The Chief Officer Appointments Committee of Durham County Council met on 3 November 2025. The meeting included discussion of the recruitment to the post of Corporate Director of Adult and Health Services, and review of the minutes from a prior meeting. Some of the discussion was expected to take place in a session closed to the public.

Recruitment of Corporate Director of Adult and Health Services

The committee was scheduled to discuss a report of the Chief Executive regarding recruitment to the permanent post of Corporate Director of Adult and Health Services. According to the agenda, this discussion was expected to take place in Part B of the meeting, which is closed to the public.

Minutes

The minutes of the meeting held on 1 October 2025 were included in the public reports pack.

During the 1 October meeting, Councillor Andrew Husband, Chair of the Committee, and the other committee members considered a report from the Chief Executive about options for permanently filling the role of Corporate Director of Adult and Health Services.

The committee resolved to:

• Note the background to the interim arrangements and current position.
• Consider the options set out within the report for appointing to the permanent post.
• Approve Option 2 for recruiting to the permanent post.

The minutes also record that the committee discussed the recruitment to the post of Corporate Director of Children and Young People's Services (CYPS), following the resignation of the current postholder at the end of 2025.

The committee resolved to:

• Agree to commence the external recruitment exercise as set out in the report.
• Agree to engage the services of PENNA, specialist executive search and recruitment consultants, to support the recruitment process.
• Agree the proposed method and timetable.
• Agree to proceed with arrangements to cover the post on a temporary basis.