THE boss of East Staffordshire Borough Council has been suspended – 11 months after she was appointed to the £120,000-a-year post.

The borough council has taken action against its own chief executive, Jeanette McGarry, over an undisclosed allegation.

A spokesman for the authority confirmed that Mrs McGarry was being investigated but would not comment on the nature of the probe.

She had been unanimously approved for the job in January after a £20,000 recruitment process.

The majority of elected members were taken by surprise by the bombshell. Uttoxeter's borough councillor David Brookes said: "I think we are all shocked by what has happened, but as a backbencher I have not been made aware of the full facts surrounding the investigation.

"We are all disappointed that this is an avenue we have to go down, and as far as I understand the nature of the allegation is procedural and would not have raised eyebrows in the commercial world.

"Jeanette spent time in Uttoxeter and she showed a great deal of interest in the town, and we were looking forward to working closely with her. I found her to be a capable chief executive who brought a breath of fresh air with her.

"It is unfortunate that we may potentially have to go through a costly Government-dictated process to find a replacement."

The borough council's deputy mayor Geoff Morrison added: "She is very good at her job and this has come completely out of the blue.

"I hope that whatever has gone on is quickly resolved and that she is reinstated in the position. To find a replacement of her calibre will be difficult and expensive."

The Post & Times understands that Mrs McGarry was not in attendance at last week's civic ball and has not been involved with council activities for around a week.

The authority said in a statement: "The council has suspended its chief executive officer Jeanette McGarry as a neutral act pending an investigation.

"It is not council policy to comment on individual matters of this nature before an investigation is carried out."

The spokesman added: "The leadership has gone down to our two directors Mahmood Azam and Andy O'Brien.

"We have a strong management team in place for when emergencies like this take place. It will be business as usual."

Mrs McGarry moved to the town hall after working as corporate director of community services at Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council.

She replaced former chief executive Marie Ainsworth, who died on January 2 after battling breast cancer.

Mrs McGarry was unanimously recommended for the job after being one of four shortlisted applicants.

Mrs McGarry was unavailable for comment.