Category Archives: Hazel Simmonds

Secret report into wrong-doing at council still kept under wraps

Posted on April 25, 2022 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Eighteen months after an investigation into how the council’s finances collapsed, the report into the affair – which prompted the resignation of the council leader and four execs – remains unpublished. And the council CEO intends keeping … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hamida Ali, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Joy Prince, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Lynne Hale, Report in the Public Interest, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Council names new legal chief as exec churn continues

Posted on April 10, 2022 by insidecroydon

Our council reporter, PEARL LEE, discovers that the new borough solicitor was, until last month, the director of private property companies Croydon has announced a new, permanent appointee to become the council’s senior legal official. They just don’t seem to … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Paul Scott, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Suspended director sues Kerswell for ‘race discrimination’

Posted on March 3, 2022 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The council running one of the country’s most ethnically diverse boroughs could be dragged through the courts, with one of its rare BAME directors accusing it, and its chief executive, of racism. By STEVEN DOWNES Hazel Simmonds, … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Ali promises to release report into ‘collusive, unhealthy culture’

Posted on September 1, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Has the council leader made another meaningless promise to the borough’s residents over ‘disciplinary action’ against those responsible for the Town Hall’s financial collapse? By STEVEN DOWNES The potentially dynamite but still unpublished Penn Report into possible … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hamida Ali, Hazel Simmonds, Improvement Board, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Report in the Public Interest, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Former health director suing council for constructive dismissal

Posted on July 26, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: ‘Kerswell’s cull’ of the council’s executive directors appointed or promoted by her predecessor, Jo Negrini,  is not going as smoothly as might have been hoped. And it appears that most will escape any disciplinary action. By STEVEN … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Report in the Public Interest, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Mystery of £200k council exec points towards BxB’s Lacey

Posted on June 25, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: While the average salary of council employees is a modest £23,000, those at the top of the organisation, even when it was heading for financial collapse, still made sure they awarded themselves cushty pay hikes. By STEVEN … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Colm Lacey, Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Nathan Elvery | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Kerswell set to depart after completing cull of Negrini execs

Posted on April 16, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Having overseen the removal of almost all of Jo Negrini’s ‘executive leadership team’, it seems that the interim chief exec wants to move on to better things. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Croydon Council is to begin the … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Heather Cheesbrough, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Robert Henderson, Sarah Hayward, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Exec director resigned week before suspension was announced

Posted on February 20, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Minutes from another council’s meeting shows that Guy Van Dichele was offered a job in Southampton eight days before he was ‘suspended’ from his post as executive director ‘health, well-being and adults’. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Documents … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hamida Ali, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Robert Henderson, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Two executive directors in shock resignations from council

Posted on February 18, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Staff were told this afternoon that two of the ‘executive leadership team’ who were suspended from duty last week have quit their jobs. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Guy Van Dichele, Croydon’s executive director “health, well-being and adults”, … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Lisa Taylor, Shifa Mustafa, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

‘Unintended consequences’: government scraps pay-off cap

Posted on February 15, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Political editor WALTER CRONXITE finds that the era of half-million-pound rewards for failure might not be over at the council just yet Those council exec directors on six-figure salaries who are sweating on the outcome of a … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

The Kerswell cull: ‘This is a really difficult situation’ says CEO

Posted on February 10, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Our Town Hall reporter, KEN LEE, on the latest bulletin to council staff intended, perhaps, to keep up morale In the vintage (and not very “woke”) BBC sitcom Are You Being Served, the doddering old proprietor of … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

The Kerswell cull begins: five senior council execs go ‘off-grid’

Posted on February 9, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Monday night’s constitutional changes at the Town Hall were quickly followed by ‘unprecedented’ action from the interim CEO. By STEVEN DOWNES Almost the whole of the senior leadership team at the council “went off-grid” today. Inside Croydon … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hamida Ali, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Shifa Mustafa, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Kerswell’s management savings plan: no change at the top

Posted on December 11, 2020 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Staff, unions and residents expected to react angrily to the council’s £193,000 interim CEO’s plan to make only minor changes to the staff on the biggest salaries at Fisher’s Folly. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Katherine Kerswell’s plan … Continue reading →

Posted in Adult Social Care, Children's Services, Croydon Council, Debbie Jones, Elaine Jackson, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

CEO Kerswell: council staff ‘are angry, upset and want answers’

Posted on October 30, 2020 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: They say confession is good for the soul, though apologies issued yesterday by several council executives read more like pleas to keep their jobs. By WALTER CRONXITE There were several council staff members who half-expected Katherine Kerswell, … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Hamida Ali, Hazel Simmonds, Heather Cheesbrough, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Report in the Public Interest, Richard Simpson, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Staff accuse Negrini of ‘cowardice’ ahead of showdown meet

Posted on August 5, 2020 by insidecroydon

The council chief exec is presiding over mounting anger over her handling of the borough finances and management of hundreds of job cuts. STEVEN DOWNES reports Dozens of council staff, many of them facing the prospect of redundancy as part … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Robert Henderson, Shifa Mustafa | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Council appoints Simmonds to £150,000 new ‘strategy’ role

Posted on November 22, 2018 by insidecroydon

Croydon Council has promoted Hazel Simmonds to be the executive director in charge of its “Gateway, Strategy and Engagement division”, which apparently looks after the borough’s housing, strategy (yeah, they’ve got one apparently), policy development, communications, community relations and the … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, Croydon Council, Hazel Simmonds, Jo Negrini | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment