The man in charge of Children’s Services on the Isle of Wight, John Coughlan, is set to be making a move up the career ladder next week, when, if approved by the full council, he’ll be appointed as Hampshire County Council’s next Chief Executive.
Mr Coughlan, who has been Deputy Chief Executive at Hampshire and Director of Children’s Services (also responsible for Isle of Wight Children’s Services) since 2009, is set to take over from Andrew Smith in the £207,000 a year role.
Recommendation to full council
The 11 cross-party Member Appointment Panel, which met last week, is recommending John Coughlan for the role of Chief Executive.
The 78 Members of the County Council will have the final say at their meeting on 22 October.
Coughlan “An inspirational and visionary leader”
The Leader of Hampshire County Council, Councillor Roy Perry said:
“John Coughlan’s experience, knowledge of the County Council and abilities shone through during the appointment process. We believe we have found an inspirational and visionary leader who will lead the Authority as it continues this journey of transformation and modernisation.
“The Appointment Panel is delighted to be recommending John Coughlan, to the full County Council, for the position of Chief Executive – and I’m indebted to the Members of all parties who have helped in this process.”
£2bn annual budget
Cllr Perry went on to say,
“Hampshire County Council is a large and complex organisation and one of the best performing Councils in the country. As Head of Paid Service, the Chief Executive is responsible, through the Council Leader, for managing an overall annual budget of around £2 billion, a workforce of around 37,000 and for providing services for 1.3 million people across the county. The people of Hampshire rightly expect a high quality service from the County Council, which requires us to ensure that we are continually pushing boundaries with innovative and efficient methods of working. To do this we need the best people working for us.
“The challenges faced in public services, between now and end of the decade also mean that it is essential that we have a strong successor to take forward the County Council’s ambition to be a modern business providing public services.”
Biographical information
Prior to becoming Deputy Chief Executive of the County Council in 2009, and Director of Children’s Services since 2005, John Coughlan was Corporate Director of Social Care in Telford and Wrekin Council, and Assistant Director for Children and Families in Dudley. He spent the first ten years of his career working directly with children in care in Birmingham.
He became the last President of the Association of Directors of Social Services in 2006, before becoming founding Joint President of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) in 2007. He remains on the Board of Directors of ADCS. He has been a member of the Governing Council of the National College for Schools Leadership, the Family Justice Review and of the Children’s Improvement Board.
In 2008, John Coughlan was urgently appointed by the Secretary of State to be Interim Director of Children’s Services in the London Borough of Haringey, in order to bring stability to that authority in the aftermath of the ‘Baby P’ child protection crisis. In 2013, again subject to a Secretary of State Direction, John was appointed as the permanent Director of Children’s Services for the Isle of Wight Council through a unique partnership which has seen Hampshire take responsibility for schools and children’s services on the island to help improve what were failing services.
John was awarded a CBE in the 2009 New Year honours list, in recognition of his work for children’s services.
In May this year, the outgoing Chief Executive, Andrew Smith, announced his retirement from Hampshire County Council following eight years in the post, and a County Council career spanning more than 25 years – including 11 years as Director of Property, Business and Regulatory Services.
Image: © Family Lore
