Cheshire East marks time on officer absences
Replacing director of place Phil Cresswell, who left at the start of December, is yet to begin in earnest, while chief executive Rob Polkinghorne remains off work with illness.
A Cheshire East Council spokesperson said, “Rob Polkinghorne, Chief Executive of Cheshire East Council, is currently unwell and is not in work.
“In Mr Polkinghorne’s absence, the Chief Executive’s delegations and duties are being covered by Helen Charlesworth-May, Executive Director for Adults, Health and Integration, supported by the Corporate Leadership Team.”
In a further statement, a council spokesperson said, “Phil Cresswell, Executive Director, Place, has resigned by mutual agreement with immediate effect, on Friday 5 December.”
Contacted by Place North West this week, those remain the most recent communications from the local authority on the matter. Polkinghorne has been away from work since at least early December.
Cresswell joined the council as executive director of place as recently as October 2024, taking on a role that had been unfilled for a year, following the departure of Jayne Traverse, who held the job for two years.
Cresswell had previously spent a year as director of regeneration at the London Borough of Hounslow, before which he headed housing development and economic growth at Stoke-on-Trent City Council.
His brief at the local authority covered highways, waste and recycling, planning, transport and parking, economic development, and other place-based services.
Development projects advanced over the course of his time with the council included working with Capital&Centric on bringing residential-led development to three town centre sites, including the undeveloped part of the Royal Arcade site.
Good to know my inflated council tax is being spent well, still at least a change might give the planning system a kick up the behind, that’s of course if they’re not dragged down by defending all the appeals, and sorting out the pot hole pandemic, or the woeful waste collection service who often forget to empty your bins, what was the excuse last week – extreme weather conditions stopping collection, what, where maybe in the artic but certainly not in Cheshire, maybe better luck with economic development – of course will have to deal with the atmospheric business rates and parking charges on their car parks which put people off using them. So should be a breeze filling the role!
By Anonymous
Think it’s about time cheshire east was put into emergency administration i do believe that it can not carry on as it stands it needs a complete over haul at the top to satisfy hard working council tax payers ASAP
By Michael fournier
Cheshire East are a complete disaster what kind of business model buys up shops demolishes them creates a waste land that provides zero income and a multi story car park that loses money and cost eleven million to build. This in any other business would be grounds for a criminal hearing in the case of councillors you can just resign and go and run a similar shambles elsewhere. The roads in the area are a dirt track causing millions of pounds worth of damage to the unsuspecting motorist who pays handsomely for the privilege of driving on said dirt tracks . The goverment changing the name of road tax to divert funds to different causes doesn’t change where the money come from .
By Colin goldsmith
This council is a joke
Where else do you pay for services which plain and simply to not arrive , twice inside a matter of months our bins have not been emptied for an entire week , quite simply why are those weeks not credited to our rates , pot holes off the scale bad ..Nothing good to say incompetent
By Anonymous
The running of Cheshire East must be subject to government intervention. The situation there surely can’t be allowed to go on.
By Anonymous