Senior officers' pay and expenses

How our management team is structured

The council’s management team is led by the Chief Executive.

Reporting to him are five Corporate Directors who lead the council’s core Directorates:

• Children's Services
• Corporate Resources
• Environment and Regeneration
• Finance
• Housing and Adult Social Services.

Each Directorate in turn comprises a number of services, led by Directors or Heads of Service. The senior staff structure for each Directorate is shown on the charts which can be downloaded from the bottom of this page. These are subject to change as a result of reorganisations currently underway in the council. Also available from the bottom of the page are details of the pay our senior staff receive for the role they play in running Islington Council.

Chief Executive pay and conditions

The annual salary for the current Chief Executive, Lesley Seary is £160k. The rates paid to chief executives of London boroughs last year ranged from £164k to £242k.

The current Chief Executive receives no performance-related pay or bonuses, is a member of the Local Authority Pension Scheme and is eligible for 32 paid days leave per year.

She is able to reclaim a restricted range of legitimate and evidenced business expenses, including business travel.

Any income generated by the Chief Executive for conference speeches or non-executive directorships is paid to and retained by the council.

The Chief Executive role is full-time. However, the post-holder is expected to work such hours as are necessary to ensure the job gets done. This routinely involves attending evening meetings, as well as the standard Monday to Friday business week. Weekend working is also required. The post-holder is "on call" at all other times, particularly to cover emergency planning requirements. As with other London CEOs, Lesley Seary retains the "Gold" responsibility for London for two fortnights per annum, meaning she would act as the Chief Executive for London in the event of a London-wide emergency. No extra payments are made for such extended hours.

In some years, when general, local or European elections occur, the Chief Executive also receives election expenses. Lesley’s fee for being the Returning Officer at the St Peter's By-Election on 11 August 2011 was £600.77.

Senior Management team pay and conditions

Islington Council is made up of five core directorates, each led by a Corporate Director. Their salaries range from £122,000 to £145,000.  Salaries for the Directors of Service / Heads of Service within each directorate range from £75,000 to £110,000. Structure charts for each Directorate are downloadable from the bottom of the page. These are subject to change as a result of reorganisations currently underway in the council.

All senior staff are members of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS). This is a contributory scheme, whereby the employee contributes to the scheme from his or her own salary. Employees contribute 5.5%-7.5% of their salaries and Corporate Directors 7.5%. Employers' contributions to the LGPS vary depending upon how much is needed to ensure benefits under the scheme are properly funded, and are set independently. The rules governing the pension scheme are contained in regulations made by Parliament.

For more information please contact the Chief Executive’s Team on 020 7527 3062.