Management Crisis at Troubled Teesside Council, as its claimed two HBC Directors Set to Stand Down...

Sally Robinson & Tony Hanson are both reportedly set to leave their roles later this year...

Sally Robinson & Tony Hanson are both reportedly set to leave their roles later this year sparking what sources claim is 'a leadership crisis' & questions over staff confidence in its top officer....

16th April 2025

Two Hartlpeool Borough Council directors are reportedly set to stand down from their posts later this year in what insiders claim is evidence senior council officials are becoming 'restless' over their concerns regarding the running of the local council that's now lost almost all public confidence....

Its claimed senior council officials are 'losing confidence' in its £182k a year Managing Director

Its claimed Sally Robinson, Director of Children’s and Joint Commissioning, and Tony Hanson, Director of Regeneration and Neighbourhoods, are both set to exit their roles at Hartlepool Borough Council within months. The double departure is said to have fuelled claims of growing no confidence in the council’s embattled Managing Director, Denise McGuckin, amid allegations senior officers are increasingly “losing faith” in her leadership of the troubled local council which in 2023 was declared an authority of no public confidence.

"Rudderless" Leadership Leading to a Management Exodus

Two directors set to stand down in quick succession suggests a confidence issue with its top officer a source told HBC Exposed..

Multiple sources close to Hartlepool Borough Council have described a "turbulent" internal environment, with staff reportedly becoming increasingly frustrated by out of touch top-down management decisions, growing workloads, and the council's persistent failure to deliver on key services which has reportedly led to some particularly angry standoffs with locals in the councils Civic Centre. Insiders claim these frustrations are now causing some serious internal rifts, leading to both council directors seeking to pursue opportunities elsewhere. According to one source, Tony Hanson is expected to take up a new senior post at nearby Durham County Council sometime in June 2025, whilst Sally Robinson is reportedly heading for a senior operational role with the Government’s education watchdog, sometime in May this year.

One source told HBC Exposed:

“This isn’t just your normal staff turnover. These are two pivotal council figures who've been here for years & are walking away in quick succession. It feels like the cracks are widening, and confidence of DM (Denise McGuckin) is evaporating fast.”

Calls for Leadership Shake-Up Growing Louder

The quick succession of resignations is said to be prompting calls for the senior management to be restructured once more

Criticism's been steadily growing against Hartlepool Borough Councils Managing Director Denise McGuckin since the 2023 Tall Ship's Event, which once again left locals picking up the financial shortfall as well as revelations which emerged that Hartlepool Borough Council was potentially looking to cancel the event after a number of businesses pulled out of the event at the last minute. Further concerns are said to be over what many locals see as a bloated and inefficient senior management structure costing locals nearly a million pounds a year. Its also said that whilst frontline services have faced relentless cuts over the past decade, senior officer pay has continued to rise at an alarming pace, something many locals see as unsustainable in the current economic climate with the councils Managing Director reportedly said to be facing mounting pressure to resign in order to pave the way for a new leadership structure.

A restructuring effort back in 2020, which replaced the councils outgoing CEO Gill Alexander with McGuckin was poised to save locals around £50k a year, however none of those savings materialised with critics arguing the current management structure is simply untenable, leading fewer officers having to take on more responsibilities causing significant backlogs and delays across all its departments.

Service Failures Adding Fuel to the Fire

HBC Services are amongst some of the worst on Teesside

From missed bin collections to delays in adult social care, as well as soaring costs in children’s services, the council's inability to deliver upon even the most basic of services is said to be coming under growing public scrutiny primarily due to online pressure groups such as Hartlepool Borough Council Exposed (HBC Exposed), where in 2023, Hartlepool Borough Council earned the title of being officially declared an authority of “no public confidence”, with campaigners said to be demanding the Government now steps in to investigate Hartlepool Borough Councils services to the public, much like it did with the Tees Valley Combined Authority, by issuing a Best Value Notice.

One Council Employee told us:

“The place is descending into chaos. It’s rudderless. Staff morale's rock-bottom, services are crumbling, and the leadership's nowhere to be seen.”

“Rats Leaving a Sinking Ship”?

The timing of these resignations—amid service collapses, tax hikes, and record public discontent—has led to accusations that some senior figures at HBC are abandoning ship before it completely sinks. With taxpayers almost certain to be footing the bill for their golden goodbyes whilst residents are left waiting on vital services, & public anger at the failing institution said to be rapidly reaching boiling point.

Whether these latest developments will finally push the Government to act remains to be seen—but sources close to the troubled institution say one thing's clear:

Hartlepool Borough Council is in disarray & its leadership must be changed