Future Local Lab
Local Government Explained
Local Elections England: 2026
The Shortlist: England & Wales
Community Champion
Cllr Samantha Murray
Suffolk County Council & Ipswich Borough Council
Cllr Harry Boparai
Surrey County Council
Cllr Kaleel Khan
Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council
Cllr Kamran Hussain
Bradford Metropolitan District Council
Leader of the Year
Cllr Bridget Smith
South Cambridgeshire District Council
Cllr Gavin Callaghan
Basildon Borough Council
Cllr Kevin Bentley
Essex County Council
Cllr Jane Ashworth OBE
Stoke on Trent City Council
Cllr Arooj Shah
Oldham Council
Cllr Sam Chapman-Allen
Breckland District Council
Lifetime Legend
Cllr Fran Oborski
Wyre Forest District Council
Cllr David Smith
Staffordshire County Council
Cllr Chris Best
Lewisham Council
Cllr Adrian Andrew
Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council
Cllr Linda Thomas
Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council
Cllr Roger Gough
Kent County Council
Young Councillor of the Year
Cllr John-Paul Ennis
Lambeth Council
Cllr Shanika Mahendran
Milton Keynes City Council
Cllr Emily Strudwick
Portsmouth City Council
Cllr Kieron Wilson
Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole Council
Cllr Jacob Allen
Brighton and Hove City Council
Innovator of the Year
Cllr Maryam Yaqub
Basildon Borough Council
Cllr Alan Quinn
Bury Metropolitan Borough Council
Cllr Alexander Ehmann
London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
Cllr Helen Whitehead
Thanet District Council
Thanks to our founding partners, CCLA
This year’s Awards are only possible thanks to the generous support of our founding partners CCLA.
CCLA is a leading specialist fund manager for local authorities and charities. When they began sponsoring the Cllr Awards they had 22 local authority client accounts. Today they have over 700 and this number is growing every month. CCLA are owned by their clients – their mission is to serve the whole sector, regardless of size.
LGIU supports local government every day
LGIU is a not-for-profit, non-partisan membership organisation. We are for local government and anyone with an interest in local democracy and finding local solutions to the global challenges that we all face.
Our resources, innovative research and connections are relied on by colleagues across the globe. We do our best for them, so that they can do their best for our communities.
