A 'STRONG field' of 31 applicants have thrown their hat into the ring for the vacant chief executive's job at Breckland Council.

A “STRONG field” of 31 applicants have thrown their hat into the ring for the vacant chief executive's job at Breckland Council.

The closing date has now passed for those wishing to replace outgoing chief Trevor Holden in the authority's most senior officer role.

Mr Holden left the post last week to take up a similar position at Luton Borough Council.

Council officials now face the task of sifting through CVs and scheduling interviews to select the successful candidate, who will earn about �124,000 a year plus benefits.

Although the details of the applicants will not be released before the interview process, the council's political leadership hinted that many of the contenders for the job came with a strong business pedigree.

Breckland Council leader William Nunn said he was very pleased with the calibre of the applications.

“Like all local authorities, Breckland has difficult decisions to make in the current climate so it is important that we have someone of the highest calibre at the helm,” he said.

“We have a very strong field of candidates to choose from and I am particularly pleased that there are a number of applicants from a commercial background.”

At his final full council meeting last week, Mr Holden was hailed as “a hard act to follow” and praised for his leadership during three years at the helm of the authority.

At the meeting, the council agreed that deputy chief executive Mark Stokes would become the acting chief executive until a replacement could be found.

Breckland advertised the top job after South Norfolk District Council pulled out of a proposed deal to create a single paid staff under one chief executive.