South Yorkshire Governance

The South Yorkshire Joint Authorities Governance Unit is a department of Barnsley Council's Legal and Governance Directorate. Officers provide independent and impartial support and advice to:

This support includes governance, service improvement, policy and scrutiny advice to ensure our clients meet their expectations of good governance.

Our history

The staff supporting South Yorkshire Joint Authorities and other sub-regional bodies are part of Barnsley Council's corporate governance unit. It was formerly known as the Joint Authorities Governance Unit from 2015 to 2021, and before that the South Yorkshire Joint Secretariat (SYJS).

South Yorkshire Joint Secretariat (SYJS and the Secretariat) was established in 1986 following the closure of South Yorkshire County Council.

Under an agreement entered into by the four district councils within South Yorkshire, SYJS became a department of Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council and the organisation was subject to Barnsley Council's conditions of service and employment policies. It was set up to provide support services to the sub-regional bodies such as police, fire and rescue, pensions and transport, and has expanded over the years to include support for other organisations.

From March 2022, South Yorkshire Pensions Authority is managed by South Yorkshire Pensions Service.

Who's involved

  • Wendy Popplewell
    Executive Director - Core Services

  • Neil Copley
    Director of Finance and Section 151 Officer (FRA, Pensions, Police and Crime Panel)
  • Sukdave Ghuman
    Service Director - Law and Governance

  • Carol Tague
    Head of Governance

  • Andrew Shirt
    Council Governance Officer
  • Charlotte Smallman
    Governance Officer

  • Daisy Thorpe
    Council Governance Officer

For more information

Watch our meetings online

Watch our meetings live online and access our archive or recent webcasts.

View webcasts

Vacancies

We currently have no vacancies. Please check back at a later date.

About working for us