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12
Nov
Who is North Yorkshire Council’s new chief executive?
Next week, North Yorkshire Council is set to appoint a new chief executive.
Dale Owens, who currently holds the same position at Gateshead Council, will take over from Richard Flinton after local elections in May 2027.
But who is he and what will he have on his plate when he takes the top job?
Mr Owens will become only the second chief executive at North Yorkshire Council since it was formed in 2023.
His career in public service started at Gateshead Council as a teenager.
Mr Owens told an interview on the council’s social media page last year:
I started working for the council when I was 18. I started working here as a post boy.
I used to deliver the post and then I’ve just worked my way up right the way through.
Return to North Yorkshire
During his 23-year career, he has had roles at Hartlepool Borough Council, housing association Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust and software company OLM Systems.
Housing looms large on his CV.
In 2015 he started working for the former North Yorkshire County Council as head of accommodation for supported housing before becoming assistant director for prevention and service development the following year.
Dale Owens.
He returned to Gateshead Council as strategic director for integrated adult and social care in August 2022.
From there, he took up the position of chief executive in Gateshead in June 2024 and is currently paid £185,000.
He told a council interview:
I do enjoy the job. The job title is just the name of what I do really. But, the job I really enjoy because I get to meet lots of different people and get to do lots of different things.
Everybody who has a problem, they usually end up at my door so I usually try and solve a few of those, not all of them.
Richard Flinton
During the interview, Mr Owens also admitted that he was not much of a football fan and has a pet cat called Jinx — which was named by his daughter.
What’s on his plate?
When Mr Owens arrives in North Yorkshire, he will find a council facing rising costs of adult social care a predicted shortfall of £34 million by 2027/28.
There is also the ongoing development of the Local Plan — which will determine where development can take place in the county for the next 20 years — as the council continues to tackle the government-mandated housing target of 4,516 homes a year.
Mr Owen’s could also be faced with a different ruling political group after the local elections following years of Conservative rule.
He told a council interview that money was often the biggest challenge he faced as chief executive of Gateshead. He said:
We don’t have enough [money]. That’s always the biggest challenge.
What happens now?
Mr Owens was named as the preferred candidate to replace Mr Flinton as chief executive on November 10.
Job adverts for the role gave a salary range of £205,749 to £224,986.
Councillors will be recommended to approve his appointment at a full council meeting on Wednesday (November 18).
Mr Flinton will oversee the upcoming elections in North Yorkshire in May before retiring, leaving Mr Owens in charge of an organisation with a workforce of around 15,000 people.
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