Hammersmith & Fulham and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea have announced Nicholas Holgate will replace Derek Myers as the new interim joint chief executive.

Mr Holgate is currently town clerk and executive director of finance at Kensington and Chelsea, and will take on the post from November for an extended period.

He helped shaped the design of the shared service arrangements between the 

Tri-borough partners, which are due to save the three boroughs £43m a year by 2015-16.

Cllr Nicholas Botterill, leader of Hammersmith & Fulham Council, said: ‘Derek Myers is a very tough act to follow and, while we are sad to see him go, we know that Nicholas Holgate is also excellent and inspirational, and will lead from the front with real strength. We look forward to him taking up the role very soon.'