Councils merger: BCP redundancies 'to exceed £1.5m'

Bournemouth Borough Council's managing director Jane Portman is among the senior staff to receive redundancy pay

Redundancy pay connected to the merger of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole councils will exceed the £1.5m budgeted this year, a senior officer has said.

Councillors for the shadow authority were told most redundancies would come after the council launch in April, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The scrutiny committee heard the £1.5m budget was only for senior staff and for the period to the end of March.

An officer warned it was "impossible to forecast" how much would be spent.

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Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) council corporate services director Julian Osgathorpe told Wednesday's meeting: "We will spend more than £1.5m.

"If we go right back to the initial business case, there was a much higher figure.

"It's impossible to forecast how much that will be, but it will be much higher than the £1.5m."

Mr Osgathorpe said all redundancies were linked to the merger and would be made by the end of September.

Earlier this week it emerged redundancy costs for Bournemouth Borough Council managing director Jane Portman would be in the region of £475,000.

She is in line for a £117,000 redundancy payout and a £355,000 pension contribution.

In October, Dorset County Council boss Debbie Ward also said she would be leaving with the same payout.

The chief executives of Poole and Christchurch councils are also expected to be made redundant as part of the reorganisation of councils.

It has previously been estimated the merger of the councils could save up to £108m over six years.