WECA spent nearly £900k on payouts and tribunals

The report covers the final year of Dan Norris' time as WECA mayor and says improvements have been made under Helen Godwin

An audit report has revealed the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) spent about £476,000 paying off disgruntled staff in the final year of the previous administration.

Labour's Dan Norris led the combined authority from 2021, but was not allowed to run again in May after being elected the MP for North East Somerset and Hanham last year.

Norris' time as mayor was marred by fallouts with the three councils which comprise WECA, but also high-ranking officers within the authority's senior team.

The report by Grant Thornton said governance and relationships had improved, particularly under the new Labour mayor Helen Godwin.

WECA is responsible for developing policies around transport, housing, training and skills and supporting business between Bristol, South Gloucestershire and Bath and North East Somerset councils.

Mr Norris served as an MP from 1997 to 2010 and his election as WECA mayor marked a return to politics after more than 10 years away.

However, he said he found the limitations of the job frustrating and was known to have riffs with other leaders, including Bristol's former Labour mayor Marvin Rees.

This conflict extended to senior officers - with a previous report finding a "sense of division" in the authority and a "damaged relationship between the mayor and members of the senior management team."

This report saw the government put WECA under effective special measures, and there was concern from some former councillors this led to WECA missing out on millions of pounds in potential funding.

The latest audit revealed in Mr Norris's last year as Mayor, almost £480,000 was spent paying off disgruntled former members of staff.

The BBC also understands that during Mr Norris' tenure, almost £900,000 of public money was spent on pay-offs or settling employment tribunals.

The report also states that, under Norris, a number of senior officers were able to create a number of other management roles which were in breach of WECA's constitution.

Norris has previously said WECA was dysfunctional when he got there and staff had worked to undermine him.

The current WECA administration welcomed the report - which describes an "effort from all parties to move away from a legacy of poor relationships that has hampered progress in the past".

"In this new chapter for the West of England, we have turned the page on the problems of the past," said WECA Mayor, Helen Godwin.

"This report highlights some of the combined authority's work in catching up with other city-regions, and sets out further reforms to help the organisation deliver what people across our area deserve."

WECA is now no longer in effective special measures.

Mr Norris was unavailable for comment and has not spoken publicly since being arrested in April following allegations of sexual abuse.