IT is being claimed that council-tax payers in Tenbury are making savings following a reorganisation at the top of Malvern Hills District Council.

According to an independent review the decision by Wychavon and Malvern Hills District Councils to share a chief executive is delivering significant benefits for council taxpayers.

A review by the Local Government Association found the arrangement to share Jack Hegarty between both councils had saved £300,000 between them, while also improving services and making them more efficient.

The Local Government Association was asked to independently scrutinise how the shared arrangement was working as it had been in place for almost two years.

A single senior management team for both authorities was also created at the start of this year.

The report says that the model adopted by Malvern Hills District Council and Wychavon District Council has the potential to be applied in other parts of the country.

“Many of the concerns raised at the time about Malvern becoming a 'satellite authority' run from Wychavon and councillors losing their independence and control have simply failed to materialise and that is testament to the leadership skills of Jack and the commitment of our staff to make this work for the benefit of our residents," said Phil Grove who leads Malvern Hills District Council where he represents Tenbury.