Bulwell councillor to add finance brief to deputy leader's role in city council reshuffle

Coun Radford who is already the Labour-controlled council’s deputy leader, will take over the post from Coun Linda Woodings,who will become the executive member for regional development, growth, and transport.

With finances the overriding subject surrounding the city council for the last year, Coun Radford picks up the baton at a time when the council’s bank balance is under intense scrutiny since it effectively declared bankruptcy back in November 2023.

Coun Radford’s new role is one of a number of changes being made to the council’s executive as it continues to try to drive improvement and battle resignations from the Labour Group.

Labour picked Coun Neghat Khan as the authority’s new leader in May last year, after Coun David Mellen announced he was stepping down after five years.

While the executive – senior councillors who are responsible for various departments – has remained largely unchanged ever since, some changes alongside those fo Couns Radford and Woodings, will be made at a meeting on May 12.

Coun Khan will remain as leader and executive member for strategic regeneration, property and communications.

Similarly Coun Jay Hayes will continue as executive member for housing and planning and another Bulwell councillor, Cheryl Barnard will remain in her position as executive member for children, young people and education.

Likewise, Coun Corall Jenkins will carry on in the position of executive member for neighbourhoods, waste and equalities.

Coun Sam Lux will only continue as the executive member for climate and energy until June this year, when her duties will be given to another member while she goes on parental leave.

A new face will join the executive ranks in Coun Helen Kalsi, who represents Bilborough, who will take on the role of executive member for adult social care and health, after Coun Pavlos Kotsonis resigned from this role in February, saying it had been ‘the right time for him to step back from the executive’.

Coun Khan told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “Over the last year, I’ve worked with members and officers to put us on the right footing to achieve that, and our recently approved council plan sets out our ambition and core priorities as a council.

“The changes to my executive team signal a decisive focus on delivering on that plan.

“Coun Radford’s dedicated finance portfolio will ensure our continued efforts to achieve financial sustainability are supported.

“Strategically strengthening our regional and national influence through Coun Woodings’ leadership on regional development and growth mean Nottingham will have a voice at the right tables, influencing those agendas.

“And Coun Kalsi’s fresh perspective, drawn from her healthcare background, offers a valuable addition to the team.”

The Labour Group at the council is currently being monitored by an improvement team.

A Campaign Improvement Board was established by the Labour Party’s ruling National Executive Committee (NEC), which provides strategic direction for the party as a whole, to offer ‘help and support’ to members following the appointment of commissioners.

Government commissioners were appointed last year after the council declared itself effectively bankrupt in November 2023, and have been overseeing critical improvements at the authority ever since.

The establishment of Labour’s Campaign Improvement Board also comes amid the continued resignation of city councillors from Labour.

Coun Nadia Farhat (Ind), quit in October 2023 over Labour’s stance on the Israel-Gaza conflict, former Sheriff of Nottingham Shuguftah Quddoos (Green) then quit last November over ‘devastating’ budget cuts and Coun AJ Matsiko (Ind) quit last month saying the party had abandoned its ‘core principles’.