A council department was so mismanaged it resulted in an employee suffering a mental breakdown, a court has heard.

Steven Whiteside is suing Croydon Council for stress after suffering a breakdown in 2004, and has taken his case to the High Court.

He had worked for the council’s planning department since 1989 but resigned in March 2006 citing a major depressive illness from which he was unable to return to work.

His ex-boss Andrew Beedham, who also suffered a breakdown while working at the council, told the court how he regularly alerted bosses to the problems in his department which he encountered from day one.

A memorandum written to the assistant director by Mr Beedham in 1990 said there was no “structure for briefing project management or organising workload”.

It continued: “This will continue to have a detrimental affect on productivity and staff retention.

“I believe that without management it is inevitable...the department will suffer accordingly.”

Asked if he believed anything had changed since then and now, Mr Beedham said: “It is probably fairly similar.

“There has been commitment from the new chief executive [Jon Rouse] for project management but we are still I would say not in the situation that we should be in.”

He admitted the state of the department was nowhere near where he would liked to have been, having made regular reports to his superiors.

It is this chaos that Mr Whiteside claims led to his breakdown.

He told the court he was given no clear objectives while working on projects such as the Wandle River regeneration.

The landscape architect, 56, said the council told him he needed to “spread himself more thinly”.

He said he had suffered an earlier emotional crisis in 1999 but by November 2004 the lack of management resulted in sporadic days off sick.

By September 2005, a psychiatrist had diagnosed Mr Whiteside as suffering from "depression with psychotic features".

But Mr Beedham told the court Mr Whiteside was a disruptive force and the department went from “strength to strength” following his departure.

He said he “acquiesced” to what Mr Whiteside wanted and was “coerced” into writing what Mr Whiteside asked on his return to work form in 2004.

Mr Whiteside, from Upper Selsdon Road, is seeking substantial damages from the council, alleging a breach of its duty of care and negligence.

The council denies responsibility, saying they provided all support needed. The hearing continues.

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