INTERVIEWS to select the chair of a new company which will deliver all adult care services currently provided by Scottish Borders Council will take place on March 25 – just one week before the services are transferred.

The successful candidate will lead the board of management of SB Cares – a limited liability partnership (LLP) wholly owned by the council – which will take over a range of provision, including home care, day services, extra care housing and the running of five residential homes for the elderly.

The new organisation, which will compete for clients with private and independent sector operators and has ambitions to extend its reach beyond the region, will have an annual budget of around £17m and will employ nearly 1,000 full time staff who will transfer from the council with terms and conditions intact.

In its recruitment advert, the council seeks “an individual with a respected and established track record of operating at the highest levels with considerable experience in the care sector as well as a recognised ability to work at the private/public interface”.

The post will carry no salary, although the successful candidate will be entitled to an undisclosed “annual payment” as well as expenses.

“This role offers an exciting opportunity to provide leadership for SB Cares and help establish a sustainable social care services that is known for its quality and commitment to service delivery,” states the ad.

Potential candidates have until this Sunday to apply for the job Meanwhile, the governance arrangements for the new company were clarified at last week’s full council meeting.

The board of management, which will be “responsible for all aspects of the LLP and its business”, will comprise a chair, a managing director, a finance and commercial director and a head of operations along with “up to five additional persons with the skills, knowledge or experience deemed necessary or useful to the board in fulfilling its obligations and functions”.

Philip Barr, the council’s £105,000 a year depute chief executive, has been seconded to take the role of interim managing director for a period up to 18 months.

Although there will be no elected members of SBC on the board, the company will be monitored by a Strategic Governance Group (SGG), a sub-committee of the council.

Chaired by Councillor Frances Renton, executive member for social work, the SGG will meet the SB Cares board every three months.

And the SGG’s approval will be required for all contracts and transactions worth more than £50,000 and any cuts or additions to the services offered by the company.

The approval of the full council will be required on all staffing matters affecting terms and conditions, including potential compulsory redundancies and any changes to pension arrangements.

The other members of the SGG will be Councillors John Mitchell, Jim Brown, John Greenwell and Bill White while a sixth non-council member will be recruited from the shadow board which is currently steering the intergration of health and social care services delivered by NNS Borders and the council.

The council is also seeking to add to its 16-strong communications department by advertising for a PR officer, on a salary of up to £28,500, to “deliver efficient and effective communications and support to the health and social care integration programme”.