City of Wolverhampton Council Cabinet Members, Scrutiny and Committee Chairs and Vice-Chairs 2025/2026

The Cabinet

The Cabinet comprises the following Councillors. Lead roles are indicated below although it should be noted that these may be shared with the Leader or other Cabinet Members.

Leader: Thriving City Stephen Simkins

  • Our City: Our Plan
  • City Partnerships
  • West Midlands Combined Authority
  • International, national, regional and sub-regional Leadership
  • Financial Wellbeing

Health Wellbeing and Community Obaida Ahmed

  • Our City: Our Plan – healthy, inclusive communities Preventing Ill Health and reducing Health Inequalities
  • Starting and developing well
  • Healthy Life Expectancy
  • Healthy Ageing
  • NHS Partnerships
  • Public Health Commissioning
  • WV Active
  • Our City: Our Plan – fulfilled lives for all with quality care for those that need it

Our City: Our Plan – fulfilled lives for all with quality care for those that need it

  • Our City: Our Plan – fulfilled lives for all with quality care for those that need it
  • Community Engagement

Health and Care integration through the integrated care system, place-based partnership and integrated care partnership Health and Care reform including the fair cost of care and social care cap government reforms. Voluntary and Community Sector Partnerships

  • Health and Care integration through the integrated care system, place- based partnership and integrated care partnership
  • Health and Care reform including the fair cost of care and social care cap government reforms.
  • Voluntary and Community Sector Partnerships
  • Libraries and Community Hubs
  • New Communities and Migration
  • Community safety and community cohesion

Children, Young People and Education Jacqui Coogan

  • Our City: Our Plan – strong families where children grow up well and achieve their full potential
  • Children’s Transformation work (incl. specific funded programmes and national reform)
  • Strategic School place planning
  • School admissions
  • 0-25 Special Educational Needs and Disability
  • Our City: Our Plan – fulfilled lives for all with quality care for those that need it Children’s safeguarding incl. prevention of exploitation
  • Youth Offending
  • Children and young people partnership working
  • Education inclusion incl. behaviour, attendance, and elected home education
  • Children in need and in need of protection
  • Children and young people’s health incl. disabilities and emotional health and wellbeing
  • School governance
  • Home to school transport
  • Children and young people in care and care leavers
  • Children’s Services commissioning
  • Commercial services to schools
  • Children and Young People’s participation and engagement
  • Health and wellbeing for schools
  • Corporate parenting
  • Post 16 School Education provision
  • Early intervention, prevention and specialist services
  • Early Years
  • School standards and attainment

Jobs and Skills & Opportunities Paula Brookfield

  • Our City: Our Plan – more local people into good jobs and training
  • Adult Education
  • Further and higher education (incl. Wolverhampton College, training providers and universities)
  • Skills and employability including Careers advice,Wolves at Work, Impact and Workbox
  • Our City: Our Plan – thriving economy in all parts of the city
  • Strategic Planning, incl. Local Plan policy
  • Supporting City businesses

Stimulating Inward investment Economic growth and inclusion partnerships Delivery and implementation of the Strategic Asset Plan External relations

  • Stimulating Inward investment
  • Economic growth and inclusion partnerships
  • Delivery and implementation of the Strategic Asset Plan
  • External relations, Public Relations and Reputation Management
  • External relations, Public Relations and Reputation Management

and Reputation Management

  • Visitor Experience (Culture and Events)
  • City Marketing
  • Our City Our Plan - Our Assets - ensuring the city has a fit for purpose asset portfolio to meet current and future needs.
  • Our City Our Plan - Our Assets -

ensuring the city has a fit for purpose asset portfolio to meet current and future needs.

Governance and Digital Jeszemma Howell

  • Emergency Planning, Resilience and business continuity
  • Our City: Our Plan - Driven by Digital
  • Our City: Our Plan - Fair and Inclusive priority including equalities
  • Legal
  • Our City: Our Plan - Driven by Digital
  • Our City: Our Plan - Driven by Digital
  • Our Digital including the council’s digital and IT service

Our Digital including the council's digital and IT service Our Data including data and analytics

  • Democratic Services and School Appeals
  • Scrutiny

- Emergency Planning, Resilience and business continuity

  • Our Data including data and analytics
  • Digital infrastructure and connectivity
  • Digital Inclusion including digital skills
  • Digital innovation
  • Electoral Registration and Elections
  • Information Governance
  • Civic Support (Mayoral and Councillor Support) and Councillor Enquiries

Our City: Our Pian - Driven by Digital Our Digital including the council's digital and IT service

  • Digital innovation
  • Corporate Complaints and Feedback
  • Digital Projects
  • Digital Projects
  • Our People Strategy Incl. HR and Organisation Development
  • Customer Services
  • Registrars
  • Health and Safety
  • Archives

Deputy Leader: City Housing & Assets Steve Evans

  • Our City: Our Plan – good homes in well-connected neighbourhoods
  • City Housing Strategy and Housing Policies
  • City Prevention of Homelessness Strategy
  • City Housing Needs & Affordable Housing incl. Temporary Accommodation
  • City Private Housing Services Incl. Enforcement and Civil Penalties

Safer Homes incl. National Residential Building Safety Programme City Residential Landlord Services – Wolverhampton Homes Arm's Length Management Company City Residential Landlord Services – Tenant Management Organisations Right to Manage Tenant Organisations and Cooperatives City Housing Company – WV Living Ltd City Housing Development Strategy

  • Safer Homes incl. National Residential Building Safety Programme
  • City Residential Landlord Services – Wolverhampton Homes Arm’s Length Management Company
  • City Residential Landlord Services – Tenant Management Organisations Right to Manage Tenant Organisations and Cooperatives
  • City Housing Company – WV Living Ltd
  • City Housing Development Strategy

Resources Sally Green

  • Our Money including Medium term financial planning
  • capital strategy (incl. schools)
  • budget development process
  • treasury management strategy
  • Council tax and business rates
  • Housing benefits and council tax benefits
  • Procurement and Commercialisation
  • Audit and Corporate risk

Adults

Linda Leach

Our City: Our Plan – fulfilled lives for all with quality care for those that need it

  • Our City: Our Plan – fulfilled lives for all with quality care for those that need it
  • Adult Services Transformation work
  • Operational Social care provision for adults, older people, learning and physical disabilities, complex needs and mental health including:- Adult Safeguarding (MASH 24) AMHP Hub Carer support (paid and unpaid) Welfare rights information, advice and guidance (including Wolverhampton Information Network) Better Care Fund Adult care commissioning and market sustainability - Quality assurance and monitoring - Adult user engagement - Financial Assessments - CQC inspection framework
  • Adult Safeguarding (MASH 24)
  • AMHP Hub
  • Quality assurance and monitoring
  • Carer support (paid and unpaid)
  • Welfare rights
  • Adult user engagement
  • Information, advice and guidance (including Wolverhampton Information Network)
  • Financial Assessments
  • CQC inspection framework
  • Better Care Fund
  • Adult care commissioning and

City Transport Bhupinder Gakhal

  • Our City: Our Plan – climate conscious
  • Strategic Transportation
  • Operational Transportation incl. highways management and maintenance
  • Fleet management
  • Passenger Transport
  • Sustainability
  • Delivery of the 2028 climate commitment
  • Delivery of the 2041 climate commitment for the city
  • Parking Services

Resident Services Qaiser Azeem

  • Waste and Recycling Services
  • Public protection and consumer protection
  • Street cleansing
  • Grounds maintenance, parks operations, country parks operations
  • Licensing
  • Bereavements
  • Markets
  • Coroner

Scrutiny Board

Chair Philip Bateman

Vice Chair Lamina Lloyd

Scrutiny Panels

Chair Jasbir Jaspal

Vice Chair Rashpal Kaur

Adult

Chair Mary Bateman

Committees

Chair Ben Evans

Vice Chair Gurbax Kaur

Health

Audit and Risk

Mayor

Ceremonial Mayor Paul Singh

Ceremonial Deputy Mayor Wendy Thompson

Chair Val Evans

Vice Chair Leigh New

Children, Young People & Education

Chair Tersaim Singh

Vice Chair Lovinyer Daley

Economy & Growth

Chair Barbara McGarrity

Vice Chair Iqra Tahir

Governance & Ethics

Vice Chair Harbinder Singh

Pensions

Opposition Leader and Deputy Leader

Opposition Leader Celia Hibbert

Opposition Deputy Leader Anita Stanley

Chair Zee Russell

Vice Chair Craig Collingswood

Resources & Equality

Chair Jacqui Sweetman

Vice Chair Muhammad Nasim

Climate Change, Housing & Communities

Chair Alan Butt

Chair Paul Sweet

Vice Chair Jenny Cockayne

Licencing

Vice Chair Rob Siarciewicz

Planning