Westmorland and Furness Council chief executive Sam Plum will step down from her role at the end of December for retirement.
In a heartfelt LinkedIn post, she wrote: “At the end of the month I’m hanging up my lanyard after 33yrs of public service, and what an incredible journey it has been.
She continued: “From a fresh faced enthusiast for all things community and environment in Northants to the first CEO of Westmorland and Furness Council, one of our newest LAs (Local Authorities).”
Council leader Jonathan Brook told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “Sam is recognised for her straightforward approach, for her hard work, commitment, enthusiasm and drive.”
He continued: “Sam has played a crucial role in every step of Westmorland and Furness Council’s journey, providing quality advice, clear leadership and her own unique and very ‘accessible’ style.
“This means that everyone, from staff, to partners, to members have benefited from her experience and her focus in our collective ambition to make this a great place to live, work and thrive.
“Leading an organisation through a period of significant change is a huge task. And to do that whilst continuing to deliver a wide range of day-to-day services that residents rely on, and doing so whilst in the public eye, is particularly demanding.
“Sam has not only helped us achieve this – but she has also been a real inspiration and a first class officer to work with.
“Sam has led from the front, as we have established our organisation from scratch and has clearly done a great job as Westmorland and Furness Council is fast becoming known locally, regionally and nationally as a successful and dependable organisation.”
In her LinkedIn post, Sam Plum continued: “There was never a plan but I was always driven by wanting to leave a place better than I found it so that the people there could flourish.
“That meant climbing the greasy pole so I had the levers to influence whatever council I was in at the time so that it better focused on its purpose of creating and delivering public good.”
She wrote that her career in public service had too many highlights to count but ‘always involved working alongside passionate, talented people who share values routed in local communities and neighbourhoods and the strengths that lay there if we just take the time to listen and look’.
Sam Plum wrote: “There are less lowlights, but the one worth mentioning is how tough this stuff can be in a world where public servants and politicians are held in less regard and often vilified.”
She continued: “Against a backdrop of less resources and more to do year on year, for over a decade, trying to do public good can be heartbreaking.”
The role of chief executive of Westmorland and Furness Council has been appointed to Miranda Cannon.
According to her LinkedIn, Ms Cannon currently works as the executive director for resources and transformation at Salford City Council.
Before that she worked at Leicester City Council and accounting firm KPMG.
By Kieran Molloy - Local Democracy Reporting Service
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