The Cabinet
The Leader of the Council chooses up to nine other councillors to become Cabinet Members. Each of these Cabinet Members looks after particular services and have specific responsibilities.
The Cabinet normally meets 11 times a year. These meetings take place in County Hall in Chelmsford and are open to the public. You can also watch on our ECC Democracy YouTube channel.
A typical Cabinet meeting includes discussion of key issues across members’ areas of responsibility, recommendations to Full Council about policy or the budget and any urgent issues that have come up.
Cabinet Member decisions
Cabinet Members can take decisions about matters within their area of responsibility, as long they don't go against council policy.
Decisions that have a significant impact on spending or services are known as Key Decisions. These have to be published in the Council's Forward Plan before being acted upon.
All decisions are subject to a three-day call-in period. This means that if a councillor on a Scrutiny Committee asks for the decision to be reversed or reviewed it must be looked at by a Committee.
Members of the Cabinet
| Member | Area of responsibility |
|---|---|
| Kevin Bentley | Leader of the Council |
| Peter Schwier | Deputy to the Leader |
| Derrick Louis | Deputy to the Leader |
| Louise McKinlay | Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Community, Equality, Partnerships and Performance |
| Lewis Barber | Deputy to the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Community, Equality, Partnerships and Performance |
| Beverley Egan | Children’s Services and Early Years |
| Mark Platt | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Children's Services and Early Years |
| John Spence | Adult Social Care and Health |
| Holly Whitbread | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health |
| Tony Ball | Education Excellence, Lifelong Learning and Employability |
| Andrew Sheldon | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Education Excellence, Life Long Learning and Employability |
| Lee Scott | Highways Maintenance and Sustainable Transport |
| Lewis Barber | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Highways Maintenance and Sustainable Transport |
| Laureen Shaw | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Highways Maintenance and Sustainable Transport |
| Christopher Whitbread | Finance, Resources and Corporate Affairs |
| Sue Lissimore | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Finance, Resources and Corporate Affairs |
| Lesley Wagland | Economic Renewal, Infrastructure and Planning |
| Tom Cunningham | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Economic Renewal, Infrastructure and Planning |
| Malcolm Buckley | Waste Reduction and Recycling |
| Bob Massey | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Waste Reduction and Recycling |
| Graham Butland | Devolution, the Arts, Heritage and Culture |
| Mark Durham | Deputy to the Cabinet Member for Devolution, the Arts, Heritage and Culture |