Nottingham city council’s temporary finance boss to be paid £114k for four months' work

Nottingham City Council has employed a new interim finance boss at a cost of £114,000 for just four months. Stuart Fair took on the role of Corporate Director of Finance and Section 151 Officer at the beginning of November, following the departure of Ross Brown.

Mr Brown was appointed at the end of 2022, and just under a year later issued a ‘section 114 notice’. The notice, the official tool used by the authority to declare effective bankruptcy, was issued after he determined the council couldn’t meet its legal duty to set a balanced budget.

Mr Fair has now been employed on a temporary basis, and will be paid £114,000 up to March 31 next year, according to council delegated decision documents. “This is a critical role for the council at a challenging time,” documents say.

According to Mr Fair’s LinkedIn profile, he studied law at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow and accountancy at Glasgow Caledonian University. He has previously worked as the Director of Finance and Section 151 Officer at Tameside Council.

Labour-led Nottingham City Council is facing a cumulative budget gap of £172m over the next three years. The budget gap in the 2024/25 financial year – which is the current year – stands at around £2.882m.

Speaking previously to the Local Democracy Reporting Service Cllr Ethan Radford, the deputy leader of the council, said Mr Brown’s departure “should not impact the ongoing budget process”. After declaring effective bankruptcy in November 2023, the council was given Government permission to use asset sales to fund day-to-day operational costs up to £65m.

In the last financial year, 2023 to 2024, slightly more than £17.5m in exceptional financial support was used to set a balanced budget. For the current financial year, 2024 t0 2025, £41m in exceptional financial support will be used.

While the council continues to report an in-year overspend, “corrective actions” have helped to reduce the gap from £12.595m to £2.882m, according to the latest available budget monitoring report.