We’re a charity which operates a variety of information and advice services. We have a main base and a small branch office some miles away. The local authority where the branch office is based has granted us some funds to extend the branch office service by having a second full time member of staff, with funds confirmed until March 2008. We propose to move an existing member of staff from the main office to the branch office and advertise her post at main office on the basis that 1) we know and trust her work and feel she’d be good at getting a new service off the ground at a distance from head office and 2) her post at the main office is only securely funded until December 2006 so we feel a moral obligation to offer her a more secure post. The local authority is insisting that we recruit by open advert and that the existing staff member should apply along with any others.

My main question is to do with the possible redundancy issue – are we right in thinking that we have to offer her the post (she’s keen to move to the new job and office)? December is a long way off at this point. She is on a permanent open-ended contract and the job descriptions for the two posts are almost identical.

Ross Williams