Redundant council staffer received £400k package

Tony Kirkham was made redundant in 2022

A senior council finance manager was given a payout worth more than £400,000 when his role was axed.

Tony Kirkham was made redundant by Newcastle City Council in July 2022.

The amount awarded to the official in the 2022-23 financial year was the third highest of any UK council employee that year, according to lobby group Taxpayers’ Alliance.

The local authority said redundancy costs had since been recovered through savings made via the job cut. Mr Kirkham did not wish to comment.

In the financial year 2022-23, Mr Kirkham received £496,403 in salary, redundancy payments and pension contributions.

A bulk of this figure was made up of pension contributions which Mr Kirkham will only benefit from in the future, the council said.

'Good value'

Mr Kirkham's departure came amid major upheaval at the civic centre following the departure of previous chief executive Pat Ritchie, council leader Nick Forbes, and a number of other senior figures, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The package was so large because the official, who earned £148,000 a year as the council's director of resources, was entitled to the early release of pension benefits as he was made redundant over the age of 55, the council said.

Mr Kirkham’s responsibilities were subsequently split between three other members of staff.

Liberal Democrat opposition leader Colin Ferguson called the payout “beyond shocking” and questioned whether it was “good value for money”.

A council spokesperson said: “All redundancy costs were recovered well within two years in line with the council’s policy to ensure strict financial management."