UK Government to reopen applications for new S4C Chair following years of turbulence

Martin Shipton

The UK Government has decided to invite fresh applications for the post of Chair of S4C following the most turbulent period in the Welsh language broadcaster’s history.

Letters sent by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to those who applied for the role earlier state: “I wanted to thank you for your continued patience in awaiting the outcome of your application whilst we worked through the preferred approach to this process following the general election.

“Ministers have now decided to launch a new campaign to attract the broadest possible field of applicants for the role. The new process will also seek to appoint up to five new Members of the Board.”

However, a DCMS source told Nation.Cymru: “The appointment process for the S4C chair has not restarted. No job advert has been published. We will provide an update in due course.”

Culture Secretary

Broadcasting is not devolved and the appointment of an S4C Chair is the responsibility of Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy. A broadcast industry source said: “Clearly with the change of government in July, the DCMS will be looking for someone it can work with.

“It won’t necessarily be someone who is or has been a member of the Labour Party, but it’s unlikely to be someone who has been allied with the Conservatives.”

In September said it was hoping to appointing a new S4C chief executive with the ability to manage individuals, teams and organisations “in a fair-minded, conciliatory way”.

Intimidated

The search for a permanent chief executive follows last year’s dismissal of previous CEO Sian Doyle, who was judged to have presided over a bullying culture where employees and others felt intimidated.

Ms Doyle was sacked after the delivery of a report by Cardiff solicitors Capital Law, who had interviewed large numbers of present and former S4C employees, as well as stakeholders..

The executive team is currently headed by interim chief executive Sioned Wiliam.

According to the job spec, the S4C board is seeking an individual who can lead it into the “next chapter” as it transitions to be a “fully digital” organisation in order to accommodate the changing viewing habits of its audience.

The successful candidate is expected to be an “inspirational leader”. They will demonstrate the ability to manage individuals, teams and organisations “in a fair-minded, conciliatory way”, as well as being creative in their approach to management and solutions.

The next chief executive will also have a track record of bringing staff and stakeholders “along a journey” while going through a period of transition.

Interpersonal skills

Candidates are expected to have “exceptional” interpersonal skills, and be natural communicators, with a “high level of emotional intelligence”. The role will require an individual who is comfortable engaging with S4C’s stakeholders, including staff, independent production companies, politicians in England and Wales and regulators.

“As S4C’s ambassador, the chief executive will share our vision, values and be willing to work with the board, S4C staff and the sector to bring that vision to life,” the job advert states. The deadline for applications was the end of September.

Ms Wiliam stepped into the full-time interim role for a six-month period in April this year to help steady the ship. She will remain in the post until her long-term successor takes over.

The Capital Law bullying report stated: “Many of the participants described situations where they had seen Sian Doyle behave abusively whilst discussing S4C colleagues and their work. This was described in various ways, but participants referred to her targeting specific colleagues in public and her use of swearwords and derogatory language whilst discussing them. This led to an unpleasant feeling and of mistrust among participants.

“There are numerous reports of the Chief Executive being rude or disparaging about colleagues in internal meetings or in public. Examples include:

* Disparaging comments about S4C programmes and their presenters.In one example, in relation to a specific programme, the Chief Executive was reported as saying: “who the f*** are [redacted – presenters]? Who is watching this rubbish?”

* “Sian Doyle just started talking about [a former staff member] who no longer works at S4C. She was just wild and then said:“he has to go. I’m not going to have anyone like that working here”. That is a paraphrase of her words. She was just telling a room full: “that’s it. He has to go. I’m going to get rid of him.”

* In one conversation about a colleague Sian Doyle was reported as saying: ‘She’s f***ing gone, she shows me no respect. I’ll get rid of her like that.’

“Participants reported that Sian Doyle’s leadership style was: ‘dictatorial creating a culture of fear’. Many of the participants described the negative impact of this on them and their work, with many being reluctant to challenge the chief executive and afraid to state their own ideas or views to her. We were told that this caused many S4C staff to feel generally scared in the workplace.

“An example of Sian Doyle’s leadership style was her alleged regular use of the phrase: ‘Shoot one and a thousand tremble’. This was raised by many participants and witnessed first-hand by three.

“There are many reports of people considering that they had to do what the chief executive said, whether they agreed or not, with her saying:’Are you with me or not, are you with me or not?’ and: ‘it’s me or the chair, you have to choose who you are loyal to, me or the chairman’.”

Challenging behaviour

The Capital Law report also referred to evidence of “challenging behaviour” by Llinos Griffin Williams, S4C’s chief content officer and a close ally of Ms Doyle’s. The report states: “An event was held for S4C staff at Boom Battle Bar in Cardiff on 19th April 2023, where it was alleged that Llinos Griffin Williams called S4C staff: ‘twats’ and blew smoke in a colleague’s face.”

In a separate matter, Ms Griffin Williams was dismissed for gross misconduct after an investigation undertaken by the broadcaster’s then chair Rhodri Williams concluded that she was guilty of gross misconduct for verbally abusing members of an independent TV production company while drunk in a bar during the Rugby World Cup in France.

Mr Williams was criticised by the Welsh Affairs Committee of the House of Commons during a hearing earlier this year and subsequently said he would not seek a second four-year term after his mandate expired at the end of March.

The interim chair is former Aberconwy Tory MP Guto Bebb, who is due to stay in the role until March 2025 or until a long-term successor is found before then. He said in April 2024 that he was keen for his successor to be found “as soon as possible”.

The trade magazine Broadcast has reported that following the general election, ministers are considering advice on the S4C chair appointment process, which will include a pre-appointment hearing with Westminster’s Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, of which Tory MP Dame Caroline Dinenage has been re-elected as chair.