1. Can you tell us about Basingstoke and Deane?
I believe that Basingstoke and Deane is a fantastic location and has a great deal to offer both residents and businesses. Our main town of Basingstoke is a thriving and diverse regional urban centre, with top-class amenities. Whether your passion is for arts and culture or for shopping in big brand stores (or a healthy mix of both), you will find we have plenty to offer. But you don’t have to travel far to discover that we are also lucky enough to inhabit some beautiful parts of the Hampshire countryside - the western part of our borough is home to the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Our borough is steeped in history: some of our historic houses will be immediately recognisable to people, particularly Highclere Castle, which most people will probably now know as Downton Abbey.
2. Why is it a good place to do business?
We have an excellent track record in attracting and securing economic investment and this has proven invaluable in establishing a sound and sustainable local economy. The borough is home to some very well known brands such as John Lewis/Waitrose, AXA, the AA, Sony, and even hosts a newly established distillery for Bombay Sapphire gin. Network Rail has opted to locate their new regional headquarters here in Basingstoke and the Capita Group’s main offices are already based in Basingstoke. Part of our success is down to our location and excellent connections. We have easy access to London via high-speed rail links and both Gatwick and Heathrow airports are within easy reach. We’re also close to major ports such as Southampton and Portsmouth.
3. What contribution does the council make to Basingstoke and Deane’s success as a borough?
The council has been successful in taking a very commercially minded approach to its work. We are one of the largest asset-owning district councils in the country and we ensure that we make full use of these assets. We currently have approximately £450m of assets under our management and the income generated through this has enabled us to freeze council tax for the last five years - yet we are still able to invest £2m in arts and culture. In fact, Basingstoke and Deane borough council combines the sixth lowest council tax with the ninth highest spend in the country.
We have also established a very successful local enterprise partnership that has attracted millions of pounds of inward investment from some major players. In turn, this creates opportunities for our community, and we are pleased that current employment rates in the borough exceed both national and regional averages. But there is still a significant amount of work to do in reducing economic gaps that persist in our borough and in tackling areas of deprivation. It is really important that we can connect young people to the right training and career opportunities that will enable them to thrive, and in turn support ongoing economic prosperity for Basingstoke and Deane.
4. What do you expect from your new chief executive?
There is a really strong foundation on which to build on in the borough council, so it is vital that we continue to deliver really high standards of council services to our community and challenge ourselves to achieve even better value for money. We employ 560 staff and have an overall budget of £143m so the new chief executive needs to ensure that we get the very best from these resources and that they enable the council to be a great place to work.
However, looking beyond our own organisation, it is also vital that our new chief executive can continue to engage in and be part of the discussions, relationships and networks that can secure further investment for our borough. They need to be an influential ambassador for the area, an effective negotiator and a credible person who is able to influence others. Our chief executive will also have a part to play in making partnerships work to their full potential.
5. What are the key initiatives that you will want your chief executive to deliver?
Sustainable economic growth is the key to everything, but there are also some very specific projects that our new chief executive will oversee. As with so many locations in the South and South East, addressing housing needs remains a priority for the council. Our ambition is that in the next 15 years, we will see 13,400 new homes built in our borough. This includes 3,400 homes on Manydown, land owned jointly by the borough and county council and one of the country’s largest housing developments, which has the capacity for up to 8,000 houses in total. There are also plans to regenerate the historic part of Basingstoke, plus a 20-acre leisure park.
6. How would you sum up the challenges and opportunities of the role?
I think this is an opportunity that the right person will relish. The work that we undertake now and over the next few years will shape the foundations for the development of the borough over the next half-century in terms of its size and shape, its role in the economy of the South and the way it responds to the needs of all its residents and their quality of life. I think this job requires someone of real ability and stature.
The chief executive will work against a background of ongoing significant change in local government, and focus on the relationships between local authorities, as well as their relationship to central government. Therefore, clarity of strategic vision and the political skill to ensure that consensus is achieved and momentum is maintained will be immensely valuable.
Find out more about this exciting opportunity here.
Produced by Guardian Professional to a brief agreed with Basingstoke and Deane council. Funded by Basingstoke and Deane council
