ALISON Greenhill, currently director of finance with Leicester City Council, is set to become its new chief operating officer.
The appointment is subject to the approval of the full council which meets on 17 February, but she is expected to take up her new role from 1 March.
Alison has just celebrated her 35th year of working at the city council, where she started as an accountants clerk. After completing her accounting qualifications, her first major project role was working on the then-district council’s successful bid for unitary status in 1997.
Since then she has led on the demolition of New Walk Centre and the relocation of 2,500 staff to other premises, and the procurement of what is now the Mattioli Woods head office at Welford Place.
During the pandemic she has been responsible for the council’s shielding support programme, including setting up a food hub at De Montfort Hall that’s delivered more than 13,000 food parcels, and provided top-ups to food banks across the city.
More recently she established the council’s own contact tracing team, which remains the only one in the country to carry out all elements of contact tracing.
Leicester City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said he was looking forward to working with Alison in her new role: “I’m pleased to say we had a very strong field of candidates to choose from, so I’m delighted that we’ve been able to offer the post to Alison, who joined what was Leicester District Council at 17, and is a real example of home-grown talent.
“Local government finances are in more of a perilous state than ever, so her financial expertise is vital, but she is also able to lead teams to deliver new and innovative ways of working. This will continue to be essential as we look to recover and rebuild from the pandemic in the months and years to come.”
Educated in the city at Alderman Richard Hallam primary, and Beaumont Leys secondary schools, Alison became a trainee accountant at the council, which supported her through her accountancy training. She was appointed as the council’s director of finance in June 2012.
Alison said: “I’m really proud to be part of such a fantastic team at the city council. Staff have responded to the pandemic in an amazing way, carrying out completely new roles and turning their hand to whatever has been asked of them.
“I’m so pleased to be given the opportunity to lead the workforce and to work with our partners, as we look to recover from all of the effects of the pandemic, not just the financial ones. Providing training, opportunities and jobs for young people will be essential to this, and having benefited from a council training scheme myself, is something I’m keen to develop.
“I also want to ensure that we continue to champion and celebrate all the good things about our diverse city, and build on our considerable successes and achievements as we move forward.”
Andy Keeling, the council’s current chief operating officer, is leaving to take up the post of chief executive of the Falkland Islands Government. He will start his new role on 1 April.
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