Two senior officers retired from the same council on the same day – a fitting end to their careers after both started at the same local authority.
John Harris and Simon Nuttall, both aged 64, clocked up more than 92 years’ of local government service before retiring from South Staffordshire Council.
HR Consultant John started at Birmingham Council aged 16 and went on to work in various roles including as an assistant director for social services. He met his wife of 41 years at a work day out to Brighton when he was 19.
John worked at five councils, WM Probation, and the Ministry of Justice. He began working at South Staffordshire Council in June 2019.
His career saw him do everything from acting as a steward for the Queen when she visited Dudley, through to playing a romantic lead in a video promoting a council’s catering services – but says the most special moment was helping a young woman with a serious health condition deliver on her potential and get into work.
John said: “What you get from the people working in the public sector is invaluable. I would say if you want to help people, come into our sector.
“You can have such variety in your work. You can also move up and down the country when you’re in local government and you can change your work as you change with age.”
Leisure Services Manager Simon also began his public service career at Birmingham Council – as a leisure assistant at Wyndley Leisure Centre, in Sutton Coldfield, when he was 19.
He worked in various locations from East Staffordshire to South Bedfordshire, until the birth of his daughter saw him move back home to the Midlands in 1990, when he began working for South Staffordshire Council at its range of leisure centres.
He became Performance Review Officer at the council in 2000, before being promoted to his final role of Leisure Services Manager in 2018.
The grandfather-of-two said: “As a manager I’ve always sought to support my staff – the most satisfying aspect was seeing people progress.
“I’ve genuinely loved working with the people at South Staffordshire Council – they’re one thing I’m really going to miss. I’ve had a good time here, we’ve had a lot of laughs.”
The pair retired at the end of April.
