Exclusive:Historic Environment Scotland chief executive suspended a year after taking up post
Katerina Brown took up the post of chief executive at Historic Environment Scotland a year ago
Historic Environment Scotland (HES) has been plunged into further “chaos” after the chief executive was suspended from her £145,000-a-year post just a year after taking up the job.
Katerina Brown took up the position in September last year, but was signed off in June on health grounds after an investigation was launched into her conduct.
She had been due to return to her job, but has now been suspended. The Scotsman understands the suspension was agreed after a condition of Ms Brown's return was not met. The original investigation continues, it is understood.
The suspension is the latest development at the heritage body, which cares for around 300 historic properties, including Edinburgh Castle, on behalf of Scottish ministers.
It follows a number of high-level personnel changes at the organisation, including the early departure of former chair Dr Hugh Hall and the appointment of Sir Mark Jones as his successor last month. Two other board members have also left in recent months.
The organisation, which receives around £70 million in funding from the Scottish Government, has been forced to defend itself over a number of controversies, including hospitality claimed by senior figures. This week, a director issued an apology to staff over his use of racist language.
Conservative MSP Stephen Kerr, who sits on the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee, said: “It is almost like HES is having an organisational nervous breakdown.
“HES is utterly broken and internally, from what I understand, it is chaos. The leadership are all over the shop because they were not willing to respond to concerns about the way that senior managers and directors were behaving and the lack of willingness to give people a decent hearing.”
Mr Kerr said Culture Secretary Angus Robertson must launch an independent inquiry into management practice and culture at HES to support its new chairman and get the organisation in order.
He added: “People are having a pretty miserable time inside of Historic Environment Scotland. It is deeply frustrating, particularly for the good people at HES, and there are many, many good people that work there.”
At the time of her appointment, Ms Brown was described as being “perfectly placed” to lead HES going forward, given her experience in both the financial and the cultural heritage sector.
Less than a year into the role, and during her three-month absence, she was named as CEO of the Year at the Scottish Women’s Awards at a “sparkling ceremony” in Glasgow at the end of August.
Before taking up her post at HES, Ms Brown served as the chief operating officer at National Trust for Scotland, where she worked alongside Sir Mark Jones, the former chairman of the conservation charity.
Just last month, on September 25, Mr Robertson told the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee that he was “optimistic” the pair would form a “formidable team” at HES.
Mr Robertson told the committee he had made it “absolutely and unambiguously clear” that he agreed there was a “wide range of issues of concern relating to the senior management of Historic Environment Scotland”, which caused him “extreme concern”.
He said he had “total confidence” that Sir Mark would deal with the issues, adding he was “satisfied” with the general work of the organisation.
This week, an ongoing row over the conduct of Craig Mearns, operations director at HES, came to a head when he apologised to hundreds of colleagues on a group call over racist language he had used to describe visitors.
He was subjected to a disciplinary investigation and sanctioned last year, after a complaint was made against him. But there remains disquiet in the organisation among some colleagues that he has remained in post.
It is understood Ms Brown dealt with the original complaint against him.
In a statement, Mr Mearns said: “I have seen and heard the impact that my use of a highly offensive word has caused and wish to apologise unreservedly for using it. There is no place for racist language and I am appalled with myself.
“I was dealt with formally after the incident and received a very significant sanction, which was warranted and I did not appeal.
“We are having an all-colleague call next Tuesday where I will have the opportunity to speak to the full organisation, but I wanted to reach out to colleagues in the Ops Directorate first.
“I have learned a great deal from this whole experience and going forward commit to upholding the values we all share and conducting myself accordingly. I have let myself and the organisation down very badly. My regret and contrition is absolute.”
HES, in a statement, said there was “no place for racism at Historic Environment Scotland and all allegations are dealt with following the appropriate policies”.
The issue over language used by Mr Mearns has continued to impact the organisation, with three academics at Glasgow University informing HES counterparts they were “pulling” a conference planned for next June on Scotland’s cultural heritage and the British Empire.
An email, seen by The Scotsman, said a proposal for Glasgow University students to undertake internships at HES “would no longer be able to proceed” and that concerns had been raised about the “safety and wellbeing” of students taking up such a position.
A statement from HES said: “We are aware of the concerns raised by the University of Glasgow and take them seriously. We remain committed to maintaining a respectful, inclusive, and safe environment for all staff, partners, and stakeholders. We value our relationship with the University of Glasgow very highly and regret any disruption to our collaborative work.”
HES said it could not comment on the suspension of Ms Brown.
A statement added: “We continue to work closely with our newly appointed chair and the Scottish Government to ensure strong governance and leadership across the organisation.”
It is understood the HES board has recommended to the Scottish Government that an interim chief executive is appointed.
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