A new chief executive has been chosen to run Brighton and Hove City Council on a salary and pension of more than £200,000 a year.
Councillors will be asked to ratify the appointment next week after the selection of Jessica Gibbons, currently the chief operations officer at Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council.
She was one of three shortlisted candidates alongside a former council chief executive in London and the serving chief executive of another council.
Ms Gibbons is expected to take over from interim chief executive Will Tuckley, one of the country’s most experienced council bosses, in the new year.
Her appointment comes two years after she joined BCP from Wiltshire Council where she was director of communities and neighbourhoods for the previous two years.
Before that, Ms Gibbons had spent almost eight years at Camden Council, in London, rising from head of parks and open spaces to director of community services.
After a masters of science degree in agroforestry at Bangor University, Ms Gibbons worked for Bromley Council as head of countryside and community before a stint in the private sector.
She went on to work as regional director for grounds maintenance contractor Glendale Countryside and then as regional director for tree supplier Civic Trees followed by a spell in consultancy before joining Camden Council.
Brighton and Hove City Council advertised the chief executive’s job for a salary of £180,000 to £190,000 a year.
The previous chief executive Geoff Raw earned £180,000 plus a £34,000 pension contribution, taking his total earnings to £214,000, in 2021-22, and £168,000 plus a £34,000 pension contribution, taking his total earnings to £201,000, in 2022-23, according to the council’s statement of accounts.
The contrast is often drawn with the Prime Minister’s salary which is currently £80,000 plus his MP’s salary of £86,500, making £166,500 in total.
When the job was advertised, Green councillor Chloë Goldsmith, who speaks for her group on equalities and workers’ rights, said that the salary was far too high.
She said: “Greens don’t think the council needs a CEO. Disappointingly, the Labour leadership have missed an opportunity to explore different models, and instead opted for unnecessary expense and a corporate management model.”
The council said: “We’re delighted to announce today we’ll be recommending the appointment of Jess Gibbons as our new chief executive to a meeting of the full council next week.
“Jess has been chief operations officer at Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council since December 2021 and is likely to join us on Monday 18 March, subject to the appointment being agreed by councillors on Thursday 14 December.
“Jess is at present responsible for all operational services at BCP, including environment, infrastructure, regeneration, customer, arts and property, planning and destination and commercial operations.”
Council leader Bella Sankey said: “We’re absolutely delighted to recommend Jess for appointment at such a crucial time for the city.
“We had an exceptionally strong field of candidates but Jess’s energy, values, vision, breadth of experience and knowledge in so many areas set her apart.
“As our new permanent chief executive, Jess will be key in driving forward our four-year Council Plan to deliver high quality services and to continue developing a proud, healthy, fair and inclusive city where everyone can thrive.
“As council leader, I’m very much looking forward to working with Jess and I believe we have chosen the ideal chief executive for our council and city.”
The council added: “Jess currently lives in Wiltshire but will be moving to Brighton and Hove as soon as possible.”
Ms Gibbons said: “I’m thrilled and excited to be offered this extremely important role at one of the most vibrant and innovative cities in the country.
“Having worked at a senior level across the private, voluntary and local government sectors, the role and place are a natural progression and perfect fit for my values and skills.
“The council and local government in general are going through a critical period of change and I will be grasping this opportunity and helping pivot the organisation and place to make the most of our potential.”
“I’m looking forward to working with the political leadership and council staff to help make the city an even better place to be for its residents, businesses and visitors.
“Brighton and Hove is similar to Camden, where I grew as a local government officer, as it’s diverse, edgy and creative but as a coastal city it also faces similar challenges to Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.”
Interim chief executive Will Tuckley, who was recruited to replace Geoff Raw who left in May 2023, helped the council in the appointment process for the new permanent chief executive and is expected to serve until she joins in March.
The salary is too high but if she can keep the council on budget and improve services she will of earnt it. Good luck to Jess.
Agree RE salary and balancing the books, just to expand, Of course there is also the standard of service sometimes you have to invest to transform which saves in the longer term. Thinking housing and homelessness but can think of a lot of areas where community wealth building should be further explored. Will be interesting to see the leadership approach taken, Interesting CV.
Give her £200,000 if she can do what you say, until then £100,000 should do the job.
Totally agree.
As a previous senior officer at the council I wish you every success – at last you’ve got a strong Labour administration who I’m sure will be right behind you …
Sounds like it will cost us £200,000+ to find out. Let’s hope she’s up to it.
I’ve met a few of these council bosses. More control and regulation?. Yes, Parking. and fines for cars being somewhere. Thats where the money is these days. Paint more lines.
As long as we don’t get another Raw deal.
When you get to my age you’ve seen it and heard it. I hope she can get on with a difficult job and do the basics well. I hope she doesn’t try to be a hero and get caught up in all the
“make a quick buck” projects, screw the motorists schemes and ridiculous vanity projects……but something tells me it might not work out that way.
Budget down the toilet, things won’t get done, they’ll be a cover up of some sort, bin men on strike, more housing on green fields, a falling out at the council. They’ll be a massive pay off to get her out of town before any more damage is done. I do hope I’m wrong!!!
The council said: “We’re delighted to announce today we’ll be recommending the appointment of Jess Gibbons as our new chief executive to a meeting of the full council next week.”
I mean she doesnt even live in the area she’s serving. Shes in Wilts!
Until she decides to move.
U couldnt make it up!
As long as she is up to the job she’s entitled to live in Oslo. You want employers to control where employees live?? Give your head a wobble.
Agree with you there Jake. Anyone who thinks because a candidate doesn’t live in the immediate BN1 can’t do the job needs to wobble their head, very briskly, indeed.
And she is moving to Brighton. She doesn’t start the job until March next year.
Another shirking from home joker, just like our Leicester-living Councillors then.
She will be an employee of the council where there are no laws on where a staff member needs to live.
Residential requirements apply to elected councillors because that’s the law.
Oh and people do move around for work.
Well we live in a city that ranks 51st out of 286 councils in terms of the price of the council tax. I would like us to be either lower on that scale or to see substantial improvements to services.
We don’t need a caretaker – we need a radical shakeup !
This is a ludicrous amount of money for a council threatening bankruptcy to be paying for non-essential role. Non-essential if our council is a council and not a company, that is.
Has she promised to turn our city’s fortunes around in the first year to justify it?
It doesn’t bode well that she is leaving her equivalent post at Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council after only 2 years. It seems all we ever get is rinse and repeat with these underwhelming figureheads who impress no one, but just seem to take, take, take, wherever they go and make disastrous decisions for the city.
No Barry, a CEO is essential to steering the ship. Anyone who’s ever been in a position to need one understands this point very saliently.
Let’s hope the ship doesn’t end up like the Titanic.
I’ll hold you up at the top of the i360 as you T-Pose overlooking the sunsetting into the sea, mainly because the lift has broken down again, Celine Dion playing gently in the background, some guy in a hoodie tagging the base of the building.
It will be a magical moment.
You paint a vivid picture, but I wish you hadn’t mentioned the i360.
I have to inform you that I haven’t and have no intention to go up the i360. I wouldn’t wish to get a view from up there of hard working tax payers money the i360 is pouring down the drain day after day.
Although not a disaster on the scale of the Titanic a disaster all the same for the good people of Brighton and Hove. Another great decision from the counci. It’s amazing how much risk people are prepared to take with other people’s money.
At least an iceberg hitting the i360 might supply an insurance payout!
The salary isn’t high for an organisation with a revenue budget of £900 million a year.
It’s also not out of line with councils of a similar size, budget and service provision.
Bournemouth has beautifully managed parks and I suspect focuses its expenditure on core services. Hopefully, she can shake up the council and shake out some dead working-from-home wood.
Bournemouth is terrible!
Well ‘healthy’..ask the homeless.
A fresh snout at the feeding trough.
Another scrounger like you Harris
Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole Council has been named as the most corruptible council in the UK by the anti-corruption group Transparency International. See many back issues of Private Eye for more details. Perhaps Ms Gibbons should have shown her abilities in BCP, and rooted out the corruption there, before being appointed CEO in Brighton and Hove.
I agree. I used to live in Bournemouth (unfortunately)and now very happily and thankfully I’ve escaped to Brighton! BCP is a terrible area and to me this area is great.i wouldn’t hold any faith in any politician coming from Bournemouth!
She’s getting paid more than our school’s deficit. What kind of world are we living in when there’s a cost-of-living crisis, there’s “no money for education” but plenty to pay overinflated salaries of senior council staff?! Quite frankly, it’s vulgar and sends out a completely wrong message.
All about cutting pollution?
Total opposite.
I have lived and worked in Brighton all my life, (62), I am now so disgusted at what the council have done for this city we are now looking elsewhere to retire.
I voted green the first year they were voted in, what a mistake! Not having been voted in, give them a go, I thought. They have, in my opinion, destroyed the city with their constant attack on motorists coming into Brighton. When the parking costs more than the meal that you came into town for doesn’t shout ‘Welcome’.
Cycle lanes that have restricted the flow of traffic to one lane, so anything turning right holds up all the traffic. The cycle lanes do a good job of keeping the electric scooters off the roads, but the lanes are very dependent on weather.
Whoever decided that extending bus stops into the road maybe needs to find another over paid job? One pensioner trying to find their pass or asking questions to the driver can hold up motorists, (Eastern Road, St James’ Street etc.) then using side roads as rat runs.
Why would you spend money on unneeded new traffic light system when a cheaper roundabout would suffice, and would run more smoothly? (Eastern Road /Arundel Road).
Putting big black bins on the corner of roads, which would be given a ticket or towed away if it was a car, and restricting the view of oncoming traffic?
A certain group would like the population to travel by bus, (a private company) or cycle everywhere, which if you are working, of a certain age or disability is not practical. Waiting for a bus or cycling in the wind, rain and snow, and to carry items for work whilst standing in an overcrowded bus with all the cold, flu and anything else going around does not fill me with happiness. Not to mention days off sick and the strain on the NHS.
20mph speed limit? The design of the speed humps around town would rip out your suspension if you tried to go over them faster than 5mph. Maybe scraping off the excess tarmac, they could use this to fill in the potholes that have infested our roads. Surely there should be some standard design of speed bump that makes them a universal height and gradient. They all seem to be of varying shapes and harshness. Should you not be able to feel a speed bump once you are over the speed limit?
Palmeria Square, Eastern Road and others that every motorist knows, should only be used by all-terrain vehicles. How emergency vehicles cope is beyond me! Being in the back of an ambulance with a patient must be like a fairground ride. Giving patient care must be a nightmare for the poor medics.
Speaking of Eastern Road, how about a pelican crossing outside Brighton College instead of a zebra crossing? This way you would only have to contend with being stuck behind a bus, instead of Brighton College students coming out of the gates on auto pilot straight across the road, basically causing traffic congestion. A pelican crossing would at least give motorist a chance to move whilst the lights change.
On the subject of lights, in this day of technology, would having a “smart” set of traffic lights be more helpful to the planet? Waiting at lights where there is a tailback and nothing going through the opposing lights seems utterly pointless.
When will “people” understand that vehicles cause less pollution when they are moving and in a higher gear, than when at a standstill at unneeded lights. (Seafront/Preston Street).
Also, if pedestrians press the button on a Pelican crossing, wait until the lights change! How many times do motorists stop at ’empty’ lights but are not allowed to carry on for fear of a fine.
I have worked all my life, and over the years I feel that I have earned the right to have a car without being made to feel guilty and that it is not acceptable to own a car, even though I have one of the cleanest cars on the planet!
In this day of modern technology where you can sit in a café and use your phone to find any piece of information, translate another language, pay your council tax and video call a relation in Australia, I’m feeling that ‘they’ want us to go back to horse and cart.
Started as a comment, ended up a book. (Couldn’t stop!)
200k?? Most basic salaries are 30k, indeed you need to keep people committed to the roles. But that’s extensive. 90k maximum.
The council need to help the people out of supported accommodation and focus on that. Many people are homeless, a lot of them need the support before they go and get a new council flat. Give them the support they need and then move them on. Then help the people who don’t need the support in supported accommodation get out by helping them on the home move register and getting them out. The PRS scheme does not work it’s the same catch 22 as supported accommodation. You can only work a certain amount due to Housing Benefit (the rent being well over 1.2k in some supported accomodation). You also can’t access full time education to improve your odds in getting a better job, improving yourself, earning more because you pay more out in the long run, help people like myself out!
Good to see a capable woman being appointed to this important CEO role, a woman with a strong track record and a compassionate, focused, resilient skill set. Inspiration for more women to take leadership roles. Best of luck. With a new Labour, or hopefully coalition government, later this year she’ll have chance to improve the city for everyone.