A CONTROVERSIAL high-flying council job in Worcestershire has been deleted, it has emerged.

The role of assistant chief executive at Worcestershire County Council, which has been empty since Clare Marchant landed the top job in June, has been axed.

The position was only created in August 2012 paying £75,800, and at the time it came under severe criticism from both opposition Labour councillors and the Taxpayers' Alliance.

Mrs Marchant joined the council in 2010 as 'head of change' and moved up to assistant chief executive before taking over the top role from Trish Haines in the summer.

The role of chief executive at the county council pays £151,000, eventually rising to around £170,000 by 2017, which will be around £5,000 less than Mrs Haines' old salary.

As your Worcester News revealed last month, the council is searching for a new director who will be responsible for handing services to outside providers, with a salary of £117,151.

But the assistant chief executive post no longer exists and will not be brought back.

The deletion of the assistant role comes as the council focuses on a new "talent programme" aimed at promoting more people from inside County Hall.

HR chiefs inside the council are working on a strategy aimed at unearthing real talent from inside the organisation, saying it leads to increased loyalty and saves taxpayers' money.

It comes amid a drive to slash around 1,500 in-house roles by 2018, and hand over 85 per cent of services to outside bodies including the private sector.

Elaine Chandler, head of HR, said: "The next stage for is to create a talent programme so we can identify talented people who we can promote from within.

"It is always better to do that, and more cost effective."

Mrs Marchant said: "I do feel positive about the next few years - it is challenging but I feel we can get there.

"We're making really big strides with the staff and as an organisation."