UP TO £191,000 a year could be spent on filling a vacant top management job at Wokingham Borough Council, it has been revealed – at the same time as the council considers cuts to frontline services.
Councillors are being asked to approve the spending – which includes a £136,000 annual salary – for a new director of children’s services.
It comes as the council’s Children’s Services department is considering cuts to help make savings to school transport costs next year. It has already said it can’t fund extra spaces for up to 49 pupils at Emmbrook School currently without a seat on school buses from Shinfield.
Darren Houldcroft, whose child has missed out on a school bus seat, was stunned that the council could spend that amount on a single role.
He said: “It’s absolutely amazing that we are having a conversation about trying to find savings in school transport while at the same time having a role that is paid an obscene amount.
“We’ve been told they can’t find small numbers of thousands for subsidy of transport but we can find £191,000 to cover that role.”
Councillor Rachel Bishop-Firth, in charge of equalities, inclusion and fighting poverty, stressed that the vacancy is not a new role – and that the council is obliged by law to employ a director of Children’s Services.
She also pointed out that the full figure of £191,000 also covers costs such as pension and national insurance contributions.
But the £136,000-a-year salary that will be advertised is still almost £4,600 more than the current director’s pay, listed on the council’s website at £131,402. The council will also spend £7,219 this year on advertising the vacancy.
Mr Houldcroft said: “This is a clear opportunity to make a saving – or at the very least pin the salary where it is. That small increase could make a big difference to parents. It’s potentially a number of seats that could be funded.”
Councillor Bishop-Firth said: “The director of Children’s Services is a critical and statutory role that all councils must have in place and is not a new post to the council but filling a vacancy.
“To make sure we attract the right calibre of candidate to manage Children’s Services, and coordinate the hundreds of staff and partners involved, it’s important we offer a competitive salary.
“We regularly benchmark salaries against other local authorities to make sure these remain in line with what others are offering and will be advertised at the market rate of £136,000 per annum.
“The annual figure shown in the report is not the salary that will be paid to the director and reflects that we must account for the standard oncosts that employers have such as national insurance payment and pension contributions.”
Councillors on Wokingham Borough’s personnel board are set to debate and vote on whether to approve the spending at a meeting on Monday, August 14.
Council officers are recommending that they vote in favour.
