Walsall Council denies rumours of new chief executive role for officer who received £102k exit package at previous job

The statement was made in response to concerns over the restructure of six-figure salaried staff currently under way at the council.

Many councillors have been up in arms about the reorganisation, which is led by chief executive of Walsall Council, Emma Bennett.

Councillors claim the process isn’t ‘transparent’ and has occurred ‘behind closed doors’.

Rumours have circulated about the creation of a deputy chief executive post or a post with a similar salary grading but a different title.

Several councillors speaking anonymously to the Local Democracy Reporting Service have said Judith Greenhalgh, the current executive director of resources and transformation, is in line to get the rumoured position.

Greenhalgh was previously the chief executive at Denbighshire Council in Wales.

As reported by news outlets in North Wales, she stepped down from the post with immediate effect in April 2021.

On departure from her £136,312-a-year post, Greenhalgh was awarded a generous severance package of £102,234.

But Walsall Council has this week said ‘there is no plan to create a deputy chief executive role’, and that the restructure is expected to save £500k for the authority.

Councillors have questioned if money is being saved by the restructure, whether it will be put back into front line services or divvied up into pay rises.

At the top end of the officer structure at Walsall Council is the chief executive, then four executive directors, and 16 directors.

Salaries for the most recent financial year are yet to be published, but for the year 2023/24, nearly all of the directors’ salaries started at £100,000, executive directors were paid at least £135,000 and the chief executive, between £175,000 – £180,000.

Several councillors have major concerns about the lack of transparency around the restructure.

Many have demanded that the process should be carried out at public council meetings and that any changes should either be approved or rejected by councillors who have been elected by the public.

A spokesperson for Walsall Council said: “There is no plan to create a deputy chief executive role in the proposed senior management structure.

“The executive director roles will remain as they are with some small changes to areas of responsibility.

“The chief executive is authorised to make decisions on the operational structure of the service that she leads.

“This restructure is being managed appropriately in line with legislation (the Local Government and Housing Act 1989) and the council’s Constitution.

“This restructure is a part of the next chapter of the council’s highly successful transformation journey to ensure the council is set up to meet the future needs of the borough and deliver on the long-term vision for the borough, We Are Walsall 2040, and the new Council Plan.

“In light of financial pressures facing all local authorities, it is also being undertaken to ensure value for money, with a view to identifying savings.

“It is expected that there will be efficiencies created through this process and the proposed new structure will deliver budget savings of approximately £500k.

“There will be an All-Member briefing on Wednesday, 2 April 2025, to talk to Members about the proposed restructure.”