Supporters of dismissed Simon chief executive to call e.g.m.

Supporters of the dismissed chief executive of the Dublin Simon Community are planning to call an extraordinary general meeting and to table a motion of no confidence in the charity's board.

It has also emerged that a former chairman of the charity, Mr Ray Watson, last week resigned from the board in protest at Mr Greg Maxwell's dismissal.

The resignation was confirmed yesterday by a spokesman for the community, though he declined to give a reason.

Though Mr Watson could not be contacted yesterday - he is a volunteer with Dublin Simon rather than a member of staff, and so not at the Temple Bar offices - a well-placed source said his resignation was "over the situation" with Mr Maxwell.

"(Mr Watson) is by a distance the most experienced member of the board, having been a volunteer for nearly 20 years," said the source, a senior member of the community's staff.

Mr Maxwell was dismissed from the post of chief executive of the Dublin homelessness charity last week having held the post for nine years.

Though he requested a written explanation as to why his employment was terminated, none has been provided by the board or its chairman, Mr Ronnie Tucker.

No one from Dublin Simon is prepared to speak to the media, and statements are being issued through a communications company. It said Mr Maxwell was dismissed as he did not have the right "skill set" for the job.

While a number of issues appear to be behind Mr Maxwell's dismissal, a major factor is understood to have been the implementation of recommendations included in two independent reports on Dublin Simon, published in March.

One was on volunteerism, and the other on the future of perhaps its best known activity - the nightly soup run.

Mr Maxwell is known to have been enthusiastic about implementing the recommendations, which involved a more clearly defined role for volunteers, greater training and a reformulation of the soup run away from simply handing out soup and sandwiches towards specialised outreach work.

Mr Maxwell said he had been working with volunteers and the soup runners on the recommendations before his dismissal. He said volunteers "remain an integral part of the work of Simon. As the structure of homelessness changes, everyone (volunteers and staff) must adjust to those needs and embrace change."

He said the board had taken "a very long time to discuss" the reports, but ultimately approved joint proposals from staff and volunteers on implementing the recommendations.

Speaking last week Mr Maxwell said he would take legal action if the matter was not "resolved internally".

He told The Irish Times in recent days there were volunteers and staff working in Simon "to get the situation changed".