Dozens of senior council staff across the county earned more than £100,000 in one year alone, new figures show.

A total of 25 officers in Dorset (excluding Bournemouth and Poole) were awarded a six-figure sum in 2016-17 – an increase of nine employees on the previous 12 months.

Dorset County Council had the most officers (20) out of councils in the south west who received remuneration in excess of £100,000. Payments include salaries and pension contributions.

Top earners at DCC included chief executive Debbie Ward who received £181,000 – the highest town hall pay packet in Dorset – while director of environment and economy Mike Harries received £144,000, both of these included pension packets from the public purse of £31,000 and £25,000 respectively.

Meanwhile, at the Dorset Councils Partnership which includes Weymouth and Portland, West Dorset and North Dorset councils, chief executive Matt Prosser earned the highest pay packet last year, pocketing £147,582 while finance director Jason Vaughan pocketed £110,062.

At Purbeck District Council, chief executive Steve Mackenzie who had a payment of £100,000 was the only officer at the council with a six-figure salary.

The number of managers receiving huge payments has come under fire from public spending watchdogs at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, which compiled the data.

John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “The average council tax bill has gone up by more than £900 over the last twenty years and spending has gone through the roof.

“Disappointingly, many local authorities are now responding to financial reality through further tax rises and reducing services rather than scaling back top pay.

“Despite many in the public sector facing a much-needed pay freeze to help bring the public finances under control, many town hall bosses are continuing to pocket huge remuneration packages, with staggering pay-outs for those leaving their jobs despite a £95,000 cap passed by the last government.

“There are talented people in the public sector who are trying to deliver more for less, but the sheer scale of these packages raise serious questions about efficiency and priorities. The government must also act to implement the exit payment cap that was passed in 2016.”

Nationally, 2,306 council employees received more than £100,000 in 2016-17 and 558 received in excess of £150,000.

The Local Government Association, which represents councils, defended the high salaries, saying councils were large, complex organisations that often delivered more than 700 services.

A spokesman added: “It’s important that the right people with the right skills and experience are retained to deliver this work.”

A Dorset Councils Partnership spokesman representing West Dorset, North Dorset and Weymouth and Portland Borough Councils, said: “We have been working hard in the face of ever-reducing funding from government in order to find reductions in costs, at the same time as providing a consistent standard of service for our residents.

“The partnership between North Dorset District Council, West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council was formed in order to meet the challenge of these cuts head-on.

“Part of the formation of this partnership included a management restructure of three chief executives reduced to one. The partnership publishes an annual pay statement and the salaries of all senior leadership employees are split three ways between the three authorities, and therefore represent good value for money for our residents.”

Councillor Peter Wharf, Cabinet Member for Workforce at Dorset County Council, added: “All our staff provide essential public services to Dorset’s residents and are valued as our biggest asset.

"Through ensuring our staff work effectively, we are confident local people get value for money and we are committed to being open and honest about our pay details.

“The numbers quoted by the TaxPayers Alliance are confusing in that they have included pension contributions, making the salaries appear higher than they actually are.

"In addition to the employer’s contribution to their pension, each employee also pays a further amount of their own money into the pension scheme.

"Unfortunately the way the TaxPayers Alliance have presented their data, incorrectly inflates our staff’s pay.

“Added to this, Dorset County Council currently has jointly funded partnership arrangements with many other authorities which is why the numbers may appear higher.

"We always try to share senior posts where we can with other bodies, and ensure that the people in those posts work hard for us and our residents.

"Even taking these things into account, we do not recognise the figure of 20 as quoted by the TaxPayers Alliance.

"We believe a more accurate figure would be 17, however, this includes four head teachers of local maintained schools who are not direct employees of DCC.

"In true terms, therefore our actual figure would be 13 members of staff with a total remuneration package of £100k or more, as described by the TaxPayers Alliance.

“We monitor what we pay in comparison to other councils to ensure our pay levels are competitive. Dorset’s pay is fairly typical for South-West England, and is generally below those of councils in the South-East and other large metropolitan areas across the country.”

Purbeck District Council was contacted for comment.