The restructure was agreed behind closed doors at a meeting of Weca\u2019s employment and appointments committee by West of England metro mayor Helen Godwin and the leaders of the three local authorities that comprise Weca \u2013 Bristol, South Gloucestershire<\/a> and Bath<\/a> & North East Somerset.<\/p>\n Weca chief executive Stephen Peacock said: \u201cStephen and Roger have played important leadership roles in the combined authority\u2019s improvement journey.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are grateful for their commitment and service, and wish them every continued success. They have laid the foundations for our future.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile 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.\u201d<\/p>\n Ms Godwin said: \u201cI want to thank Stephen and Roger for all of their hard work during their time at the regional authority.<\/p>\n \u201cThey 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.<\/p>\n \u201cEvolving 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.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr Bashford said: \u201cI 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.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been a privilege to work alongside such talented and passionate people across the region.<\/p>\n \u201cAs I close my chapter at the MCA, I will look back with happy memories of what we have achieved together.<\/p>\n \u201cI wish the organisation the very best for the future and every success as it continues to go from strength to strength.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr Hoare said: \u201cIt 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.<\/p>\n \u201cI am very proud of our achievements, and I will continue to be a champion of the brilliant work you are doing in this area.\u201d<\/p>\n The new structure will see the authority\u2019s activity reorganised under three areas \u2013 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).<\/p>\n It followed previous criticism in reports by auditors and independent experts that Weca was dysfunctional and huge changes were needed.<\/p>\n More recently, a Local Government Association review found that the \u2018organisational improvement plan\u2019 and new operating model were ‘essential’ for ‘maintaining momentum’.<\/p>\n