Leader of Harlow Council, Cllr Dan Swords, has been elected the inaugural Chairman of Harlow & Gilston Garden Town’s new Joint Committee.
Cllr Swords, the youngest Council leader in the country, is joined by Hertfordshire County Council’s Stephen Boulton who was elected Vice Chair.
The Joint Committee replaces the Garden Town’s previous governance structure which saw Guy Nicholson hold the role of Independent Chair from 2019.
“It is a significant moment in the future of not just Harlow but the areas that surround Harlow,” commented Cllr Swords on the formation of the Joint Committee.
“We have an enormous job to genuinely change the future for tens of thousands of people who live in this place and will come to live in this place over the next ten years.”
Speaking about the new Joint Committee, HGGT’s Director, Naisha Polaine said: “What residents are seeing is the natural evolution of the Garden Town as we move from planning to a delivery phase which we expect to see £1.3 billion of infrastructure funding come forward.
“We’ve got spades in the ground now on travel infrastructure works in Harlow and with that comes a new accountable decision making body that brings together elected Councillors from all five of our Garden Town Council partners.”
Joining Cllrs Swords and Boulton on the Garden Town Joint Committee are:
Cllr Ben Crystall – East Hertfordshire District Council
Cllr Nigel Bedford – Epping Forest District Council
Cllr Lesley Wagland – Essex County Council
Paying tribute to Guy Nicholson’s contribution to HGGT, Naisha commented: “Guy has been a fantastic support for the Garden Town and an excellent Chair.
“He has played a huge part in making Harlow & Gilston one of the most exciting regeneration and growth projects in the country.”
The Garden Town’s next Joint Committee meeting will be on Monday 22 July at Harlow Council’s Civic Offices and open to the public, both in person and online.
Talking further about the Joint Committee’s objectives, Naisha commented: “We’re here to deliver the ambitious good growth proposals for Harlow & Gilston across the four proposed Garden Town neighbourhoods, supporting 23,000 new homes and the community infrastructure that includes schools, healthcare, workspaces and town centre regeneration.”
