Wirral Council announces 483 staff are free to leave as part of its redundancy programme

Dec 8 2010 by Matt Hurst, Birkenhead News

AROUND one in four senior managers will leave Wirral Council before the end of the year, as redundancies and early retirements are rubber stamped.

Last week, the authority wrote to the 1,594 employees who had asked to leave their jobs to tell them whether their request proved successful, or if it was still being considered.

Of that number, 483 have already been told they are free to go, either on early retirement terms or as part of a severance package.

Of the remaining number, 702 employees have been told their request is still under consideration, and will be reviewed in the context of the recent public consultation on the future of council services.

The outcome of this consultation, and the recommendations of the Task Forces engaged, will be considered at cabinet tomorrow.

The mass redundancy programme was initiated by council chiefs as they seek to balance the books, at the same time as trying to ensure frontline services remain effective.