Hampshire DCS set to take on chief executive role

Coughlan, who was a founding president of the Association of Directors of Children's Services when it was formed in 2007, has been recommended for the role by a cross-party appointment panel at the local authority.

A final decision on whether Coughlan takes on the position will be made by a full meeting of Hampshire County Council on 22 October.

If the appointment is confirmed Coughlan will become responsible for managing an overall annual budget of around £2bn, and a workforce of around 37,000 people.

Leader of Hampshire County Council, Roy Perry, who previously worked with Coughlan when he was lead member for children's services, said: "John Coughlan's experience, knowledge of the county council and abilities shone through during the appointment process.

"We believe we have found an inspirational and visionary leader who will lead the authority as it continues this journey of transformation and modernisation.

"The people of Hampshire rightly expect a high-quality service from the county council, which requires us to ensure that we are continually pushing boundaries with innovative and efficient methods of working. To do this we need the best people working for us.

"The challenges faced in public services, between now and the end of the decade also mean that it is essential that we have a strong successor to take forward the county council's ambition to be a modern business providing public services."

Following its most recent inspection by Ofsted, Hampshire's children's services department was rated as "good" overall. While services for children in need of help and protection, children in care and care leavers were all judged to be "good", the adoption service is "outstanding", and the quality of leadership and governance across all children’s services were deemed to be "outstanding".

Coughlan has been a high-profile figure in children's services over the past decade.

In 2008, the government appointed him to temporarily take over children’s services in Haringey to help improve services in the wake of the publication of a serious case review into the death of Peter Connelly, also known as “Baby P”. In 2009 he was awarded a CBE for his work in children’s services.

He has been director of children's services in Hampshire since 2005. Before that he spent time as director of social care at Telford & Wrekin Council, and assistant director for children and families in Dudley.

He spent the first 10 years of his career working directly with children in care in Birmingham.