The Tower Hamlets Council Appointments Sub-Committee met to confirm the shortlisting of candidates for the Director of Corporate Property and Estates position. The meeting also covered procedural items, including declarations of interest and confirmation of minutes from a previous meeting. Due to the confidential nature of the substantive agenda item, the report pack recommended that the press and public be excluded from the majority of the meeting.

Shortlisting for Director of Corporate Property and Estates

The main item for discussion was the shortlisting of candidates for the Director of Corporate Property and Estates role. According to the report of Stephen Halsey, Chief Executive, the post was advertised in June 2025 on the council's website, the Penna Exec Search website, the Municipal Journal, Inside Housing and social media, with a targeted executive search undertaken by Penna, the recruitment consultants.

A shortlist of candidates was considered by the ASC on 29 July 2025, and a decision was taken to arrange technical interviews for selected candidates. The report pack included the reports for all candidates who underwent the technical interviews, prepared by Penna.

The Appointments Sub Committee was asked to agree the shortlist of candidates, as recommended by Penna, to be invited for final interviews.

The report pack stated that the Appointments Sub-Committee (ASC) was established to make appointments to Chief Officer and Deputy Chief Officer posts in accordance with the council's Constitution and the agreed Recruitment and Selection procedure. It also noted that any ASC established to appoint to a Chief Officer or Deputy Chief Officer post, must include at least one member of the Executive (Cabinet), and that members can only sit on an ASC if they have received training, at this council, on recruitment and selection.

The report pack also outlined the reasons for the decisions, alternative options, and other statutory implications, including equalities implications. It stated that the council is committed to achieving a workforce that can best serve and reflect the community at all levels in the organisation, and that all posts are recruited to on merit.

Other Business

The agenda included standard items such as:

• Declarations of Interest: To note any declarations of interest made by councillors, including those restricting councillors from voting on the questions detailed in Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992¹.
• Minutes of the Previous Meeting: To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the Appointments Sub-Committee held on Tuesday 29 July 2025.
• Exempt Minutes: To confirm as a correct record of the proceedings the exempt minutes of the Appointments Sub-Committee held on Tuesday 29 July 2025.
• Exclusion of the Press and Public: The report pack recommended that the press and public be excluded from the remainder of the meeting for the consideration of the Section Two business on the grounds that it contains information defined as Exempt in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972².