Crisis? What crisis? Council’s £204,000 per year chief exec spent last night at a glitzy awards event in Mayfair, with the government set to announce it would be sending in Commissioners to run the borough
Back from a night out on the lash at a flash Mayfair hotel, Katherine Kerswell was kept busy this morning, including drafting a lengthy missive to staff explaining why, after almost five years in post and after three Section 114 Notices on her watch, the government does not think that she, the council’s £204,000 per year chief exec, can be trusted to run the organisation without the supervision of Commissioners.
The scepticism shown in local government minister Jim McMahon’s announcement this afternoon, and the multiple criticisms in the improvement panel’s damning report about the slow pace of progress and reliance on evermore borrowing, all might be traced back to Kerswell’s office in Fisher’s Folly.
The future prospects for Croydon residents and council staff are unremittingly grim, with no financial solution in sight, and seemingly the only bright ideas around including the flogging off the council head office and even the Town Hall complex, potentially including Central Library, the Clocktower and David Lean Cinema.
In denial: council CEO Katherine Kerswell thinks that she has been doing a good job
Kerswell’s 1,000-word internal memo, which has been leaked to Inside Croydon, will do little to improve the mood among long-suffering and hard-working frontline council staff.
“I want to take this opportunity to remind you of the significant progress we have made in improving our council,” Kerswell said, apparently in denial of the depth of the council’s financial issues.
“Your achievements have been recognised by a huge range of external partners… All of you have worked tirelessly to achieve this change and deliver better services for residents.
“Today’s announcement does not change any of this, nor does it detract from that achievement. Croydon is fortunate to have many skilled and passionate officers. I want to thank you all once again for all you have done, and the part you continue to play in improving our council for the residents of Croydon.”
Kerswell then went on to outline how the council had met 96% of the conditions for the exit of the improvement panel. That niggling 4% of conditions unmet happen to centre on the bankrupt borough’s finances.
Next up for sale: the improvement panel’s parting shot included suggesting the offices and the Town Hall complex might be sold to help meet council debts
“We have been clear with the government that our financial challenges are so serious that we cannot meet our Exit Strategy objective relating to financial sustainability,” Kerswell wrote.
“This is because, as our panel has previously acknowledged, the council’s circumstances are among the most challenging in the country.
“Our finances are seriously impacted by our £1.4billion historic debt and, on top of this, the extreme financial pressures all councils are facing, with rising demand for services and increased costs. These combined factors have resulted in us needing £136million of exceptional financial support for 2025-2026.
“We know this is not sustainable and that is why we have been delivering our Future Croydon transformation programme. We know we need to change the way we do things, to become more cost-effective, while encouraging economic growth and investment in our borough. However, we have always said that whilst our transformation plan will help our finances, it cannot fix them.” Actually, didn’t Mayor Jason Perry say that he would “fix the finances”?
“Put simply, we will not become sustainable without a solution to our historic debt.”
And Kerswell continued: “We disagree with the panel’s letter and we have raised concerns with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government about it.
“I’m sure many of you will have questions about what this might mean for the council including how it will work in practice if Commissioners are appointed… Several councils have commissioners, and the model differs depending on their unique circumstances, so we cannot jump to conclusions at this early stage.
“No decisions have yet been made – the Minister has said he is ‘minded to’ appoint commissioners, and invited representations. This means that we and others have an opportunity to respond, and we are preparing that response now.
Crisis? What crisis?: council CEO Katherine Kerswell was at a glitzy awards event last night – as the government was preparing to send in Commissioners to her council
“We understand that the government needs assurance that the council is doing all it possibly can to meet its Best Value Duty to residents, and we welcome the opportunity to work with them on a solution on our finances.
“We have worked with our government-appointed panel for several years and we are pleased that at no time have the panel issued formal directions in relation to a decision by the council, despite having the power to do so.” This is contradicted by the panel’s report, which highlights their lack of powers to intervene directly, and states that they were issuing weekly “advice notes” to Kerswell and her leadership team about the way they were conducting council work.
Kerswell told staff that the council will be “putting forward our own preferred model” for the way they want to continue to run the council. Given the strength of the remarks made public today by McMahon and McArdle, including “serious concerns” about “aspects of leadership” at Croydon Council, it seems unlikely that Kerswell will get her way.
“I appreciate this is a potentially big development and uncertainty could cause worry,” Kerswell wrote.
“In the meantime, it’s very much business as usual – our everyday work remains as vital as ever.” Which is nice.
It is entirely possible that Kerswell knew in advance what was going to be announced by the MHCLG today. Yet she spent yesterday evening at the swanky Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane for the Local Government Chronicle Awards, where tables cost up to £5,000 a pop. Remarkably, Croydon Council was up for a gong.
Inside Croydon has suggested that Croydon’s entry, submitted by the council, may have been written by Kerswell herself. In a stroke of good fortune for the awards organisers, they didn’t hand the “most improved council” prize to Kerswell’s omnishambles Croydon. Although it was probably a bit of an embarrassment for them that cash-strapped Croydon made it on to the shortlist at all.
Today, Inside Croydon has asked Katherine Kerswell if she intends to resign. The council chief executive had not replied by the time of publication.
Read more: McMahon acts after serious concerns on ‘aspects of leadership’
Read more: Borrowing plan would lead to council’s ‘collapse’ says report
Read more: Government sends in Commissioners to run Croydon Council
Read more: Kerswell’s ‘Stabilisation Plan’ has failed before it is approved
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Was Kerswell just networking at the posh do? Checking out where her next job will be? Somehow, however much they cost us, however badly they fail in their jobs, they always get appointed by another Authority. How?
They have local government experience.
Anyone applying from the private sector doesn’t stand a chance because they would be scared that such a person would not fit into and understand the different culture.
Katherine Kerswell has “local government experience”. Loads of it.
So does Interim Adam Wilkinson.
Never going to resign, she’ll want her full Negrini.
And the village idiot, Perry, will give her a golden handshake.
The previous Labour Administration and the current Conservative Administration plus the previous and current CEO have failed the people of Croydon, The previous government persecuted local authorities, and the Government Assurance Panel have done absolutely nothing. So maybe commissioners are worth having a go to improve things as nobody else has.
She clearly had become delusional by claiming Croydon was the most improved Council in the Country. Demonstrated to be a completely inadequate operator who did not have the initiative or courage to undertake the really radical actions required to tackle the underlying debt. The shifting deckchairs on the Titanic approach of the last year with regard to Croydon Care, wasteful use of Legal Services and the School Lollipop Service really do show a pointless drift had occurred. Surely they will not give another failure a massive redundancy package to add insult to injury. No doubt she will try her best to secure it for herself rather than take the honourable action of simply going now.
Kerswell should be sacked.
She has failed Croydon. Croydon is in a worst state than when she was parachuted in to fix the problem.
She is incompetent and must go. She has taken everyone for fools – especially Perry.
Here’s a idea !
Catch a train to Clapham Junction. Go visit Wandsworth council. See how they run services for a fraction of the costs in Croydon.
And on a council tax which is a third of that paid by long suffering Croydon residents