TWO local authorities could soon be working together more closely - with the vision including a shared senior post.

To make best use of resources the arrangement is likely to include the appointment of a chief executive for Ryedale District Council who would also be assistant chief executive of North Yorkshire County Council.

It is also likely to include links between other back-office functions, such as finance.

Chair of Ryedale's policy and resources committee Cllr Luke Ives said: “This isn’t about one council taking over another, this is about us working together more effectively to help us both make the best use of our money.

"Sharing resources like this means we have the potential to work more efficiently, which ultimately helps to make the most of each and every taxpayer’s pound.

“In addition, the new arrangement has the potential to improve the way we work together across all our services to help deliver improvements for the communities we jointly serve.”

County councillor leader Cllr Carl Les said: "As councils, we share both the people and place we serve and it makes sense to look at how we can do this better together.

"We have similar arrangements in place in Selby, where we share our resources to improve the services we deliver jointly to our community."