The Council
The Council is run by councillors, who are elected by the local community. Councillors are responsible for making decisions on behalf of the local community about local services and budgets, such as Council Tax. Each councillor represents a specific area and serves for a period of four years. The work of a councillor includes holding surgeries to help local people, supporting local organisations, campaigning on local issues, and developing links with all parts of the community.
Councillors are not paid a salary or wages, but they are entitled to allowances and expenses to cover some of the costs of carrying out their public duties. All councillors abide by a code of conduct, part of which requires them to declare any financial interests and gifts or hospitality over £25 that could influence any decisions they make.
View Information about Councillors
The Leader
The Leader of the Council is Councillor Les Topham. The Leader is elected by all members of the Council at the Annual Council meeting. The Leader chairs all meetings of the Council's Cabinet (see below) and leads on policy development and implementation.
See how to ask the leader a question
The Cabinet
The Cabinet is an executive group responsible for the overall business of the council. The Cabinet comprises the Leader of the Council, who is the Chairperson, and eight other members appointed by the Council. Each of the members of the Cabinet has a defined portfolio of responsibilities.
View Information on the Cabinet and officer structure 2009-10
The decisions of the Cabinet are subject to scrutiny by a different group of councillors, who meet in Overview and Scrutiny committees to check and monitor what the Cabinet does. The Council has established two Overview and Scrutiny committees, OSC A (which is responsible for matters relating to Customer Services, Revenues and Housing, Change and Performance, and Member Services) and OSC B (with responsibility for matters relating to the Environment service, Planning Services, Community Services and Resources).
Further information on overview and scrutiny committees is available from our Councillors and Meetings pages.
Council Staff
Whilst the elected councillors provide the policies, paid employees (council officers) put them into practice. The Council employs over 300 staff, who are responsible for a wide range of services benefitting the local community.
All Council staff are subject to annual appraisal and progression on the salary scale only happens if satisfactory progress is evidenced.
The Chief Executive
The Chief Executive is the senior officer who leads and takes responsibility for the work of the paid staff of the Council. The current Chief Executive is Paul Lankester, who was appointed in November 2001.
For further information please view the Chief Executive's page
See how to ask the chief a question
The Senior Management Team
The Senior Management Team is responsible for managing the activities of Council staff and for advising councillors on the potential implications of political decisions.
By law, senior Council staff are not allowed to participate in any party political activity and are expected to advise and assist all councillors irrespective of their political affiliation.
Remuneration of Senior Management Team
The tables below provide information about the remuneration of the Chief Executive and other members of the Senior Management Team. They also provide information about any additional payments they receive, such as reimbursement of business expenses or payment for running local elections.
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Name
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Position
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Salary (actual)
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Additional payments (eg expenses, election fees, etc)
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Paul Lankester
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Chief Executive
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£107,574 (minus voluntary reduction in 2009/10)
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2008/09: Expenses of £3,599.74;
election fees (District Council) of £2,200 (gross)
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Dave Nash
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Strategic Director
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£80,682
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2008/09: Expenses of £459.09
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Trevor Askew
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Strategic Director
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£80,682
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2008/09: Expenses of £299.35
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Position
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Salary points
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Additional payments (eg expenses, election fees, etc)
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Heads of Service
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1. £53,436
2. £55,491
3. £57,546
4. £59,601
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Officers' expenses are payable in accordance with an agreed Expenses scheme, which can be accessed from here.
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View Details of expenses claimed by the Directors
View Details of expenses claimed by the Chief Executive
Pension
The Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) covers council employees, but the Council has not extended it to cover any councillors. The LGPS is a contributory scheme; employees contribute 5.5%-7.5% of their own salaries to the scheme. Employers' contributions to the LGPS vary depending upon how much is needed to ensure benefits under the Scheme are properly funded, and are set independently. The rules governing the pension scheme are contained in regulations made by Parliament. Further information about the scheme can be found on: www.lgps.org.uk
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