The Audit and Corporate Governance (Appointment Panel) Sub-Committee met to decide on a shortlist of candidates for the position of Executive Director of Homes and Communities. The sub-committee reviewed the applications and CVs of the candidates, along with feedback from officers, and agreed on a final shortlist to move forward in the selection process. The meeting also covered routine items such as the election of a chair and approval of minutes from previous meetings.

Executive Director of Homes and Communities Shortlisting

The main purpose of the meeting was to decide on a shortlist of candidates for the position of Executive Director of Homes and Communities. The Audit and Corporate Governance (Appointment Panel) Sub-Committee was responsible for making permanent appointments to all Chief Officer posts, following a comprehensive recruitment, assessment, and selection process.

The Director of People and Inclusion provided a report outlining the process for the appointment. Key steps included:

• Advertising the role, with a closing date of 31 August 2025.
• Longlisting undertaken by the Chief Executive and the Director of People and Inclusion on 5 September 2025.
• Technical interviews with longlisted candidates on 10 September 2025.

The sub-committee members were tasked with:

• Assessing the applications and CVs of the candidates.
• Reviewing officer feedback from the recruitment process.
• Evaluating candidates against the job and personal specification.
• Deciding which candidates would proceed to the next stage.

The report also noted the legal considerations for the appointment, referencing Section 7(1) of the Local Government Act 1972, which states that appointments must be made on merit, with some exemptions concerning the council's equality duties. The report also referenced the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) (England) Regulations 2001, and the Officer Employment Procedure Rules set out in Part 4, section 9 of the Council's Constitution.

The sub-committee agreed to the final shortlist, which will proceed to the next stage of the selection process.

The job description for the Executive Director of Homes and Communities outlined the responsibilities of the role, including:

• Leading landlord services for over 30,000 homes.
• Ensuring compliance with new regulatory standards for social housing.
• Integrating welfare, homelessness prevention, temporary accommodation, and financial resilience work.
• Maximising the value of Camden's housing and property assets.
• Leading long-term strategic investment in housing quality, estate regeneration and net-zero delivery.

The person specification included requirements such as:

• An impressive track record at a director level within local government or a comparable sector.
• A good understanding of the housing context and challenges in local government, including the new Housing regulations.
• A collaborative personal style, highly effective interpersonal skills and strong emotional intelligence.
• A coaching/developmental leadership style.
• A commitment to resident voice and co-production.

Approval of Minutes

The sub-committee approved the minutes from three previous meetings: 24 April 2025, 7 May 2025, and 15 July 2025. These minutes documented the election of Councillor Richard Olszewski as Chair for each meeting, as well as discussions and resolutions related to the recruitment of a Chief Executive and an Executive Director of Investment, Place and Opportunity.

Exclusion of Public and Press

The sub-committee approved a resolution to exclude the public and press from the part of the meeting where the shortlisting of candidates for the Executive Director of Homes and Communities was discussed. This was justified under Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, as the discussion involved information relating to individuals, and the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.