Suffolk Coastal has today confirmed that the appointment of its chief executive Stephen Baker to a shared role with Waveney District Council will immediately save each authority around £40,000.

Suffolk Coastal has today confirmed that the appointment of its chief executive Stephen Baker to a shared role with Waveney District Council will immediately save each authority around £40,000.

Mr Baker is being paid £125,000 and took up his new role with Waveney at the start of this month. In seeking to create closer working relationships between the two councils, he is hoping to improve service delivery and efficiency throughout the east Suffolk region.

“This is an innovative and important agreement which will help both authorities deliver value for money to our council taxpayers in many areas. We sought independent external advice about the salary from an HR specialist and the savings we make will clearly benefit both organisations,” said Ray Herring, leader of Suffolk Coastal District Council

“Stephen can now get on with the business of seeking genuine efficiencies across both authorities and with much in common between us there is considerably more to be done to benefit all our communities.

“This arrangement is radical and probably the most significant one in the country, but like our other successful partnerships with neighbouring authorities - such as the management of our building control and audit functions - I am confident it will work very well. I am also confident that, while we are making considerable savings, Stephen is still being paid a very competitive salary that reflects his additional workload and responsibilities as Head of Paid Service for an area with a population of close to 240,000 people,” added Mr Herring.