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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
RESOLVED That Mr Chris Frey-Davies be appointed to the role of Head of Children’s Services at Pembrokeshire County Council.
There were no declarations of interest made at this point in the meeting.
Moved by Councillor Jon Harvey; Seconded by Councillor Di Clements The vote was taken by way of a show of hands and carried. RESOLVED That the Minutes of the Meetings held on 15 July 2025 and 16 July 2025 be approved as a correct record.
The Chair invited Rebecca Hopkins, from Gatenby Sanderson, to explain the recruitment process for the Head of Children's Services role. She reported that the process had begun on 11 August 2025 and involved a four-week national search. The role was advertised in The Guardian, Community Care Jobs Online, and LinkedIn, supported by Gatenby Sanderson’s social media. In addition to advertising, 110 individuals were directly approached. Ten formal applications were received. Preliminary interviews were held on 16 and 17 September by Seb Lowe and Andrew Fraser, with six candidates interviewed and five selected to move forward. One candidate later withdrew, leaving four finalists. Ms Hopkins further advised that final interviews took place on 30 September across three panels: the Management Interview Board, a Stakeholder Panel, and a Service User Panel. In response to a question from Councillor Di Clements, Ms Hopkins advised that receiving ten applications was a good outcome given the national challenges in recruiting senior children's social care professionals, and acknowledged that Pembrokeshire’s location may have influenced the number of applicants.
The Committee considered excluding the public from the next item of business, as it involved the disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 12 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972. Moved by Councillor Jon Harvey; Seconded by Councillor Pat Davies The vote, undertaken by way of a roll call, was carried. The votes were recorded as follows: For the Motion: Councillors Di Clements, Pat Davies, Jon Harvey, Huw Murphy and Vanessa Thomas [7] There were no votes against or abstentions. RESOLVED That the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 19Act; and involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 12 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Act; and that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information. The webcast was then paused.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That Mr Chris Frey-Davies be appointed to the role of Head of Children’s Services at Pembrokeshire County Council.
The Committee convened in private session under the terms of Paragraph 12 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 to interview an applicant for the post of Head of Children’s Services. The Chief Executive provided feedback on the rationale for the Panels’ decision to refer one candidate for final interview and the options available to the Committee; and he responded to Members’ questions accordingly. The Committee then interviewed the short-listed candidate for the post ofHead of Children’s Services. The Committee then considered the candidate having regard to the Job Description, Person specification for the post and their performance. The Committee also considered feedback from the Management and Stakeholder Panels. Moved by Councillor Jon Harvey; Seconded by Councillor Di Clements. The Motion was put to the vote by way of a show of hands and carried. RESOLVED That Mr Chris Frey-Davies be appointed to the role of Head of Children’s Services at Pembrokeshire County Council.
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