Revealed: Here's how many council employees kept their jobs at WNC after the former county council went bankrupt

WNC was created in 2021 after the former Northamptonshire County Council (NCC), along with Daventry, Northampton Borough, and South Northamptonshire councils, were abolished due to financial mismanagement. The county council had effectively gone bankrupt.

Chronicle and Echo submitted a Freedom of Information request to WNC asking how many NCC workers retained their positions or transitioned to roles within WNC when it first formed in 2021.

WNC revealed that the overall number of NCC employees who transferred under Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations (TUPE) to WNC on 1 April 2021 was 1,884. There are currently around 2,800 people employed by WNC.

This transfer under the TUPE meant that employees from the former Northamptonshire County Council had their jobs and employment terms protected when they moved to new roles within the newly formed North Northamptonshire Council and WNC.

It was recently announced that WNC has asked its staff to consider voluntary redundancy in an effort to plug a multi-million pound budget shortfall.

According to WNC finance portfolio holder Malcolm Longley’s latest report presented to the full council last month (September), the financial gap that needs to be bridged for 2025/26 is £38.6 million.

Chronicle and Echo asked WNC: If a business were to fail, would it retain 1,800 of its staff? And what measures are in place to ensure WNC does not face the same fate as its predecessor, NCC?

In response, a WNC spokeswoman pointed to the protections provided by the TUPE legislation.

Cllr Mike Hallam, Cabinet Member for HR and Corporate Services, said: “As part of the reorganisation, WNC created new senior management roles which were advertised and appointed to, ensuring those who are best equipped to lead the organisation were recruited.

“The council also put in place key governance forums with best practice checks and balances that insure against past issues. These arrangements have been reviewed and found to be robust following both CIPFA and LGA peer reviews and are also reviewed as part of our annual external audit inspections.

“Like any organisation, if performance concerns with employees are raised, these are managed through the relevant policies and procedures and in line with employment law.”

Here’s a full breakdown of how many former Northamptonshire County Council (NCC) employees transitioned to roles within West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) and which departments they are in:

Adults services: 155 employees in Adults, Communities and Wellbeing Directorate

Commissioning & performance: 63 employees in Adults, Communities and Wellbeing Directorate

Housing and communities: 105 employees in Adults, Communities and Wellbeing Directorate

Safeguarding and wellbeing: 705 employees in Adults, Communities and Wellbeing Directorate

Assistant chief executive: 28 employees in Chief Executive Office

Education: 88 employees in Children’s Services Directorate

Business systems and digital: 128 employees in Corporate Services

Customer & corporate services: 18 employees in Corporate Services

Human resources & staff wellbeing: 72 employees in Corporate Services

Legal and democratic services: 41 employees in Corporate Services

Lead authority performance & governance: 5 employees in Finance Directorate

Transformation: 59 employees in Corporate Services

Accountancy: 52 employees in Finance Directorate

Audit and risk: 9 employees in Finance Directorate

Pension service: 78 employees in Finance Directorate

Procurement: 6 employees in Finance Directorate

Revenue & benefits: 87 employees in Finance Directorate

Strategic finance: 10 employees in Finance Directorate

Assets and environment: 56 employees in Place and Economy Directorate

Growth, climate and regeneration: 8 employees in Place and Economy Directorate

Highways and waste: 85 employees in Place and Economy Directorate

Regulatory services: 12 employees in Place and Economy Directorate

Schools: 14 employees in Schools Directorate