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Category Archives: Ged Curran
Commissioners: council lacks focus and robust delivery plans
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Government releases report critical of the lack of progress and slow pace of improvements in finances under Tory Mayor Jason Perry. By WALTER CRONXITE, Political Editor Six weeks out from the local elections, the government has published … Continue reading
Posted in Abi Brown, Adult Social Care, Children's Services, Commissioners, Conrad Hall, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Jackie Belton, Jenny Rowlands, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Commissioners, Conrad Hall, Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Jenny Rowlands, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Tory
8 Comments
Whatever could they mean? Commissioners call for ‘honesty’
In what is overall a highly critical report from the government-appointed Commissioners after six months working closely with the council run by successive chief execs Katherine Kerswell (until she left in October with a £50,000 pay-off) and Elaine Jackson, and … Continue reading
Posted in Abi Brown, Adult Social Care, Children's Services, Commissioners, Conrad Hall, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Jackie Belton, Jenny Rowlands, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Commissioners, Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Jenny Rowlands, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Tory
4 Comments
Croydon and 99 other councils may seek government bail-outs
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Latest indications across local government finances are that minister Steve Reed is going to have to provide so much exceptional financial support in 2026 that it won’t be ‘exceptional’ any longer. By STEVEN DOWNES There was a … Continue reading
Posted in Abi Brown, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Jackie Belton, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, London Councils, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice
Tagged Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, EFS, Exceptional financial support, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, London Councils, Mayor Jason Perry, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, The Budget, Tory, Unbalanced budget
3 Comments
Finance chief leaves council three months sooner than planned
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Weeks after the abrupt departure of CEO Katherine Kerswell with a £50,000 ‘farewell present’, the early exit of head of finance Jane West prompts speculation that she has become the latest council boss to receive a generous … Continue reading
Posted in Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Ian Golland, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Kristian Aspinall, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Uncategorized
Tagged Commissioners, Conrad Hall, Conservative, Council budget, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Ian Golland, Jane West, Kerry Critchlow, Kristian Aspinall, Lambeth, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Newham, Steve Reed OBE, Tory
15 Comments
Commissioners switch email in effort to protect whistleblowers
CROYDON IN CRISIS: After complaints that staff could not trust that their messages to the government-appointed Commissioners would be secure from their council bosses, a MHCLG official has set up an independent channel. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Three months after … Continue reading
Posted in Abi Brown, Commissioners, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jackie Belton, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Nathan Elvery, Section 114 notice
Tagged 000 pay-off, Abi Brown, £50, Commissioners, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Fisher's Folly, Ged Curran, Jackie Belton, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lindsey Lewis, London Borough of Croydon, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Nathan Elvery
8 Comments
Commissioners critical of Mayor Perry’s risky financial plans
Council Tax UP Borrowing UP Council debts UP An official report ahead of a Town Hall meeting tomorrow night paints a grim picture. And the government Commissioners are unimpressed. By WALTER CRONXITE, Political Editor Croydon’s financial position “remains extremely fragile … Continue reading
Posted in Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Uncategorized
Tagged Auditors, Commissioners, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Grant Thornton, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Tory
8 Comments
Jackson agrees to stand-in after Kerswell’s abrupt departure
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Council’s assistant CEO forced to cancel retirement plans in order to fill in for her former boss, who is being given a £50,000 pay-off for not working her notice period. By STEVEN DOWNES Elaine Jackson has been … Continue reading
Posted in Commissioners, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Mayor Jason Perry, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, S151 Officer, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
14 Comments
Kerswell quits! But what happens next at crisis-hit council?
Mayor Jason Perry’s political rivals call for his resignation after a week when auditors have warned over ‘unsustainable’ finances and his CEO has left Croydon with a generous £50,000 pay-off. By STEVEN DOWNES Katherine Kerswell may not be replaced as … Continue reading
Posted in Commissioners, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Jane West, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Paul Ainscough, Richard Howard, Section 114 notice
Tagged Commissioner, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Grant Thornton, Green Party, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Liberal Democrats, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Paul Ainscough, Richard Howard, The Honourable Mr Justice Nicklin, Tony Newman, Tory
7 Comments
When’s a pay-off not a pay-off? When it’s 50 grand in Croydon
CROYDON IN CRISIS: At public expense (again), Mayor Perry deploys the council’s top lawyer to try to shut down reporting of his £50,000 pay-off to departing chief executive Katherine Kerswell. By STEVEN DOWNES “When’s a pay-off not a pay-off?” a … Continue reading
Posted in Commissioners, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense
Tagged Commissioner, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Grant Thornton, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, S114 notice, Section 114 Notice, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, The Honourable Mr Justice Nicklin, Tory, Transformation plan
17 Comments
‘I’ll miss heartfelt moments we have shared in our Tea Talks’
In her final message to staff, council CEO describes a pay-off of possibly as much as £95,000 as ‘just my contractual notice period’. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES In typical Croydon Council style under Katherine Kerswell’s leadership, it was the borough’s … Continue reading
Posted in Commissioners, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice
Tagged Commissioner, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Golden handshake, Grant Thornton, Katherine Kerswell, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Nazyeya Hussain, Pay-off, S114 notice, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
7 Comments
Mayor Perry tells councillors Kerswell ‘will be much missed’
Rushed email to the borough’s elected officials confirms pay-out to departing chief executive will be at least £50,000 – in lieu of notice. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES In a hastily drafted memo rushed out in the minutes after Inside Croydon … Continue reading
Posted in Commissioners, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice
Tagged Commissioner, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Grant Thornton, Katherine Kerswell, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Nazyeya Hussain, S114 notice, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
20 Comments
Kerswell gets ‘vote of confidence’ in email from Commissioner
Two months since the government sent in Commissioners to run Croydon’s cash-strapped and chaotic council, a round-robin message to staff today suggests that the team has already ‘gone native’. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Staff working in Fisher’s Folly, cash-strapped Croydon … Continue reading
Posted in 'Future Croydon', Abi Brown, Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jackie Belton, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Abi Brown, Alison McGovern MP, Commissioner, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jackie Belton, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Section 114 Notice, Steve Reed OBE, Transformation plan
7 Comments
Now Kerswell’s deputy CEO joins the rush for council exits
EXCLUSIVE: To lose one of her trusted inner circle might be unfortunate for Croydon chief exec Katherine Kerswell, but to lose two is beginning to look like an exodus. By STEVEN DOWNES Elaine Jackson, the senior council executive who Croydon … Continue reading
Posted in Abi Brown, Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jackie Belton, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Abi Brown, Bexley, Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Elaine Jackson, Ged Curran, Greenwich, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jackie Belton, James Blythe, Jane West, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Merton, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, S151 Officer, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
8 Comments
Go West! Cash-strapped council’s finance chief is set to quit
EXCLUSIVE: Councillors were kept in the dark about departure of council’s S151 officer, as her exit is linked to the government’s appointment of Commissioners. By STEVEN DOWNES Jane West, Croydon’s finance director since 2022, is to stand down from her … Continue reading
Posted in Abi Brown, Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jackie Belton, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Abi Brown, Bexley, Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Greenwich, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jackie Belton, James Blythe, Jane West, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Merton, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, S151 Officer, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
3 Comments
McArdle’s reward for Croydon failure: £1,200 per day in Brum
Having delivered no appreciable improvement in Croydon after more than four years, the council’s ‘improvement’ panel left south London last week, to be replaced by Commissioners. But the panel members’ ride on the gravy train does not end there. By … Continue reading
Posted in Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Robert Ward, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle
Tagged Bexley, Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Greenwich, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jackie Belton, James Blythe, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Merton, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Section 114 Notice, Tony McArdle, Tory, Transformation plan
7 Comments
Tory improvement panel ‘clearly failed’, says Tory councillor
In the first break with the omerta adopted by Mayor Jason Perry and council CEO Katherine Kerswell over the so-called ‘improvement panel’, a senior Tory councillor says that the appointees of the Conservative government ‘failed’. By WALTER CONXITE, Political Editor … Continue reading
Posted in 'Future Croydon', Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Robert Ward, Section 114 notice, Selsdon and Addington Village, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Abi Brown, Bexley, Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Greenwich, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jackie Belton, James Blythe, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Merton, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
4 Comments
£642,000: the annual cost of government’s four Commissioners
The government might have decided to send in Commissioners, but it will be Croydon’s Council Tax-payers who will be picking up the bill. Yet again. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Croydon’s long-suffering residents will be expected to pay the generous daily … Continue reading
Posted in 'Future Croydon', Abi Brown, Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jackie Belton, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Abi Brown, Bexley, Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Greenwich, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jackie Belton, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Merton, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
6 Comments
‘The government was left with no choice’ over Commissioners
The government “was left with no choice” but to appoint Commissioners to take over the running of Croydon’s omnishambles council, a decision which reflects “serious failings on leadership and culture” at the Town Hall. Two of Croydon’s Labour MPs, Sarah … Continue reading
Posted in 'Future Croydon', Chris Philp MP, Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Croydon East, Croydon South, Croydon West, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Natasha Irons, Rowenna Davis, Sarah Jones MP, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North, Tony Newman
Tagged Chris Philp MP, Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon East, Croydon South, Croydon West, Ged Curran, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Merton, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Natasha Irons MP, Sarah Jones MP, Section 114 Notice, Steve Reed OBE, Streatham and Croydon North, Tory, Transformation plan
11 Comments
Minister McMahon orders in Commissioners to run council
STEVEN DOWNES reports on another day of shame for Croydon’s Tory Mayor and his £204,000 chief executive, as government minister orders ‘a short and sharp reset, with fast action… to shift the dial on the council’s recovery’ The government today … Continue reading
Posted in 'Future Croydon', Abi Brown, Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jackie Belton, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Abi Brown, Bexley, Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Greenwich, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jackie Belton, James Blythe, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Merton, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
23 Comments
Meet the Commissioners: council experts sent to save Croydon
Just who are the Commissioners named today by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to have been appointed with the task of steering Croydon Council off the rocks of toxic debt and crass mismanagement? Last month, local government … Continue reading
Posted in 'Future Croydon', Abi Brown, Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Improvement Board, Jackie Belton, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan
Tagged Abi Brown, Bexley, Commissioner, Conservative, Council Tax, Council transformation, Croydon, Croydon Council, Debbie Warren, Ged Curran, Greenwich, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Improvement Panel, Jackie Belton, Jim McMahon, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Merton, MHCLG, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government, Section 114 Notice, Tory, Transformation plan
4 Comments
