Guildford Borough Council’s Senior Leadership Team has been named Senior Leadership Team of the Year at the Municipal Journal (MJ) Awards, recognising their work to transform the organisation over the past two years.

In early 2024, the Council faced significant financial, governance and organisational challenges. Since then, under a new Chief Executive and Leadership Team, a comprehensive improvement programme has helped stabilise finances, strengthen governance and deliver measurable improvements for residents, particularly in housing services, highlighted by Guildford’s recent C1 rating. Key achievements include improved repairs response times, increased regulatory compliance, reduced call waiting times and restored financial resilience, alongside a renewed focus on culture, transparency and accountability.

Chief Executive of Guildford Borough Council, Pedro Wrobel said: “This award is a huge honour, and rightly belongs to the Council’s brilliant, hard-working staff. They have gone above and beyond over the last two years to ensure that we give the residents and businesses of Guildford the service they rightly deserve. This is only the beginning – we will continue to focus on improving things, and making Guildford a brilliant place to live, work and do business.”

Leader of Guildford Borough Council, Cllr Julia McShane added: “This award is an important recognition of the commitment and determination shown by our Senior Leadership Team during a very challenging period. They have approached the task with honesty and a clear focus on doing what is right for our residents. While we are proud of the progress made, we know there is more to do. We remain focused on continuing this work and ensuring we deliver consistently high-quality services for our communities.”

The Leadership Team has worked closely with staff, councillors and external partners to embed long-term change, with independent assurance confirming that the Council has made substantial progress. This award marks an important milestone in Guildford’s improvement journey, with a continued commitment to sustaining progress and delivering for residents.