HOW will Ada Burns be remembered by the people of Darlington?

It is fair to say that the council’s chief executive divided opinion and that people with something nice to say about her were in a minority.

It’s unlikely that there will be a statue raised in her honour, if for no other reason than there isn’t the money to pay for such things nowadays. The last decade has been tough on local authorities as Government cuts forced them to make horribly difficult choices. No one will win a popularity contest by slimming down social services, street cleaning, flower displays and announcing the closure of a library or arts facility. The Government is happy to let town hall decision makers in the north face the brunt of public anger over Westminster’s cuts.

Whether any administrator, let alone one in charge of a medium-sized market town, deserves a £150k salary is up for debate, although Ms Burns argument that other handsomely paid public officials should face similar levels of scrutiny and accountability is a valid one.

She became an easy target for people quick to vent their anger about everything from shop closures to traffic snarl ups but slow to congratulate her for the good things she oversaw. 

One area where Ms Burns fell short was in failing to give Darlington a coherent vision. Good things are happening across the borough but they're in piecemeal form. The town lacks a big idea around which townsfolk can deploy their energy rather than harping on about what a great place this used to be.

After 13 years in the most influential job in town she leaves a place that is being buffeted by external forces rather than one in control of its own destiny.