26 senior States jobs axed in major public sector reshuffle

Friday 15 June 2018

When new States Chief Executive Charlie Parker first announced he'd be undertaking the largest ever overhaul of Jersey's government, he warned, "There will be casualties." Now the exact number of those has been announced: 26 in total.

The announcement came as a 45-day consultation with members of the 66-strong senior leadership team and 90-day consultation with other States staff on Mr Parker's proposed public sector reforms reached its conclusion.

Those reforms form part of Mr Parker's vision of ‘one government’, which will involve a total rethink of the way the States is organised, removing 'duplication' and driving efficiency by changing or even scrapping the roles of potentially hundreds of States workers, and creating seven new departments in what will be the biggest single reform in living memory.

But the first phase of that restructure involved targeting the States' 72 directors and 23 assistant and deputy directors - previously branded by Mr Parker as "too many managers."

Pictured: The new structure of the States, as proposed by Mr Parker.

On the day he announced a pay freeze for those earning over £100,000, he stated that around 22 roles would be axed, saving around £1million each year. But States officials now say that number will be four higher than originally planned.

Overall, they said there would be 40 posts at the most senior levels - of these, nearly half will be filled through external recruitment, while the other 21 will involve internal appointments. Many of those at the top have already been handed their roles, with seven men and one woman recruited to spearhead change in their departments last month, while an Interim Director for children's services, whose track record divided opinion, was announced this week. They are:

• Richard Bell – Director General and States Treasurer
• Ian Burns – Director General for Customer and Local Services
• Richard Corrigan – Group Director for Financial Services and Digital Economy
• Dan Houseago – Group Director for Economy
• Kate Nutt – Group Director for External Relations
• John Rogers – Director General for Growth, Housing and Environment
• Andy Scate – Group Director for Regulation
• Tom Walker – Director General for Strategic Policy, Performance and Population
• Mark Rogers - Interim Director General, Department for Children, Young People, Education and Skills

Following over 240 suggestions during the consultation process, States officials said that changes had been made to other senior States workers' portfolios and departments' remits. Those included:

• A Group Medical Director to work across Health and Community Services providing a "clinical voice at senior level"
• A new role for a Group Managing Director of Hospital and Community to unite hospital and adult services
• A new Director of Finance Hub
• Placing the Health and Safety Inspectorate and Probation Services within the new Justice and Home Affairs Department
• Placing the children's mental health service (CAHMS) under the Department of Children, Young People, Education and Skills, rather than Health

Mr Parker commented: "We can now press forward with making these changes, and start moving into the new organisational structure from 18 June. The new Directors General, with their senior leaders, will now begin to design their services and structures, and we will start to 'lift and shift' teams into these structures."