BARNSLEY Council’s chief executive has announced her retirement after seven years.
Diana Terris will step down from the role in May and leaves Barnsley Council in a ‘much stronger’ position, according to council leader Sir Steve Houghton.
Diana said it was a ‘really difficult decision to make’ but a good time for someone new to come in.
“It has been another amazing year with so many achievements across the council to celebrate,” she added. “Of course these achievements have been delivered regardless of the ongoing significant challenges we face.
“It’s a huge pleasure and privilege to be part of Barnsley Council. Our staff are a fantastic team, full of integrity and passion for the work they do, demonstrating our values and delivering our vision day in and day out.
“They impress me every day. I want to thank them and say how proud I am of them all, their talent and ability never ceases to amaze me.
“As you might imagine, I have thought long and hard about this. After seven years with the council you get so attached to the place, the people and the work that you do, but I feel it is the right time for me personally to retire.
“2019 is a milestone year for the council and a good time for a new chief executive to join Barnsley Council to continue its excellent work, success and achievements and to build on the last seven years.”
Diana spent six years as chief executive of Warrington Borough Council before taking on the role with Barnsley Council in 2012.
Coun Houghton said the recruitment process for a replacement would start in the new year, with the council looking for someone who can ‘build on Diana’s legacy’ by ‘strongly managing finances against a background of austerity and diminished resources’ and maintaining the good relationships she formed with the council’s partners.
“We’re sorry to see her leave,” Coun Houghton said. “She’s been good for the council and for the borough as a whole.
“She leaves us in a good position and we are financially sound for the next two or three years.
“Over the last seven years, we’ve transformed as a council. It’s gratifying to be told by other bodies that the standards of our key services are good, that the most vulnerable in our communities, our older people and children are well looked after and safe from harm.
“I know from experience that none of these things are achieved without strong, transformational leadership and that is undoubtedly the legacy that Diana will leave when she retires next year.”
