Top post for former education chief

Published on Thursday 13 September 2007 01:14

A FORMER council education chief has landed a top job at the authority's development company just months after he retired.

Roy Jobson will take up the role of projects manager with EDI, driving programmes in Edinburgh such as a 12-year, 240 million regeneration of Craigmillar.

As the city council's director of education until May, Mr Jobson oversaw one of the biggest periods of school-building in the capital's history, which will ultimately cost more than 1.6 billion through two public-private partnership (PPP) schemes.

The Craigmillar regeneration will involve building 2,200 houses, three primary schools, a secondary school, a library, three public parks and a town centre.

Under the SNP-led Scottish Government, public bodies are having to look for alternatives to PPP funding for major building projects. Part of Mr Jobson's remit at EDI will be to investigate alternatives to PPP, such as "partnership" models where public bodies and developers would plan the building first and then source funding from private financiers.

The council is struggling with a black hole of 10 million, much of which was accrued by Mr Jobson's children and families department.

Mr Jobson was the original architect of a failed plan to close 22 schools in the city, which was finally brought forward by his successor, Gillian Tee.

Having retired from the local authority, Mr Jobson will collect a council pension while also earning a salary at EDI.

A council spokeswoman said: "As a member of the local government pension scheme, the former director of Children and Families was eligible to retire on a voluntary basis at age 60."

Mr Jobson acquired his new position through an interview process, rather than being head-hunted.