New county council chief executive officially takes up £190,000 a year post

West Sussex County Council's new chief executive officially took up his £190,000 a year post today (Monday June 27)
Nathan Elvery new chief executive at West Sussex County Council SUS-160627-165751001Nathan Elvery new chief executive at West Sussex County Council SUS-160627-165751001
Nathan Elvery new chief executive at West Sussex County Council SUS-160627-165751001

Nathan Elvery, who joined the authority from the London Borough of Croydon where he had held the same post, said he was delighted to move to a place which ‘feels like home’ as he was born and went to school in Crawley, and started his career at Crawley Borough Council.

The last chief executive, Kieran Stigant, stood down in January 2014 and instead of appointing a replacement, the council created the two new posts of a chief operating officer and a transformation director, roles which were later merged in September 2014.

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Gill Steward, who was on an interim contract as chief operating officer, left WSCC earlier this year to become chief executive of the London Borough of Bexley.

Chief fire officer Sean Ruth has been acting chief operating officer until Mr Elvery took up his post.

Mr Elvery said: “I always hoped that one day I would be able to return to work in West Sussex. It’s an amazing and beautiful part of the country and somewhere which feels like home.”

He has extensive experience in local government, with a career spanning nearly 30 years. After a 13-year career at Crawley Borough Council,he worked at the Greater London Authority and then Westminster City Council.

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He joined the London Borough of Croydon as director of finance in 2004 – the youngest in the country at the time.

After working in various senior roles he became interim chief executive in 2013, a position which was made permanent in 2014.

Mr Elvery added: “It’s a really exciting time to be joining the county council. We’re definitely facing significant challenges but I am confident that we have a very bright future.

“Providing vital services for our residents in the current financial climate has never been more challenging but this is a time to rise to the challenge, not shy away from it.

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“I am confident that by focusing on our key resident priorities such as giving our children the best start in life, helping our older people to remain independent and championing our economy, we can really make a positive difference.”

Louise Goldsmith, leader at WSCC, said: “I am delighted to welcome Nathan and I am very much looking forward to working with him.

“Nathan has visited the county council many times over the last couple of months and this has ensured a good hand over from Sean Ruth, our current acting chief operating officer.

“There is a big job ahead to take the county council forward to meet the many challenges we face and to ensure we are there for our residents, working with our communities and delivering good services for the residents we serve.

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“I am confident that Nathan is the right person to take the county forward and help us to achieve our ambitions.”

Mr Elvery, and his wife Silke have three children, Max (18), Charlotte (16) and Jasmin (12).

His interests include cycling, golf, travelling and running. He enjoys charity fund raising and has recently completed the Snowdonia Challenge for Regain, a trust which supports sports tetraplegics.

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