How decisions are made

Find out about decision making, council meetings, committees and our constitution

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