A COUNCIL hopes to find a new chief executive next week when six candidates line up for a two-day selection conference.

They are all on a shortlist drawn up by Wear Valley District Council from applicants around the country.

It hopes to announce the name of its new chief following a meeting on Tuesday.

The post was created following the early retirement on health grounds of executive director Carol Hughes, who had been on sick leave since last April.

The council is streamlining eight departments into four as it carries out a review of all its operations.