A COUNCIL battling to keep its staff is to lose its education number two, just weeks after her boss said he was leaving.

Jill Baker, senior assistant director of education at Blackburn with Darwen Council, will still take temporary charge of the massive department in the New Year until a successor is found for departing director Mark Pattison.

She has been appointed to the top education job with Salford City Council and will take up her appointment after Easter.

The council said this month it would review middle-management pay and last year a review of senior officers' pay took it to the market standard. But council leader Coun Bill Taylor admitted that the authority could not compete financially with larger authorities.

Last month it was revealed that Director of Education Mark Pattison was leaving to head up Bradford's new privatised education department.

Then deputy chief executive Steve Weaver, the authority's overall number two, who is designated one of the town hall's three executive directors and who oversees the development of several areas including education, social services and welfare rights, said he was quitting for promotion to become the new chief executive of Blackpool Council.

Meanwhile, Steve Gallagher, also one of the council's three executive directors who work directly to the chief executive, has already moved to Knowsley on Merseyside.

Mr Weaver's role with Blackpool's unitary authority comes with a package of around £100,000 -- £20,000 a year more than Blackburn with Darwen's chief executive took when the authority became unitary. Mr Pattison will take a massive pay hike in his new role with a package of about £130,000 a year.

As well as three executive directors the council also has nine directors.

Phil Watson, the council's chief executive, said Jill Baker's promotion to a director position was a further example of how Blackburn with Darwen staff were sought by other authorities because of its reputation as a high achieving authority.

He said: "Jill is the second assistant director of education to have gained a director post in other authorities, and our director Mark Pattison has been appointed to the most challenging job in the education sector.

"Two of our executive directors have gained promotion to chief executive posts in other authorities: Steve Weaver to Blackpool following Steve Gallagher to Knowsley."

Councillor Taylor said: "The promotion of these senior staff to other organisations creates opportunities in ours, and because our salaries are competitive, and because of our reputation, we attract quality candidates to our senior posts.

"We have some good quality officers rising through the authority who we are seeking to nurture and develop so that they are capable of moving into higher positions at the appropriate times in their careers.

"Nationally there is a shortage of personnel in certain professions and because of this we will continue to ensure we are always prepared to look at ways of providing our services to ensure we maintain the highest quality of service for our residents.

"In the meantime they can be assured that we will continue to seek the best staff, to provide the high level of services they have come to expect."

Jill Baker said today: "I have been very happy at Blackburn with Darwen and have benefited hugely from the experience.

"There was only one other authority that I would have considered working for and that is Salford where I was brought up and went to school. I still live there and my children go to school there.

"I previously worked there and it is unfortunate that both the Blackburn with Darwen and the Salford director posts came up at the same time. The pull of my home city was just to great."

Councillor Mahfooz Hussain, executive member for education, said: "I want to congratulate Jill on her promotion. She will be a great loss to Blackburn with Darwen. having played a major role in our success as an education authority since becoming a unitary council. Her promotion is another example of the high quality of our staff and the demand for them in senior jobs in other authorities and the private sector."

Search begins for successor A COUNCIL spokesman said today that a high number of candidates had applied for the director of education post as the search began for a successor to Mark Pattison.

Mr Pattison has been at the helm of the education authority since it began, following local government reorganisation in 1998.

He has successfully managed the department through a series of changes,earning the authority beacon status and one of the best Ofsted reports in the country. He will leave early in the New Year.

Shortlisting for his successor was taking place yesterday following which a number of candidates will be invited to take part in a three-day selection process to find the new head of the education service.