Council finally appointing permanent finance boss

Alex Thompson is set to become Sandwell Council’s new director of finance officer – bringing an end to a six-month stint without anyone in the role permanently.

Mr Thompson will move to Sandwell in May leaving behind the top finance role at Cheshire East Council after 15 years at the authority.

He takes over from Brendan Arnold who joined Sandwell Council as interim director of finance in September last year.

Sandwell’s new finance chief will start as cash-strapped Cheshire East Council makes a request to the government for £17.6 million in emergency funding to prevent the authority from declaring bankruptcy.

The top finance job – otherwise known as a section 151 officer – is one of a handful of roles the council has to appoint by law.

Brendan Arnold has been the council’s interim director of finance since September last year. The appointment came after a six-month post in the same interim role at bankrupt Woking Borough Council and five months at Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council.

He took over from Simone Hines who had been director of finance at Sandwell since August 2021.

Mr Arnold took over as interim director of finance in Woking in March last year – two months before the cash-strapped authority issued a section 114 notice – which meant it had effectively declared itself bankrupt and banned all non-essential spending.

The notice was issued with the council after government commissioners intervened over the state of its finances – with the Tory-run council racking up billions of pounds of debt through risky hotel and skyscraper deals and a £6m loan to a local private school.

Last week, Sandwell Council agreed to increase council tax by five per cent to help plug a £19m gap in its finances.

The council also plans a range of savings including cuts to its library budget and for school crossings.

The rise in tax would equate to between £65 and £76 more to pay per year for most households, it said.

The council’s series of “required” cuts included more than £8m from its corporate budget, £2m from education and children’s services and more than £4m from adult social care.

Sandwell Council chief executive Shokat Lal said:  “I am delighted to confirm that after a thorough selection process we have appointed Alex Thompson to the role of executive director – finance and transformation.

“We are pleased that external reviews continue to report on the council’s significant progress, and Alex will be a key part of our new senior leadership team as we seek to build on the improvements that have already been made.

“Our ambition is to become an outstanding council, and we are now moving to a second phase of our journey which is about fully embedding a culture of continuous improvement, embracing transformational change and becoming a modern, efficient and agile organisation that has consistent high customer service standards.

“Local authorities are operating in extremely challenging financial circumstances, and Alex is an experienced section 151 officer who will bring a wealth of knowledge to the role.

“We know that maintaining our sound financial position is vital to delivering the best outcomes for our residents, and we are confident Alex will help lead the way in making our services easy to use and working for the people who need them.”