City Hall has filled over half of the vacancies associated with Sadiq Khan’s Oxford Street transformation programme, costing taxpayers £380,000 so far, a Freedom of Information request shows. Five of the nine positions approved by City Hall were filled by mid-February with the Head of Oxford Street Transformation being one of the first.
The team will be responsible for carrying out the Mayor’s plan to redevelop and pedestrianise sections of the popular high street. The first role appears to have been filled by Molly Strauss in January, according to her LinkedIn.
Ms Strauss’ LinkedIn account shows she was previously Head of Infrastructure at the Greater London Authority (GLA) and had a Masters in city design and social science from the London School of Economics. She is also a Harvard University alumni and has worked with the GLA for more than seven years.
According to GLA policy, Ms Strauss’ salary will be published on the authority’s website but analysis of the City Hall’s pay grades by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) shows the Harvard alumni could earn six figures. Ms Stauss is in a Grade 14 role, which pays between £96,461 and £104,414.
A senior planning, design and delivery manager and a senior comms and stakeholder engagement manager have been recruited and will be paid between £79,159 and £85,683 each. The GLA has also hired a senior transport planning (£56,797-£61,482) and a policy officer (£39,818-£43,951).
If all roles paid the top end of their grade, this would cost the taxpayer £381,213 a year. It is not clear what the remaining five roles are or what they’re paying as they have not been advertised.
The GLA said currently, approval has been provided for the creation of nine posts, some of which remain vacant and will be filled in due course.
A spokesperson for the Mayor said: “A revitalised Oxford Street would increase visitor numbers, create new jobs, and boost retail and growth for London and the whole UK economy.
“The potential transformation of Oxford Street is a complex and large-scale project which requires the right resource in place to be able to deliver the best possible scheme for Londoners and visitors.”
According to reporting by the Evening Standard, all jobs are for a fixed term of two years.
The Head of Oxford Street will work with Will Norman, City Hall’s walking and cycling commissioner. This role is in charge of building the transformation team while developing and implementing Sadiq Khan’s programme.
This includes overseeing early-stage design, procurement, consultation and planning process and working with TfL on transport planning and modelling.
Noah Vickers is an award-winning journalist and Local Democracy Reporter covering local government, transport, housing and political issues across London. His reporting has appeared in a range of regional and national publications, and he has written extensively on matters affecting residents, councils and public services throughout the capital.
