Agenda item
Mayor's Announcements
To receive any announcements from the Mayor.
Minutes:
The Mayor made the following announcements:
(i) Alperton By-Election result
The Mayor began his announcements by formally congratulating and welcoming Charlie Clinton as the newly elected ward councillor for Alperton, following the outcome of the by-election held in that ward on Tuesday 18 February 2025.
Highlighting the rewarding nature of being elected to serve as a councillor and in being able to represent local residents, he took the opportunity to wish Councillor Clinton well during his remaining term of office.
The opportunity was also taken to formally thank the Chief Executive and all other staff involved for the successful delivery of the by-election, which it was recognised had required a significant effort to organise.
(ii) Kings New Years Honours List
The Mayor then moved on to continue his announcements by congratulating all those associated with Brent who had received an honour in the Kings New Year Honours list for 2025.
(iii) Holocaust & Genocide Memorial Day
The Mayor advised members that January had included this year’s Holocaust & Genocide Memorial Day event, which had included commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau & the 30th anniversary of the genocide in Bosnia.
In reflecting on the nature of the human tragedy involved, the Mayor welcomed King Charles III becoming the first British Head of State to visit Auschwitz-Birkenau in order to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day, with the events held serving to highlight the lessons for members from all faiths and communities about what could happen in allowing hate and discrimination to be tolerated.
(iv) HM Queen Camilla & Princess Royal visits to Brent
The Mayor advised he was delighted to have recently been invited to join Her Majesty Queen Camilla on a visit to the Asian Women’s Resource Centre in Harlesden to celebrate its 45th anniversary, which had highlighted the charity's vital support for women facing domestic abuse. During her visit, the Mayor reported that the Queen had met survivors of domestic abuse along with staff, and officially opened the centre’s new Healing Garden.
In addition, members were advised the borough had also received another royal visit in February when her Royal Highness The Princess Royal visited the Central & North West London NHS Foundation Trust’s Brent Occupational Therapy and Community Service at Church End and Roundwood Unity Centre. The Mayor advised that during her visit the Princess Royal had met with Occupational Therapists and members of the local Somali community to view the efforts being made to tackle health inequalities through Brent Health Matters, recognising the important nature of the work being undertaken in Brent.
(v) 107th birthday celebrations – Mrs Mary Thomas
Following the announcement made last year, the Mayor advised he was pleased to be able to share and celebrate the wonderful achievement of a local Brent resident Mrs Mary “Mama” Thomas reaching her 107th birthday. In celebrating this achievement, all members joined the Mayor in wishing Mrs Thomas a happy 107th birthday.
(vi) Mayor’s Charity Appeal event and thanks to Deputy Mayor
The Mayor then took the opportunity to thank the Deputy Mayor Councillor Hack for the work undertaken to cover his engagements during a recent short break away and also to remind members of his Charity Appeal event being held on Friday 7 March 2025 in support of his chosen charity, the Pakistan Community Centre. He hoped as many members as possible would be able to join him for what would be a special charity Iftar in support of the charity.
(vii) Passing of ex-Councillor K D Patel (husband of ex-Mayor 1996-97 Councillor Lata Patel)
The Mayor advised that it was with regret he had to announce the sad passing of former Councillor Mr. K. D. Patel. Members were advised that former Councillor Patel had served as a member of the Council during the 1990’s, with his dedication and commitment to making a positive impact on the local community he served fondly remembered by those who knew him.
On behalf of Brent Council, the Mayor offered his sincerest sympathy and heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of former Councillor Patel.
(viii) Changes to Senior Management Team
As a final announcement the Mayor took the opportunity to advise members of some key changes to the Council’s Corporate Management team that would shortly be taking effect.
Following the decision taken by Peter Gadsdon, Corporate Director of Partnerships, Housing & Resident Services, to retire from the Council, confirmation was provided that he would be leaving Brent in early April 2025. The Mayor advised that Peter had worked at Brent for over ten years including roles as the Director of Policy, Performance and Partnerships, Assistant Chief Executive, Strategic Director for Customer and Digital Services and then Corporate Director for Resident Services as well as holding directorships in the council’s subsidiary housing companies.
These various roles had involved Peter leading the delivery of services which the Mayor pointed out continued to meet the needs of the borough’s residents, including the effective use of technology to improve services and outcomes whilst increasing productivity and delivering cost efficiencies.
At the same time, members were advised that Debra Norman, Corporate Director of Law & Governance and Monitoring Officer, had also taken the decision to retire at the end of March. The Mayor advised that Debra had started with Brent in January 1996 and, having joined Islington Council for a period in 2007, then returned to Brent in October 2016 to take up the post of Director of Legal Services prior to being appointed to her current position. During her time at Brent her role had included leading the Council’s Audit & Investigations, Procurement and HR services in addition to the legal team and more recently Democratic Services, which had involved her working closely with many councillors.
In recognising their legacy, the Mayor felt it would be no understatement to highlight how much both Peter and Debra would be missed by everyone who had worked with them over the years. On behalf of the Council, he therefore took the opportunity to wish them both all the best in their future endeavours and to thank them for their service to the Council and residents of Brent.
All present at the meeting then joined the Mayor in a brief round of applause to thank Peter & Debra for their service to Brent and wish them well for the future.
(ix) Petitions
As a final announcement, the Mayor referred members to the list of current petitions tabled at the meeting, in accordance with Standing Orders which also detailed the action being taken to deal with them.