Past activity & assignments.

Community Involvement
His work has included Crime & Disorder/Community Safety, better Community Engagement, Leadership & Cohesion, getting key agencies (elected members, council officers & staff, the Police, Fire & Rescue, health, the local media) to understand and respect each other & work better together.

Training
He has worked with Students at University level & with various youth & community groups and has trained across different cultures & backgrounds. He is at home with all Key Stage learners. He has worked with young people all around England. Abroad he's worked in France, Germany & Poland. He once ran a session with young people from England, France, Germany, Turkey & Belarus.

“Trade” Media
He has regularly appeared in & on all local, regional, national, international & various "trade" media. He is a regular columnist in his local media.

Conferences
He has addressed or chaired numerous conferences on numerous subjects - locally, nationally & much further afield. He's as happy addressing 2000 politicians or professionals as he is on a street corner talking with a stressed community.

• He has chaired & shared platforms with government & shadow ministers, senior civil servants, academics & others.
• He's at home talking with everyone in the public, private & "third" voluntary, community and Faith sectors.
• He is clear, confident, coherent & convincing in front of microphone or camera.

Professional Youth & Community Work. 1973 to 2006.

• Worker-Urban/Rural, Multi/Mono Ethnic.
• Manager-Strategic/Operational.
• Trainer-In House/University.

Public Service.

• Elected Member 1980 – 2004.
• Committee* Chair 1984 – 1998.
• Policy & Resources 1984 – 1998.
• Mayor/Deputy Mayor 1989 – 1991.
• “Exec” Member 1997 – 2001.
• Deputy Leader 1994 – 2001.
• Leader 2001 – 2004.

Key Events.

• “Working at Leisure” Report. 1986/7.
• 2000 top LEA OfStEd – “a remarkable, unique record unparalleled elsewhere”. Top mark for political leadership.
• ODPM’s Strategic Partnering Task Force.
• Making sense of modern local governance.

• Pioneer Public-Public Partnership with Rochdale LEA. Turned their LEA around.
• Groundbreaking Public-Private Partnership with Capita. National/International model of innovation & excellence.
• Six Beacons:-
  • 2001 School’s Improvement
  • 2002 Business Growth & Libraries as a Community Resource.
  • 2003 Developing the School Workforce.
  • 2005 Delivering Services in rural settings
  • 2009 FE & HE in Colleges 

• Member of Urban Renaissance initiative.
• “Excellent” CPA. His leadership receives special comment by Sir Brian Briscoe (former LGA Chief Exec).

• National ODPM Innovations Forum. Lead on Education & Engaging Young People.
• Council of the Year 2002.
• Knighthood 2003 for Services to local government in Lancashire.

• Pilots on:- EAZ, I&DeA Peer Review, PSA’s.
• Speaker/Author/Trainer on various aspects of public services development & delivery – locally, regionally, nationally, Europe & global.
• Guest Speaker at Business Processes Outsourcing Conference, Melbourne 2004. Invited back for wider tour of Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney & Brisbane 2005. Involved in hosting the return “Ashes” leg here in UK in 2007.

• Mentor for many staff and members internally & externally with the I&DeA, Middlesbrough & LB Waltham Forest Councils.
•  Originator of:-
  • Council/MP’s briefings.
  • Leader’s/Leadership/Joint leadership processes.
  • “Belonging” social engagement/community cohesion campaign.
  • “Thrash the Trash” environmental agenda/campaign.
  • “Ngage” young people’s engagement/cohesion agenda/campaign.
  • Making Sense of Modern Local Governance/Public Services “scrabble board”.
  • Resource Mapping approach.
  • Public Service Management Boards – “LSP’s with Teeth”.
  • Council Leader’s “Surgeries”, council.leader@ e mail service.
• All the above now nationally recognised/replicated as examples of best practice..