Agenda and minutes

To appoint a Chair from the elected members of the Committee.

Cllr F Smith-Roberts having been proposed (Cllr R Wyke) and seconded (Cllr S Osborne) was elected as the Chair for the meeting.

To receive any apologies.

None.

To receive and note any declarations of interests in respect of any matters included on the agenda for consideration at this meeting.

(The other registrable interests of Councillors of Somerset Council, arising from membership of City, Town or Parish Councils and other Local Authorities will automatically be recorded in the minutes: City, Town & Parish Twin Hatters - Somerset Councillors 2023 )

The Members present confirmed that although they all knew the person that had made the application, they had no declarations to make having read the guidance notes regarding conflicts of interests provided by the Deputy Monitoring Officer.

The Chair will allow members of the public to ask any questions or make a statement about the matters on the agenda for the meeting.

There were no public questions.

The committee are requested to consider and agree a resolution under Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 that the press and public be excluded during the remainder of the meeting on the basis that if they were present during the business to be transacted there would be a likelihood of disclosure to them of exempt information of the following description:

· Information relating to any individual

· Information which is likely to reveal the identity of any individual

The Committee unanimously agreed, having been proposed (Cllr F Smith-Roberts) and seconded (Cllr S Osborne), that under Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be excluded during the remainder of the meeting on the basis that if they were present during the business to be transacted there would be a likelihood of disclosure to them of exempt information of the following description:

· Information relating to any individual

· Information which is likely to reveal the identity of any individual.

To consider the supporting papers, review the feedback from interview and recommendations from the Panel.

The Chair advised that as an Appointments Panel (interview panel), they had followed a robust process, which provided full opportunity to test, through questioning, the shortlisted candidates for the roles of:

• Executive Director for Resources, Strategy and Transformation; and
• Service Director Regulatory and Operational Services.

The Panel reflected that they had been impressed by the candidates’ passion and enthusiasm for the roles. Members reflected on their interview with the candidates and that they had covered a variety of different topics areas and sought to gauge responses to questions that tested the knowledge of the candidates and how they might develop their strategic vision to respond to challenges and ensure that Somerset flourished.

The Panel highlighted that during the interview the candidates had been given and taken the opportunity to demonstrate their experience, knowledge, skills and personal attributes required to fulfil the role.

The committee unanimously agreed, having been proposed (Cllr F Smith-Roberts) and seconded (Cllr S Osborne), to appoint:

• Chris Hall for the role of Executive Director for Community, Place and Economy
• Sarah Dowden for the role of Service Director Regulatory and Operational Services

The committee agreed to delegate authority to the Chief Executive (as Head of Paid Service) to agree and set the spot salary for the two roles within ED1 (Executive Director for Community, Place and Economy) and SD1 (Service Director Regulatory and Operational Services) respectively.

The Chair thanked the committee members, the Chief Executive and advisors from HR and Democratic Services Teams, who had supported their recruitment process today.

To authorise the Chair of the meeting to agree the accuracy and sign the minutes as a correct record following circulation to the members of the Committee.

The committee unanimously agreed, having been proposed (Cllr F Smith-Roberts) and seconded (Cllr S Osborne), to authorise the Chair of the meeting to sign and authorise the minutes as being a true record of the meeting.

There being no other items the Chair thanked all those present, both in-person and remote, for attending and closed the meeting at 16:38.

Cllr F Smith-Roberts

Chair of the Committee