The council has announced that its new director of public health is going to be Ruth Hutchinson.
New job: Ruth Hutchinson won’t begin working at Fisher’s Folly until June
But Hutchinson won’t be starting in this key, legally required role within the council until June.
Given that she is replacing Rachel Flowers, who left to take up a lecturer’s post at South Bank Poly in January after giving six months’ notice (Katherine Kerswell, Croydon’s £204,000 CEO, announced Flowers’ departure in May last year), it means that Croydon will have been without anyone appointed in the lead health role for the borough for half the year.
Let’s hope that there’s no major health emergency, such as a pandemic in the meantime, eh?
Flowers worked at Croydon Council for more than eight years, including throughout the traumas at the council of 2020 and 2021, both in terms of covid and the largely self-inflicted crisis over the borough’s finances. Flowers left Croydon with her professional reputation in tact, perhaps even enhanced – a rare achievement for those who have had to work at senior level with either Jo Negrini or Kerswell.
The council has offered no explanation why, despite having six months’ notice, it failed to have an appointee in place to succeed long-serving Flowers when she left, or even benefit from any kind of formal handover period to help provide some continuity.
Hutchinson was herself appointed to the director of public health role at Surrey County Council in the midst of the covid pandemic.
The council’s announcement of her appointment lays it on with a trowel about how important the job is that she will be expected to do.
“She will take a lead in supporting residents to look after their health and wellbeing, helping them to live longer, healthier lives,” the council’s propaganda department said in its typically cliché-ridden announcement.
According to the announcement of her belated appointment, Hutchinson “has broad experience of working in both the NHS and local government with roles spanning health improvement, health protection and health intelligence”.
The director of public health is a statutory role, and Hutchinson “will work with key organisations to develop behaviour change strategies, and commission accessible services for Croydon’s diverse communities”.
Hutchinson “will have a key role in Croydon’s Health and Wellbeing Board, reporting on the progress and the direction of travel…”, yes, the progress and the “direction of travel”… “to meet the health goals for the borough. Her role also includes sitting on the board of the South West London Integrated Care Partnership, which brings together local authorities, NHS partners, residents, and the voluntary sector to understand what help and support people need.”
The post also focuses on making changes to the external factors that can impact on people’s health and daily life such as employment, income, housing conditions, homelessness and the cleanliness of the local environment – in other words, how well, or badly, rubbish contractors Veolia do their job.
“Ruth’s strategic role in the borough is central to ensuring our residents get the best health and wellbeing support that meets their needs,” is what piss-poor Jason Perry, the Mayor of Croydon, is supposed to have said after presiding over the latest procurement fiasco in respect of the Croydon Carers’ Centre on George Street, adversely affecting the health of hundreds of carers and the people that they look after.
What might a director of public health, in post and witnessing the appointment of Carers First as council contractors, have made of this latest shambles at the cash-strapped council?
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Why is it impossible to find anything about this woman?
She doesn’t even have a LinkedIn profile?
A LinkedIn profile is not a requirement of the recruitment process, Richard. And LinkedIn is… well… you know, self-recommendation and promotion. Although that is how Cheesbrough got caught out lying about her qualifications.
And, of course, some users of LinkedIn, such as Jo ‘Negreedy’ Negrini, think that they can block people’s access to their online CV.
Ruth Hutchinson held a similarly senior position at Surrey County Council from 2020. There are a number of local newspaper reports about her work available online (mostly the usual, unquestioning, anodyne stuff). But as you have discovered, or not, beyond that it is all a bit sketchy. But we are quite sure that Croydon Council’s recruitment and vetting process has been conducted up to their usual standards… Oh.
Sanitate crescamus indeed.