Former leader 'fixed' appointment of £150k job

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council has been investigating how Future Places Ltd, an urban regeneration company, was set up in 2021

A former council leader "fixed" the appointments process for key leadership roles in a company he helped to establish, a council's own investigation has found.

The revelation is from Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council's report into Future Places Ltd, an urban regeneration company that was set up in 2021 by the then leader Drew Mellor, in conjunction with the deputy leader Phil Broadhead and chief executive Graham Farrant.

The report, presented to councillors on Wednesday, said Mr Mellor promised the £150,000-a-year managing director role to his preferred candidate in a premeditated job selection approved by senior officers.

Mr Mellor has been approached for comment.

The report says former leader of BCP Council Drew Mellor offered a £150,000 job to his preferred candidate

The managing director role at Future Places was not advertised and Gail Mayhew was the only candidate interviewed.

An email from BCP HR to Mr Farrant before the company had been set up said that Ms Mayhew "had already been offered the job by Drew Mellor".

The head of HR went on to say "there will have to be a form of selection to justify the offer and position but I believe that we can make it safe for scrutiny purposes".

The report said that before being appointed, Ms Mayhew, or her company Smart Growth Associates, were paid £18k in consultancy fees and invoiced BCP for hundreds of pounds of accommodation, receipts from Royal Bath Hotel, train fares and legal advice.

It also highlighted how five days after being appointed MD of Future Places in July, Ms Mayhew said in an email she wanted to recruit her own people to join as the Chief Operating Officer at £145k a year and the Engagement Officer on £100k a year.

Future Places was closed down by BCP council in 2024.

Green Party Cllr, Sara Armstrong, who sits on the Audit and Governance Committee, said she had been calling for a full, independent investigation into Future Places.

She added that "residents are angry and rightly so" as "millions of pounds have been wasted on bonuses, perks and offices, with no homes or community facilities delivered".

The council said in a statement that this was the first of a two-part report and it would be "inappropriate to comment on the detail when the investigation is not yet complete".

The second part of the report is due to be published and heard next month.

It will look into bonuses of more than £110,000 paid to directors, and the more than £70,000 worth of office space Future Places rented from a company later run by Mr Mellor.