Cllr Kairen Raper has been appointed as Mayor of Thurrock and Cllr John Kent elected as Leader of the council at Annual Council on Wednesday 22 May.
Cllr Sue Shinnick has been named as the deputy Mayor for the 2024/25 municipal year.
Cllr Raper said: "It is a real honour to take on the role of Mayor of Thurrock, it is something I am incredibly proud of and I look forward to the year ahead as mayor.
"I have lived in Thurrock all my life, I was born in Tilbury, went to school there and had my first teaching post there. I was a maths teacher, a maths adviser, education inspector and lecturer on a mathematics masters degree course. I am now retired but remain committed to improving the lives of children and young people in Thurrock.
"I intend to name Thurrock Foodbank as one of my mayoral charities. They do a fantastic job across all of Thurrock.
"As I now begin my year as mayor I promise to work for the benefit of all residents and show just how good Thurrock is. I am also particularly proud to say we now have a Tilbury girl as mayor!"
The new Leader of Thurrock Council Cllr Kent said: "It is an honour to be elected Leader and it is something I accept with a great deal of pride.
"We are all here to represent our communities, to offer help and advice to our residents and make some tough decisions about the future shape of public services.
"We cannot overstate the scale of the task ahead of us. We must return the council to financial sustainability and restore residents' trust in the council.
"It is vital we change the culture of the council from top to bottom, we need to be fully open, transparent and honest I am determined that we will put Thurrock, its residents and its communities first at every stage."
A new Cabinet was also appointed at Annual Council. The new Cabinet has 8 members, including the Leader. Cabinet members and their areas of responsibility are:
- Cllr John Kent, Leader of the Council – Strategic Relationships, Reputation and Influence
- Cllr Lynn Worrall, Deputy Leader of the Council – Overall Change and Improvement Agenda
- Cllr Vikki Hartstean – Children's Services
- Cllr Victoria Holloway – Place and the Environment
- Cllr Mark Hooper – Health and Well-being
- Cllr Valerie Morris-Cook – Community Partnerships
- Cllr Sara Muldowney – Resources
- Cllr Lee Watson – Good Growth
Photo below: Cabinet left to right, councillors Hartstean, Hooper, Morris-Cook, Kent, Worrall, Muldowney, Holloway and Watson.
