Cllr Steve Count, Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council, Cllr James Waters, Leader of Forest Heath District Council, and David Gill, Chief Executive of the St John’s Innovation Centre (SJIC), have all joined the LEP Board.
Mark Reeve, Chairman of the LEP, said: “We are pleased to welcome David, James and Steve to our Board. It is an exciting time in the development of our LEP having recently secured an additional £21.1 million for the local area to spend next year and plans underway to bid for further funding to ensure our area’s future economic growth. By welcoming three new Board Members we will be adding a new dimension to our Board.”
(Image removed)Cllr Count and Cllr Waters have been elected as Local Authority representatives on the LEP Board following a democratic election process, whilst David Gill steps forward to fill the space left on the Board by entrepreneur and Angel Investor, Robert Swann.
Mark Reeve added: “The LEP Board has been in place for three years now, which means it is time for natural change in our composition. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Prof Sir Richard Friend, Robert Swann, Cllr Tim Bick, Cllr Martin Curtis and Allan Arnott for their hard work and dedication during their time as LEP Board Members.”
The LEP Board comprises 14 members: a business Chair, six additional business Board members, five local authority members, one education representative and one voluntary and social enterprise representative.
(Image removed)Cllr Waters, Leader of Forest Heath District Council, said:
“I have many years of business experience and while I am relatively new to local government, as Leader of Forest Heath and representing Mildenhall on Suffolk County Council, I look at opportunities with a fresh eye, and like every councillor, I want the best for the communities I serve. There are two thriving cities at the heart of the tremendous economic success of the diverse area covered by GCGP. I believe Cambridge and Peterborough need our more rural areas as much as we need them. It is our surrounding districts that provide the housing and quality of life for the city workforces for example. I am delighted to be joining the GCGP board, to work with them and to be a voice for all these districts.”
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David Gill, Chief Executive of St John’s Innovation Centre, said:
“Close understanding and cooperation across the public, private and third sectors is the obvious way forward for implementing economic priorities. The Enterprise Partnership plays a vital role in providing strategic vision and securing funding to turn that vision into a sustainable reality. Peterborough and Cambridge are remarkably complementary in their strengths and I am excited to join GCGP at a time when renewed optimism across the patch is being translated into growth.”
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