New chair of Sandwell children’s services appointed

Graham Archer will take on the role of chair of the board of Sandwell Children’s Trust following the resignation of Jacqui Smith in June.

Mr Archer, a civil servant who has held several posts at the Department for Education (DfE) replaces Jacqui Smith who stood down after she was appointed minister for skills, further and higher education in the same department by new Prime Minister Keir Starmer following Labour’s general election victory. 

The former home secretary was appointed chair when Sandwell Children’s Trust was formed in 2017. The ‘arms length’ company which runs children’s services on behalf of Sandwell Council was formed after the borough was thrown into special measures following back-to-back inadequate Ofsted inspections. The trust finally came out of special measures in 2022 after being rated inadequate for a decade.

The decision to appoint Mr Archer has not been publicly scrutinised after Sandwell Council agreed to waive the usual month-long ‘heads up’ for major decisions whereby councils are expected to publish reports that contain ‘key’ decisions with at least 28 days notice.

Sandwell Council said the decision, which was added to the cabinet agenda at the last minute, was being made as a “matter of urgency.”

As part of the move, and with the blessing of Cllr Nicky Hinchcliff, chair of the children’s services and education scrutiny board, the council also blocked councillors from ‘calling in’ the cabinet report for further inspection so the decision was “implemented immediately.”

The appointment was rubber-stamped by cabinet at a meeting on November 13. 

Sandwell Council said Mr Archer, who has has held several senior posts including interim general director at the DfE, had been appointed following a “robust process” and his selection had been endorsed by the government. 

The appointment was welcomed by the trust’s chief executive Emma Taylor who said he brought a “wealth of experience” that would “build on the significant progress” made so far. 

Cllr Jalal Uddin, cabinet member for children and families, added: “We look forward to working with Graham, along with colleagues at Sandwell Children’s Trust and partner organisations, as we continue to prioritise our support for children, young people and families, including children we care for and care experienced young people.

“We are committed to continually improving children’s life chances and supporting families wherever needed.”

A full inspection of children’s services is now expected within the next six months. Delaying the appointment could have a “detrimental impact” on preparations for the inspection, the council said.

A council spokesperson said: “The proposed appointment follows completion of a robust process to ensure the new chairperson has the necessary professional skills, knowledge and experience to provide the necessary leadership to continue the trust’s progress. 

“The appointment has been subject to full review by the secretary of state and endorsed. 

“To ensure stable and effective leadership for the trust, the scrutiny board chair agreed to waive call-in for this exceptional circumstance in accordance with rules governing decision-making and scrutiny, noting that performance of the trust is subject to regular and effective oversight by members through a range of forums.”

The trust board is made up of a government-appointed chair alongside three directors – including the trust’s chief executive and two senior leaders, three non-executive ‘experts’ and two appointments from Sandwell Council – usually a councillor and a relevant officer.

The government gives just over £89,000 to Sandwell Children’s Trust to pay the three non-executive directors across a two-year period based on each working 30 days a year. The children’s trust said £31,573 was spent last year leaving £57,527 from the Department for Education to pay for this year. 

In September, Sandwell Council agreed to increase pay for the three board members by six per cent from April next year – a rise of nearly £1,900. This is the first time that pay has increased since Sandwell Children’s Trust was formed in 2018, the council said. 

Long-time board member Linda Sanders has served as interim chair since the departure of Mrs Smith in June. Ms Sanders joined the board on a five-year appointment in 2017, extended for a further two years in 2022 and recently extended again until at least 2027. 

Sandwell Council said this was to allow “some continuity” following several departures from the board in the last two years. The council’s director of housing Gillian Douglas resigned in September to join Lewisham Council which brought her six-month stint on the board to an end. She has since been replaced by the council’s Nigel Collumbell. Jane Bleach also replaced Vineeta Manchanda last March.

Mrs Smith was made a life peer to join the House of Lords, becoming Baroness Smith of Malvern, in order to join the new Labour government. 

Whilst chair of the board of Sandwell Children’s Trust, Mrs Smith also chaired the Jo Cox Foundation, three NHS trusts, appeared on Strictly Come Dancing during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, hosted the For The Many Podcast, and made regular appearances on ITV’s breakfast news show Good Morning Britain.