JOHN Ballantyne, the chief executive of South Cambridgeshire District Council, has decided to take early retirement. His move comes as the district council implements a cutback in its top management team. The district council has already accepted an offer

JOHN Ballantyne, the chief executive of South Cambridgeshire District Council, has decided to take early retirement. His move comes as the district council implements a cutback in its top management team. The district council has already accepted an offer from David Hussell, director of development services to take voluntary redundancy. Mr Ballantyne, who has been with the district council for the past 13 years, will leave his position at the end of June. Council leader Cllr Sebastian Kindersley said Mr Ballantyne had seen the district council "through good times" and "the challenges of national policy". He described him as well-respected for his professionalism, integrity and loyalty. The shake-up in the management team is part of the council's priority of improving services, said Cllr Kindersley. "It aims to make work processes more effective and enable specialist professional officers to focus more fully on their areas of expertise. "It will help the council to make significant efficiency savings," he said.