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11
Nov
Senior North Yorkshire Council director leaves
A senior North Yorkshire Council director is leaving the authority.
Nic Harne, the corporate director for community development, joined the council in March 2023.
Mr Harne is one of five corporate directors who sit one level below the chief executive.
His remit included areas such as housing, planning and regeneration.
A council spokesperson confirmed that Mr Harne — who was paid a total renumeration package of £184,468 last year — was moving on.
They said:
Our corporate director for community development, Nic Harne, has accepted a new role in his home area covering a wider range of services. He has overseen many significant change programmes with us since local government reorganisation in 2023, including housing, planning, leisure, economic development and regeneration.
The recruitment process to replace Nic has started.
Meanwhile, the council continues to decline to comment on whether Paula Lorimer, director of Harrogate Convention Centre, has left her position.
Paula Lorimer, director of Harrogate Convention Centre.
The Stray Ferret has been told by multiple sources that Ms Lorimer is no longer in charge of the loss-making venue, which is undergoing a £9.4 million upgrade.
The convention centre is owned and run by North Yorkshire Council, but when we asked the council in September whether Ms Lorimer had left her role, a spokesperson told us:
This is not something we are going to be commenting on.
When the Stray Ferret approached the council again today (November 11) to ask if it would comment on Ms Lorimer’s position, it said:
Our position has not changed since your previous enquiry.
Ms Lorimer took over the running of Harrogate Convention Centre in 2019 and has consistently been one of the council's top earners locally.
In 2024, we reported that she received total remuneration of £121,818. She has worked full-time in the post of chief executive, but lives in Manchester and has said she only commutes to Harrogate "two or three times a week”.
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