Council elects leaders and unveils new cabinet model of decision making
14 May 2026
Cheshire East Council has moved to a leader and cabinet model of decision making after re-electing its leader and deputy leader.
Councillor Nick Mannion and Councillor Michael Gorman unveiled the 10-member cabinet and their areas of responsibility at the annual meeting of council on Wednesday 13 May.
It marks the formal replacement of the previous committee system of decision making – following a decision taken by full council last September.
The new cabinet members and portfolios are as follows (cabinet deputy in brackets):
- Cllr Nick Mannion – Council leader, and public health
- Cllr Michael Gorman – Deputy leader, and strategic lead for economic development
- Cllr Mark Goldsmith – Highways and transport
- Cllr David Jefferay – Environment, sustainability and waste management
- Cllr Mick Warren – Planning, housing and regeneration
- Cllr Rob Vernon – Communities and engagement
- Cllr Dawn Clark – Finance, legal and enforcement (deputy Cllr Garnett Marshall)
- Cllr Jill Rhodes – Adult social care (deputy Cllr Sarah Bennett-Wake)
- Cllr Laura Crane – Statutory lead for children’s services
- Cllr Emma Gilman – Education and special educational needs and disability (Send).
The leader and deputy leader will also jointly sit on the newly created Cheshire & Warrington Combined Authority.
The move to a cabinet model is a positive and proactive measure to ensure the council has effective governance processes in place that enable decisions and improvements to be made at pace. The move will also streamline current decision-making arrangements and give more time and emphasis to scrutiny by councillors.
Cllrs Nick Mannion and Michael Gorman said in a joint statement: “The move to a leader and cabinet system will help the council focus on delivering effectively for residents by enabling us to be more agile, clear-sighted and ‘joined up’ in our decision making. Responsibility for decisions will also be clearer and more transparent for our communities.
“A new model of decision making is not a magic bullet, however. Nobody should underestimate the challenges facing local government – especially in the current turbulent economic and financial climate. We face many tough decisions ahead.
“No council can aspire to ‘do everything, for everyone all of the time’. We will need to focus our resources on delivering key services effectively and efficiently for residents, and especially for our most vulnerable people.
“Our transformation programme and the change to a cabinet system will help us progress on this journey. We firmly believe that council decision making has been given greater focus, clarity and cohesion by the changes made.”
For more information about the latest changes, see: Council composition and decision making