Senior management

Structure chart

Download Cheltenham Borough Council's senior management structure chart.

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Senior management

You can see the details of our senior management below.

Gareth Edmundson, Chief executive

Gareth is Cheltenham Borough Council’s Chief Executive. In this role he:

• acts as the head of paid service. This is a statutory role meaning he has responsibility for all those employed by the council. This includes helping to make sure that the council is a great place to work and has a high performing and supportive organisational culture
• Works with the leader of the council and the council's cabinet, and has overall responsibility for delivering their priorities
• Leads everyone who works for the council in delivering all the services and functions that are provided by Cheltenham Borough Council that our residents and businesses rely on. This includes providing housing services maintaining around 5000 council homes and supporting the residents and families who live in them
• Drives the delivery of the council’s corporate plan and the priorities and ambitions within it
• Works with and promotes Cheltenham to a range of partners and stakeholders across the public and private sectors including academia

You can contact Gareth by email.

Claire Hughes, Director of governance, housing and communities (monitoring officer)

Claire Hughes is the council’s director of governance, housing and communities (monitoring officer). She has the specific duty of ensuring that the council, its officers, and elected members maintain the highest standards of conduct in all that they do.

Claire’s responsibilities include:

• Making sure decisions are made in a lawful and fair way
• Maintaining the council’s constitution
• Carrying out investigations into alleged breaches of the member code of conduct
• Helping with access to information
• Designated data protection officer
• Housing
• Housing strategy
• Communities
• Cheltenham’s Community Safety Partnership

Contact details

Claire can be contacted by emailing claire.hughes@cheltenham.gov.uk. For data protection queries email data.protection@cheltenham.gov.uk and for monitoring officer queries, including allegations of breaches of the members code of conduct, email monitoring.officer@cheltenham.gov.uk.

You can also find Claire on LinkedIn.

Gemma Bell, Director of finance and assets

Gemma Bell is the council's director of finance and assets and also fulfils the role of deputy section 151 officer.

Gemma joined Cheltenham Borough Council in 2021 as Head of Finance and her portfolio has since been expanded to also include strategic asset management, maintenance and compliance of the council’s property, decarbonisation and climate change. Having moved to Cheltenham shortly after taking the role, Gemma is passionate about making sure the council is supported in using the assets and resources available to maximise the benefit for the residents and communities in the town.  

Gemma's responsibilities include:

• Strategic and operational finance
• Strategic asset management
• Building repairs and maintenance, compliance and health and safety
• The delivery of the climate change action plan
• Revenues and benefits
• The operational delivery of the Council’s car parks; and
• Oversight of the counter-fraud function

Contact details

Gemma can be contacted by emailing gemma.bell@cheltenham.gov.uk. You can also find Gemma on LinkedIn.

Paul Minnis, Director of major development and regeneration

Paul Minnis is the council’s director of major developments and regeneration. His role is to lead in the delivery of development and regeneration solutions for the council’s land interests and key sites in the town to drive forward Cheltenham‘s economic recovery, including the Golden Valley Development, and our corporate priority of becoming the UK’s cyber capital.

Paul's responsibilities include:

• Delivery of key council sites, commercial joint ventures, high profile and complex development projects and drive forward regeneration schemes as part of Cheltenham’s economic recovery
• Delivery of the Golden Valley Development
• Working closely with strategic partners to establish and develop effective networks at senior levels to promote the council, including government bodies, other local authorities, Homes England, land owners and their agents, GFirstLEP and developers
• Leading partnering approach for the Joint Core Strategy and progression of all planning applications between Cheltenham Borough Council and the appointed development partner and other key stakeholders for the Golden Valley Development
• Planning advice and input for all major developments and regeneration schemes and strategies; maintaining effective working relationships with all relevant statutory bodies including the relevant local planning authorities, Gloucestershire County Council and other agencies
• Key infrastructure projects for the council, ensuring that relationships are effectively managed with key external stakeholders
• Implementation of the council's housing delivery strategy by facilitating the delivery of new homes both via the council acting as developer or working in partnership with other housing providers and developers
• Building control ensuring a high quality, technically experienced pool of professionals who deliver an excellent service

Contact details

You can contact Paul by emailing paul.minnis@cheltenham.gov.uk.

Tracey Birkinshaw, Director of community and economic development

Tracey Birkinshaw is the council’s director of community and economic development. She is responsible delivering on the council’s overarching vision and aspirations of making Cheltenham the destination to visit, meet and invest. By working collaboratively with key stakeholders, Tracey’s role supports Cheltenham’s place shaping agenda, delivering physical transformation, leading inward investment and creating conditions for jobs and growth contributing to the broader prosperity of the region.

Tracey's responsibilities include:

• Leading the planning service including development management; conservation and trees; statutory development plan making; neighbourhood planning; and enforcement and compliance
• Providing strategic leadership to develop and drive forward economic development and inward investment in the context of sustainable and inclusive growth
• Growing Cheltenham as a key visitor destination, with increased visitor numbers year on year through a robust destination management organisation, Marketing Cheltenham
• Strategic lead for culture, sport, leisure and events to ensure delivery of development outcomes for Cheltenham
• Working with director of major developments and regeneration, providing professional place making advice, guidance and support to key strategic projects

Contact details

Tracey can be contacted by emailing tracey.birkinshaw@cheltenham.gov.uk.

Caroline Walker, Director of housing, customer and community services

Caroline Walker is the council’s Director of housing, customer services and communities.

Caroline’s responsibilities include:

• Equality, diversity, and inclusion
• Leading the management of council tenancies and response to reports of ASB
• Housing customer services and complaints
• Community investment delivery  
• Sheltered housing for older people
• Safeguarding to prevent harm to residents and their families
• Cheltenham Serious Organised Crime and Exploitation group

 

Related Pages

• Senior officer salaries and staffing information