Huge Hambleton Payoffs

August is the time that county, city, district and borough councils across the country throw their books open to the public for scrutiny. Authorities normally publish a draft statement of accounts on their websites and display a hardcopy of those financial reports in Town Halls. Members of the public can then see what the council has been spending their money on during the last financial year.

Over at Hambleton District Council (HDC) a perusal of their draft statement of accounts reveals that the North Yorkshire district authority made changes to the senior officer line-up during the last quarter of the financial year. The 2013/14 payoff brings the total money paid out to just four senior officers in two years to nearly £600,000.

The Director of Customer Services, Sandra Walbran, was made redundant from her £69k per annum role. Her work was picked up by Dave Goodwin, who is now titled the Director of Customer and Leisure Services. Walbran consoled herself with a very generous £112,014 pay off, over one and a half times her annual salary, which, unbelievably, is rather conservative when taken in context with recent HDC payoffs.

Recent Huge Hambleton Payoffs

The Walbran payment follows huge 2011/12 HDC payoffs as the council restructured senior officers roles. HDC Assistant Director David McGloin was made redundant from his £58k per annum role, and left the authority with an extravagant compensation payment of £106,699 along with a swanky pension top-up of £24k, giving a mouth-watering £130,699 total payoff, two and a quarter times his annual salary!

Also in 2011/12 HDC’s Head of Finance, Dave Simpson, joined McGloin in leaving the frivolous district authority. Simpson’s £57k per annum role was also made redundant. Simpson received an exuberant compensation package of £101,939 along with a sumptuous payment of £59k towards his pension fund, giving an eye-opening total payoff of £160,939, nearly three times his annual salary!

The last senior officer to leave the benevolent authority in 2011/12 was the Head of Regulatory Services, Maurice Cann. Cann’s £57k per annum role was again made redundant. Cann’s lavish compensation package was a whopping £95,143 payment coupled with an enormous pension contribution of £100k, giving a total jaw-dropping payoff of £195,143, nearly three and a half times his annual salary!

Anyone wondering why Hambleton is cutting front line services, complaining about central government funding and putting up council tax now knows where a large chunk of that money went, they paid it to themselves!

Table of Hambleton Senior Officer Payoffs