Council spin doctors have cost well over a millon pound in past three years

Rochdale Borough Council

As the Council is making drastic cuts to essential services, Rochdale Online can reveal that the cost of the Council's communications/web teams over the past three financial years totals £1,132,160.31.

The numbers employed have increased during the past three years from five in 2013/14 to nine in 2014/15 to ten in 2015/16.

The Council recently advertised for another 'Communications Officer' with a salary of up to £30,480 per annum.

The advert said the Council 'needs' an experienced communicator to... help them share their good news. Working on 'digital engagement, events, writing content for social media channels and developing marketing strategies'.

However, there is no objective journalism, no dissenting voice, no investigation, only the PR spin the Council wants to project - "propaganda on the rates", former Communities Secretary Eric Pickles labelled council spin.

The news is sure to infuriate council front-line staff who are facing losing their jobs, and residents who will be hit with cuts to services being proposed by the Council will also be asking whether it is really necessary for the Council to be paying so many spin doctors so much of taxpayers' money to sit and pen the Council's agenda rather than paying front line workers to provide essential services.

In defence of the figures, Danny Brierley, Council 'Head of Communications', said: "The average number of staff employed in council communications teams at metropolitan district councils at 1 February 2016 was 16.7 (LGA communications survey 2016)."