Suffolk Coastal has today (Friday) confirmed that the
appointment of its Chief Executive Stephen Baker to a shared role
with Waveney District Council will immediately save each authority
around £40,000.
Mr Baker is being paid £125,000 and took up his new role with
Waveney at the start of this month. In seeking to create closer
working relationships between the two councils, he is hoping to
improve service delivery and efficiency throughout the East Suffolk
region.
“This is an innovative and important agreement which will help
both authorities deliver value for money to our council taxpayers
in many areas. We sought independent external advice about the
salary from an human resources specialist and the savings
we make will clearly benefit both organisations,” said Cllr Ray
Herring, Leader of Suffolk Coastal District Council.
“Stephen can now get on with the business of seeking genuine
efficiencies across both authorities and with much in common
between us there is considerably more to be done to benefit all our
communities.
“This arrangement is radical and probably the most significant
one in the country, but like our other successful partnerships with
neighbouring authorities - such as the management of our building
control and audit functions - I am confident it will work very
well. I am also confident that, while we are making considerable
savings, Stephen is still being paid a very competitive salary that
reflects his additional workload and responsibilities as Head of
Paid Service for an area with a population of close to 240,000
people,” added Cllr
Herring.