William Eichler 02 February 2024

Council officer hands police file on £1m pay-outs

Council officer hands police file on £1m pay-outs   image
Image: John Gomez / Shutterstock.com.

A file relating to allegedly unlawful exit payments to managers at Northumberland County Council has been handed to police, Northumbria Police has confirmed.

Last July, a review of six severance payments totalling more than £1m made by Northumberland CC to senior officers were declared ‘unlawful’ by the council’s section 151 officer.

Jan Willis found the payments, which were made between May 2017 and May 2022, were ‘not subject to scrutiny’ or approval by councillors.

In November, the matter was referred to the police.

On Wednesday, monitoring officer Stephen Gerrard informed the council’s audit committee that he has provided the police with a ‘substantial file’ for consideration and said it would be ‘inappropriate’ to elaborate any further.

A Northumbria Police spokesperson said: ‘We can confirm we received correspondence from Northumberland County Council on January 25. We are currently reviewing that material.’

The council has been contacted for comment.

SIGN UP
For your free daily news bulletin
Highways jobs

Chief Executive

West Northamptonshire Council
£188,576 - £201,902 (pay award pending)
Join us for a rare opportunity to lead one of the UK’s newest and most ambitious councils Northamptonshire
Recuriter: West Northamptonshire Council

Durham Cares Sufficiency Delivery Lead

Durham County Council
£44,075 - £48,226 Grade 12
Do you want your work to make a real difference to the lives of children and young people in our care?   This is a brilliant opportunity to join a new Spennymoor
Recuriter: Durham County Council

Durham Cares - Care Resource Specialist

Durham County Council
£38,220 - £41,771 Grade 10
Do you want your work to make a real difference to the lives of children and young people in our care?   This is a brilliant opportunity to join a new Spennymoor
Recuriter: Durham County Council

Waste Project Officer

Durham County Council
£32,597 - £36,363
The strategic waste management team have an opening for a Waste Project Officer. If you are interested in community engagement, are an excellent commu Durham
Recuriter: Durham County Council

Policy Officer

Durham County Council
Career Grade 7 to 9 - Grade 7 £30,024 - £33,699 / Grade 8 £32,597 - £36,363 / Grade 9 £35,412 - £39,152
We are seeking a motivated and analytical Policy Officer to support the design, delivery, and evaluation of key policy and strategy documents relating Durham
Recuriter: Durham County Council
Linkedin Banner